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You are Here: Fairfax County Public Schools > Departments, Clusters > Superintendent's Office > Superintendent's Community Advisory Council > SCAC Minutes October 12, 2004
Superintendent's Community Advisory Council
SCAC Minutes
May 17, 2005
Lynn Terhar opened the meeting and called on Jack Dale for updates.
Dale noted that May is "testing month." He said the few speakers at public hearings on the budget spoke about starting times for high schools. He said a letter was going out to the West Springfield community about the School Board's consideration of boundary changes in that area and about the process through which citizens' views will be heard and considered. He said there are some overcapacity and some undercapacity high schools, requiring boundary changes. The School Board will review an analysis of boundaries in July and probably make decisions over the next year. Possibilities of increased population in the southern part of the county due to military base realignment assigning more people to Fort Belvoir and possible rezoning to allow denser development in Tysons Corner are among the issues that will be considered.
Dale discussed the retreat that he and other FCPS leaders and others spent in Chicago to rethink teachers' jobs and the ways they are compensated for work beyond teaching. Some good ideas came out of this, and they will be discussed with the School Board in the year ahead.
Dale opened a discussion of advisory councils to the Superintendent and advisory committees to the School Board.
Jeanine Martin noted that the Gifted and Talented Advisory Committee was not listed. She said that GTAC members think their role is to represent the community and tell staff members what is going on, but the staff advises members and runs meetings. More input is needed from parents.
Terhar said her constituency wants more two-way communication.
Lynn Dysart asked that SCAC meetings be scheduled for the same day and week of the month all year. She also said that staff members on advisory committees have a vote by being staff members and should not be able to control committee recommendations. Committee members' constituencies expect them to be ombudsmen. If committee members do not have this role, that should be made clear.
Mary Tycz said it would be helpful to have a history of each committee, so that members could know what each committee was charged to do. There should be more two-way communication and more attention to the 70 percent of adults without kids in school and to students.
Boyce Williams said it should be made clear that these are advisory committees and that members' comments are taken into consideration. She said starting from scratch to develop a set of advisory committees is the right approach. She also said that the county's demographics are not represented on committees. The National School Boards Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers both say there are too many advisory committees in many school systems.
Laura Bassett said that some people who had been on advisory committees told her they had never felt that they had been asked for advice. Others had no idea that advisory committees existed but wanted to serve on them.
Dick Reed said advisory committees need more direction from the Superintendent and less "push" from members. The Superintendent should specify some of the topics for the year, and there should be less overlap of people serving on several committees. The Superintendent needs more voices saying different things. Having SCAC meeting minutes on the public website is great, and more advisory councils should have this. SCAC should coordinate more with the Business and Industry Advisory Council and should have more representatives from the 70 percent of residents who do not have children in school.
Andrea Sobel said the same people show up on all the committees. She said that minorities will come to committee meetings if one reaches out to them.
Brenda Greene said that those who appoint representatives to advisory councils need to hold their representatives accountable for attending meetings and otherwise participating in committee work.
Laura Floyd said there are inconsistencies in the ways that councils and committees operate, including the ways they handle minutes, attendance, agendas, and expectations for members.
Katie Lynch said that although there is some diversity on SAC, there should be more reaching out to get more two-way communication; this is more important now than it has been.
Ellen Oppenheim asked if committees exist to flesh out ideas or actually to provide advice and to put issues on the table.
Rick Baumgartner said it is difficult to find leaders and participants and to get minority parents involved. He noted the inconsistencies in the ways committees are run (e.g., whether they take votes or not).
Steve Spero suggested having each committee member bring a minority student and the student's parent to a meeting.
Tracy Pless said the NVAR was able to get minorities on the Real Estate Board by specifically inviting individuals.
Ken Kay said his constituency is very diverse. He noted that FCPS does not have enough bus drivers and suggested this might be mitigated by allowing for more front-line feedback to managers and more feedback to workers as to why they cannot do things they suggest.
Greene said that the School Board policy on advisory committees is a mishmash.
Todd Rowley said that committees should not vote if they are advisory.
Lynch said councils and committees need a standardized format and specific procedures.
Williams said committees need clarity, consistency, and congruence as well as broad representation.
Terhar said agendas should be defined for councils and committees. They should not exist to provide political cover; there should be fewer "dog and pony shows" at meetings.
Dale said that the discussion had made it clear that the biggest issue with councils and committees is lack of clarity about what the role of each council or committee is.
Terhar opened the meeting to members' issues.
Sobel said that the process for hiring principals should be the same for every school.
Elizabeth Freed said that the FCPS recycling program is not fulfilling its contract. She said that Herndon High School makes money recycling.
Reed said more teachers need to attend PTA meetings.
Tycz said the excess properties plan is a hot issue with the Federation.
Baumgartner said everyone needs to support legislation to allow school systems to open school before Labor Day.
The meeting was adjourned.