Committee to be formedHow should district spend $1.78M in EXCEL aid"



GUILDERLAND — The school district here has been allocated $1.78 million in state funds for buildings, and will put together a committee to advise it on the best way to spend the money.

At the same time, the school board last Tuesday accepted state-required annual reports that show all parts of its five elementary schools and high school are in satisfactory shape. The high school, in Guilderland Center, went through a $23 million renovation in the late 1990s.

The middle school, off of Route 155, which was updated and expanded in a $19 million project completed last fall, was also deemed satisfactory, although a half-dozen of the 46 categories, including roof, windows, and communications system, were rated excellent.

The transportation building, built in 2003, got an overall rating of excellent.

And, while the district office building, located near the middle school off of Route 155, was rated satisfactory overall, it had the only unsatisfactory ratings. Six categories were rated unsatisfactory — drainage; electrical; foundation; roof; ventilation equipment; and heat, ventilation, and air-conditioning control system.

Part of the office building had originally served as a clubhouse for the golf course on which the middle school was built over three decades ago.
"That place is falling apart," said board member Peter Golden.
The district office building "is potentially overstressed," according to the five-year capital facilities plan.

It also notes moisture and mold problems and says drainage around the building needs to be added due to ground elevation changes made during the reconstruction of Route 155 two years ago.
"The electrical system needs to be evaluated," the report says. "It appears the possibility exists the building may have two separate feeds from the middle school. This would be a code violation."
The report also states, "It appears that administrative needs are close to outgrowing the present building. It is recommended that the district consider cost/benefit review of improving the existing building versus building a new structure."

School board President Richard Weisz asked about leasing district office space since state aid for offices is not what it is for instructional space. While district-office needs were brought up early on in discussions for the middle-school project, they were not included in the end for fear the project might be voted down.

On the elementary schools, the five-year plan states that detailed inspections indicate the need to upgrade or replace electrical systems, roofs, and telephone systems.
"Some electrical distribution panels are fifty years old and circuits are currently maxed out for usage," the report says.

It estimates electrical upgrades at Altamont would cost $169,000; at Guilderland, $219,000; at Westmere, $214,000; and at Lynnwood, $60,000. The fifth elementary school, Pine Bush, was built more recently and doesn’t need an electrical upgrade.

There are pavement concerns at Westmere and Lynnwood, the report says, and radiant heating systems in the 1950 - 1960 sections of the elementary schools don’t meet today’s standards in heating and air quality, the report says.

Additional elementary-school needs include updating fire-code and public-address systems, replacing gym floors, complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act, replacing interior doorway glass, meeting various plumbing needs, and replacing floor tiles.
The report estimates the cost for "highest priority" repairs to all of the district’s buildings at $2.59 million.
"There’s always sticker shock," said Weisz on the cost of maintaining district buildings.

Committee to form
Assistant Superintendent for Business Neil Sanders proposed establishing a facilities committee to develop a plan "with an emphasis on the needs of the five elementary schools, district-wide instructional technology, and to maximize the use of the district’s $1.78 million EXCEL allocation."

The state’s program, a one-time offer, stipulates that EXCEL (Expanding our Children’s Education and Learning) Aid can be used in addition to the district’s normal state building aid as long as the combined aid does not exceed the project’s total cost. Eligible projects include those related to education technology, health and safety, accessibility, and energy.

Although members were in favor of the proposal, the vote was postponed to Jan. 23 at the suggestion of board member Colleen O’Connell, to conform with board protocol of discussing an issue the meeting before voting on it.

The board agreed that two board members should serve on the committee along with the superintendent, the assistant superintendent for business, an elementary principal, the chief technology specialist, the building and grounds supervisor, a math and science supervisor, a maintenance mechanic, an office worker, three teachers, and three Parent-Teacher Association members.

Sanders said that the committee will present recommendations to the board in June. The committee will work in conjunction with an architect, Sanders said. The architect will be chosen based on a request for proposals.

Weisz said the emphasis will be on the elementary schools because the middle school and the high school have had renovation and expansion projects more recently than the five grade schools.
The committee may recommend using just the $1.78 million or it may recommend using that as "seed money that may or may not involve additional funding," said Weisz.

He also said that, if a member of the community is interested in serving on the committee, he or she should let the superintendent know.
"We either use this money or we lose this money," said Golden.

Board Vice President John Dornbush asked if the district office could be considered by the committee. Sanders said that it could.

Other business

In other business, the board:

— Set the tuition rate for 2006-07, based on state figures, for out-of-district secondary students at $10,265, for elementary students at $7,112, and for kindergarten students, in a half-day program, at $3,832.

Superintendent Gregory Aidala said that the district currently has four non-resident students paying tuition to go to school in Guilderland;

— Approved raises for non-unit workers to $33 per game for score/timekeepers.

For substitute teachers, rates were increased at the middle school to $15 for each additional period, and at the high school to $40 for one block, $60 for two blocks, $85 for three blocks, and $95 for four blocks, with an additional $5 per block after 40 days;

— Fired Roger Fallon as a monitor at Guilderland High School, effective Dec. 22, 2006; Fallon had worked for the district since Nov. 13, 2001;

— Adopted policies, discussed earlier, on home-schooling and student records;

— Established a Citizens’ Budget Advisory Committee, which will meet a half-dozen times in televised sessions, beginning March 1.
"It’s a no-cut club," said Weisz, adding that some districts are emulating Guilderland.

He also said that volunteers have to do their homework as they will be interrogating administrators who present the budget.

The deadline for signing up is Feb. 16, said Aidala, noting that four people had already done so. The target number is 25, he said, and letters are being sent to last year’s members as well as to PTAs and community groups;

— Heard from Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Nancy Andress that the Capital Area School Development Association has published an article by Lisa Patierne, administrative dean at Guilderland High School.
Her article, "Process of Positive Transition Ensures Student Success," outlines her work on high-school transition for ninth-graders;

— Learned that three Guilderland teachers — science teacher Alan Fiero at the middle school and English teachers Michael Pipa and Aaron Sicotte at the high school — have been certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
To earn the certification, Andress said, the "teachers spend many hours of hard work and reflection and have to complete a detailed application and portfolio";

— Heard congratulations for sophomore Zagreb Mukerjee whose paper on Mohandas Gandhi’s struggle in South Africa, which Mukerjee wrote for the 2006 National History Day competition, will be published in the quarterly scholarly journal, New York State History;

— Heard from Weisz that the public is invited to comment on criteria for the new superintendent; sessions were scheduled for Jan. 10 and 18.

Aidala has announced he is retiring in November and the board has hired the Capital Region Board of Cooperative Educational Services to help conduct the search for his replacement.

The public will be asked to comment on the same four questions that board members commented on in a meeting held on Jan. 4, under the supervision of Capital Region BOCES District Superintendent Barbara Nagler and Assistant District Superintendent for Instruction Kathryn Gerbino.

Participants will be asked about positive aspects of the district and what should be strengthened; they will also be asked what the most important characteristics for the new superintendent are and what he or she should handle first.

Board member Barbara Fraterrigo suggested that the three finalists be interviewed in a televised session. O’Connell said she knew of a school district where that went poorly and she also said that, in New York State, candidates are allowed to remain confidential;

— Heard a recommendation from board member Hy Dubowsky that videos be made of various school events and district activities to be aired on the local public-access channel. He suggested Andress serve as the master of ceremonies.
Andress said that Nicholas Viscio, the district’s media specialist, used to make such videos. "That can be done," she said.

Weisz asked Cathy Barber, who heads the board’s communications committee, to look into it once the committee has finished with its coffee klatches, where board members chat with the public; and

— Met in executive session to discuss performance reviews for administrators and supervisors, and to review administrative contracts.