TCSC Board Meeting - August 13, 2019

A member of the Board may request any item to be removed from the consent resolution and defer it for a specific action and more discussion. No vote of the Board will be required to remove an item from the consent agenda. A single member's request shall cause it to be relocated as an action item eligible for discussion. Any item on the consent agenda may be removed and discussed as a nonaction item or be deferred for further study and discussion at a subsequent Board meeting if the Superintendent or any Board member thinks the item requires further discussion. (ByLaw 0166.1)
It is recommended that the following Consent Agenda Items be approved:
Approval of the Agenda
Approval of Minutes

• July 9, 2019 Regular Session
• July 17, 2019 Special Session
• July 23, 2019 Executive Session

Approval of Claims

• Payroll Claims 7.17.2019
• Payroll Claims 8.2.2019
• Accounts Payable Claims

Approval of Personnel Report
Approval of Field Trips (Overnight and/or Out-of-State)
Approval to Accept Donations

• Encompass Credit Union, $350 TMS 

• We would also like to thank Encompass Credit Union for again sponsoring the corporation newsletter.  They have been doing this since we started publishing the digital newsletter. They pay for the cost of the newsletter and in return, they have an ad included
• We congratulate the Pride of the Tipton Blue Devils Marching Band for their 19th place finish at the Indiana State Fair.  We are proud of their showing and representing the Tipton community.
• TCSC will be conducting monthly tests of our mass communication system- Thrillshare.  We conducted our first test last week (August 7). The monthly tests are conducted on the first Wednesday of each month at 6:00 PM. If anyone does not receive this test message, they should contact their child's school.
• We are in the process of introducing the Raptor Visitor Management System.  Visitors will need to present their drivers' license that will be taken and scanned.  The scanning alerts personnel to anyone who is on the sex offender registry or has custody issues.  An alert is then sent to school personnel to come and assist.  Identifying name badges are issued for the visitors.  Information about Raptor has and will continue to be sent to parents.
• One of the things that has been asked for is open calendar where parents and community members can see everything that may be going on at the schools. We have partnered with EventLink to do just that.  Parents can go to EventLink and subscribe to those clubs, athletic events, and other activities they wish to follow.  Activities will better defined within the new couple of weeks as we put EventLink in place.  Schools have sent out information through their newsletters.
• Enrollment.  As of today our enrollment is at 1497, down 35 from this time last year but that is 7 more students than we had projected, and 17 more students than the McKibben forecast.  That number is still fluid as students continue to enroll and withdraw over the next couple of weeks.  Our Kindergarten numbers are up from recent years (106).  We continue to monitor the 5th grade, our largest class with 136 students, with an average class size of 27 students. The official ADM count day is September 13.
• 1st day. School has started in a very positive way.  The maintenance and custodial staff has done another outstanding job in preparing the buildings for the new school year.  Teachers were ready and provided a welcoming environment as students began the new school year.  Bus drivers made that extra effort to make  sure students arrived at school and more importantly got on the right bus to make sure they got home OK.  We welcomed new staff members to our schools as well as new students.  We appreciate everyone -staff, students, and parents in helping get this school year  off to a great start.
• 1st Responders Friday.  A new program that TCSC is hosting this year is 1st Responders Friday.  We are inviting 1st Responders serving TCSC to have lunch at the Tipton schools on the first Friday of each month.  The only requirements are that 1st Responders come in uniform and eat lunch with the children. The first lunch will be September 6.
• Tipton Academy.  The first class of the first Tipton Academy met yesterday.  Twelve community members were invited to participate in the Tipton Academy.  The academy's purpose is to: Improve community engagement by creating a team of ambassadors who will learn from, provide input, share our message, engage others and will grow in numbers over time. Among the activities of the first day was having THS students doing an excellent job of providing at our of the buildings and grounds.
• Collective Bargaining - Public Hearing.  New to the collective bargaining process this year is the requirement to have a public hearing to receive public comments regarding collective bargaining.  This public hearing will take place on August 22 beginning at 6:00 PM in the Administration Office.
• Teacher Evaluations.  You have been provided a report showing a summary of the ratings of the teacher evaluations for 2018-2019.  These are not finalized yet as we are waiting for the results of the 2019 iLearn assessment to do the final calculations.  Of the 106 teachers evaluated, 62% were rated as Highly Effective and 38% were rated as Effective.  The report also has the Executive Summary of the teacher evaluation process.
• We have received notice that TCSC's application for the 2019 Safe Haven Grant has been accepted.  TCSC will be receiving $10,000 in matching funds to help support the PBIS's PRIDE Program.
• Outstanding School Board 2018.  The TCSC School Board was recently recognized as an Outstanding Board by the ISBA.  Outstanding Board recognition requires a majority of a school board to individually earn at least 75 points (Level 1), including points earned attending a core meeting. This demonstrates that the school board stays informed on educational matters to better serve the school community.