At the regular March meeting of the Falcon School District 49 Board of Education, directors addressed a full agenda, including the proposed formation of a digital board of cooperative education services.BOCESiConnect Zone Leader Kim McClelland presented the Colorado digital BOCES proposal as an action item since it had been discussed at previous meetings. According to the proposal, the rationale behind the creation of a digital BOCES is to facilitate the growth of the online and blended learning model to better fit the needs of the student population statewide. Additionally, the formation of the digital BOCES provides a way for D 49 to reduce current administrative costs by sharing them with the BOCES.Through the formation of the digital BOCES, D 49 can partner with an institute of higher education to operate online-based models of instruction and learning. The models bring together the latest technology and best practices with online and blended learning methods for increasing student academic success.ìThe BOCES will offer our educators a greater opportunity to use online and blended techniques,î McClelland said. ìBy partnering with institutes of higher education, I do believe this is going to make a difference for a lot of people.îThe BOE unanimously approved the formation of the BOCES and entered into a Memorandum of Understanding that ensures the continuation of the BOCES for at least five years starting March 15, 2013, and ending June 20, 2018. This will be the first BOCES of its kind in the state.Strategic planAs an action item, Don Begier, acting chief education officer, presented information for the districtís strategic plan, which outlined key strategies, performance indicators and measureable outcomes. Begier also said that going forward the district will be intentionally developing its information technology infrastructure for the educational, operational and business sectors of the district. The use of this plan will help guide the district for the next 15 years, he said.ìIíve been in the district 10 years and we have not ever had a strategic plan moving forward,î said Tammy Harold, board president. The strategic plan unanimously passed.Other approved itemsThe board also unanimously approved the following action items: the Unified Improvement Plan for all district schools as required by Colorado law; an IT contract with Colorado Computer Support in the amount of $1.2 million for the 2013-2014 school year; contractual changes with special service providers to review and renew each contract annually; and salary ranges for the top positions in the district to provide consistency and accurately reflect the organization of the district.From the schoolsJessica McAllister, D 49 Homeschool Enrichment Program manager, presented information about its projects, including the fundraising and construction of a playground for the school. McAllister said the program will hopefully continue to expand and eventually include grades nine and beyond.Nicole Paxton, Patriot Learning Center assistant principal, discussed the schoolís general education development program, which showed a 100 percent pass rate on the GED exam for all program participants. Paxton also reported that PLC is ranked second out of 17 alternative middle schools and 12th out of 60 alternative high schools in Colorado.The career and technical education program director, Nikki Lester, presented information about the future of the CTE program in the district. She said about 71 percent of high school students in the district are enrolled in at least one CTE class. Currently, CTE classes are offered at Falcon and Skyview middle schools; Lester said her goal is to incorporate all middle schools in the district.Mike Pickering, curriculum, instruction and assessment director, has taken over the Power Zone innovation leadership role for the remainder of the 2012-2013 school year. Bob Felice, a D 49 employee for five years and the former Power Zone innovation leader, has resigned from the district for health reasons. Budget and legislation/Power ZoneBrett Ridgway, chief business officer, updated the board on the status of the 2013-2014 fiscal year. Because of inflation, the district will receive less per pupil funding than initially anticipated, he said. The projected budget is down about $1 million; however, with knowledge of the potential cuts, the district can react and move quickly, Ridgway said.Pickering presented the revised Power Zone innovation plan for discussion. Pickering said, with the help of the community, revisions to the plan included three new components: curriculum, evaluation and a zone-wide proposal process.BOE Attorney Brad Miller voiced concerned that some of the new state senate legislation could challenge aspects of the plan. A lengthy discussion of the proposal followed, and the board advised Pickering to bring back a more specific approach to measuring student growth ñ which was addressed at a March 27 work session. More on this in May.The next regular board of education meeting is April 11 at 6:30 p.m. in the board room education service center.
