Watervliet City School District
Watervliet, New York

Board of Education
Regular Meeting
Date: September 13, 2022
Type of Meeting: Regular Meeting
Meeting Opened: 6:04 p.m.
Where: Watervliet Jr.–Sr. High School

Board Members Present: President, Sheri Senecal
Vice President, Mary Beth Whited
Brian White

Board Members Absent: Heather Soroka
Timothy Delisle

Superintendent: Dr. Donald Stevens Jr.

Student Council Rep: Cassandra Zawistowski

The meeting was opened at 6:04 p.m., with President Senecal officiating.

Public Comment

There were no public comments.

Reports/Comments

A. Superintendent’s Report

Dr. Stevens shared the following:

• We had a great start to the school year.
• Thank you to Ms. DeMento and Mrs. Zawistowski for co-chairing the Welcome Back Celebration. Be sure to check out the district’s Facebook page for a video of Tito and I being dunked.
• Thank you to the board members who attended the Welcome Back Celebration and opening day.
• We are in our second week of school. Things are going smooth. We have lots of new staff acclimating to their roles and responsibilities. We have a terrific administrative team that are working well together.
• I will turn it over to a couple of them to share how things are going with their buildings or programs.
• COVID is still a thing. If you have symptoms, stay home. We have tests available in any of the nurse’s offices and at the front doors of either building. We have seen cases pop up. We have plans for substitute coverage because we know some staff will need to be out to isolate. If you know anyone who wants to sub, send them our way.
• We had an August graduate. We will be giving them their diploma this week.
• We received news today that one of our P-Tech students earner their associate’s degree. It is exciting to see that they successfully completed to program and got their diploma, in addition to a two-year associate’s degree.
• Next week is the kick-off of meet-the-teacher nights. UPK – grade 2 is September 20, Grades 3-5 is September 21, and the Jr. – Sr. High School is September 22.
• Starting Sunday, I will be attending the NYSCOSS conference in Saratoga.

Ms. DeMento shared the following:

• EPK is full and UPK is almost full. There are five openings left.
• We have new visitor software. It is up and running at the high school and will soon be at the elementary school as well. Whenever anyone comes in, a photograph of their license will be taken and a visitor’s badge will be created. It also prints out late passes for students arriving late to the high school.
• Overall, things are going well. We still. Have a lot of new students registering every day.

  Mr. Groat offered the following:

• Catherine and I have been welcomed with open arms at the elementary school. Thus far, it has been very positive.
• Changes to kindergarten orientation went very well. We received a lot of positive feedback.
• We had a 5th grade locker setup night, which went well.
• We are settling in and already screening and assessing students.

Mrs. Richards noted the following:

• We had a really great start to the year. We have received positive feedback from teachers that they are excited and things are going well.
• The building looks great, thanks to maintenance staff who worked hard all summer.
• Each grade level had an opportunity to meet with their assistant principal and myself to review expectations related to book bags, lockers, attendance, etc. We are building a culture of being positive, present, productive and proud.
• We had our first SST meeting today.
• Lunches are going smoothly.
• Our girls’ volleyball team is doing very well.
• Open house is the 22nd from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.

Mr. Wareing shared the following:

• The mergers with Heatley have gone very smoothly. The hardest part has just been getting the kids back and forth from Heatley to here for practices.
• We are looking at finalizing mergers for baseball, softball, and outdoor track for the spring.

Ms. McGrath noted that she has been in both buildings and has received the warmest welcome. I am so happy to be back. I’m meeting with teams and getting on board and it has been really positive.

Cassandra Zawistowski shared the following:

• Thank you for allowing me to provide the Student Council Report.
• \Thank you to everyone who worked so hard on the Welcome Back Celebration. It was a very nice event and it was great to see so many people attend and have fun. Hopefully it can become an annual event.
• Picture day will be this Wednesday, September 15.

B. Committee Reports

Audit Committee

Mrs. Senecal noted that the Board has sent a note to the previous members of the committee and we are just waiting to hear from them to see if they are still interested in serving.

Policy Committee

First Reading of Revised Policies:
Regular Board Meetings and Rules (Quorum and Parliamentary Procedure)

Board of Education Discussion

Mrs. Whited stated that the Welcome Back Celebration was awesome, everybody did a great job, and there was a ton of people there. She stated that her only regret is that she worked the entire thing and didn’t get to dunk Dr. Stevens. She said it was a great event.

Mrs. Senecal stated that she wasn’t able to attend the event, but she heard so many great things and she saw the video that was posted on Facebook today, which was very well put together. It was fun to see Dr. Stevens participating. Thank you to the board for their participation in the event.

Items Requiring Board Action

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board rescinded the probationary appointment of Jennifer Vigo to the position of School Counselor, in the tenure area of School Counselor at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted the resignation of Arianna Dockstader, from the position of Lunch Monitor at the Watervliet Elementary School, effective June 21, 2022, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted the resignation of Shaquise Herring, from the position of Cafeteria Worker at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, effective August 12, 2022, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted the resignation of Paige Jensen, from the position of Cafeteria Worker at the Watervliet Elementary School, effective August 19, 2022, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted the resignation of Rose Morales, from the position of Food Service Worker at the Watervliet Elementary School, effective September 5, 2022, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following:

Due to her untimely death, discontinue the employment of Melanie DiSalvo, Grade 2/3 Teaching Assistant, for the ExTRA Summer Program 2022, effective at the close of business on July 14, 2022. Ms. DiSalvo began working with the district on October 7, 2021, as an employee of the Boys’ and Girls’ Club, in the District’s Universal Pre-K program. The district extends its deepest condolences to her family.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Stacy Meppen to the position of ELA Teacher, in the tenure area of ELA 7-12, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 4 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2026, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Stacy Meppen holds an ELA 7-12 certification, (certificate #151496211).

On a motion by Brian White, seconded by Mary Beth Whited and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency appointment of Alexis Vesey to the position of Long-Term Substitute Math AIS Teacher, at the Watervliet Elementary School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 salary, per contract, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Angela Aubrey to the position of Math Teacher, in the tenure area of Mathematics 7-12, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 17 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2026, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Angela Aubrey holds a Math 7-12 certification, (certificate #339938031).

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Madelyn Degler to the position of School Counselor, in the tenure area of School Counselor, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 2 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2026, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Madelyn Degler holds a School Counselor certification, (certificate #1229778181).

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Andrew Marro to the position of Social Studies Teacher, in the tenure area of Social Studies, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2026, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Andrew Marro holds a Social Studies 7-12 certification, (certificate #156953221).

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Thomas Hayes to the position of Physical Education Teacher, in the tenure area of Physical Education, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 9 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2025, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Thomas Hayes holds a Physical Education certification, (certificate #158309071).

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the probationary appointment of Claudia Bunting Marshall to the position of General Science Teacher, in the tenure area of Science, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning October 11, 2022, at a Step 9 salary, plus master’s degree and credit hours, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on October 11, 2026, contingent upon achievement of effective or highly effective APPR ratings necessary to receive tenure throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d. Claudia Bunting Marshall holds a Generalist in Middle Childhood Education certification, (certificate #16292792211).

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Yvonne Coiteux to the position of School Nurse, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a salary of $47,000.00, plus RN stipend, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2022.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Arianna Dockstader to the position of Teaching Assistant, in the tenure area of Teaching Assistant, at the Watervliet Elementary School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 salary, plus Associate or Bachelor degree stipends, as per contract contingent upon receipt of required NYS certification. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2026, contingent upon positive evaluations from his/her direct supervisor throughout his/her probationary period, consistent with the requirements of Education Law Sections 2509, 3012-c, and/or 3012-d.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Samantha Coles to the position of Library Aide, at the Watervliet Elementary School, beginning September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 Teacher Aide salary, plus Associate or Bachelor degree stipends, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 6, 2023.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the emergency probationary appointment of Taylor Daniels to the position of Keyboard Specialist, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, beginning September 2, 2022, at a salary of $26,000.00, plus Associate or Bachelor degree stipends, as per contract. The probationary period shall expire on September 2, 2023.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the appointment of Frank Parisi to the position of Long-Term Substitute General Science Teacher, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, effective September 6, 2022, at a Step 1 salary, per contract, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the transfer of Jasmine Mattock from the position of Lunch Monitor to the position of Food Service Worker, at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, for a probationary period beginning September 6, 2022 and ending September 6, 2023, at an hourly rate of $15.00, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the probationary appointment of Chloe Swinney to the position of Cafeteria Worker, at the Watervliet Elementary School, for a probationary period beginning September 6, 2022 and ending September 6, 2023, at an hourly rate of $15.00, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the probationary appointment of Emily Shufelt to the grant-funded position of Part-Time Cafeteria Worker, at the Watervliet Elementary School, for a probationary period beginning September 20, 2022 and ending September 23, 2023, at an hourly rate of $15.00, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Brian White, seconded by Mary Beth Whited and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the appointment of the following staff as Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School Club Advisors for the 2022 – 2023 school year, at a rate as per contract, as recommended by the Superintendent:

Joanna Beams Homework Help (Middle School)
Stephanie Sutton Study Table/Homework Help (High School)
Ashley Dorn Drama Club
Madeline Rehm Drama Club Assistant
Yuriy Berin Game Club
Kim Barkamian Book Club Co-Advisor
Joe Dievendorf Book Club Co-Advisor
Yuriy Berin Masterminds
Rebecca Sweeney Newspaper
Valerie Ellison Homework Help (Middle School)
Caitlyn Santiago Art Club

On a motion by Brian White, seconded by Mary Beth Whited and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the appoint the following staff as Watervliet Elementary School Club Advisors for the 2022 – 2023 school year, at a rate as per contract, as recommended by the Superintendent:

Rosie Sharpe Book Buddies Co-Advisor
Michele DeGuire Book Buddies Co-Advisor
Janice Sogoian Academic Enrich./Homework Help Co-Advisor
Khalan McNeff Academic Enrich./Homework Help Co-Advisor
Rachel Manning Game Club
Andrew Cowie Drama Club
Heidi Waldron Substitute Advisor
Janice Sogoian Book Club

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following teaching overages for the 2022 – 2023 academic school year at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, as outlined in the attached, effective September 7, 2022, as recommended by the Superintendent:

• Joe Facin (+.2)
• Meg Matuszek (+.2)
• Dan Lindemann (+.2)
• Meg Fronczek (+.2)
• Rebecca Sweeney (+.2)
• Kim Barkamian (+.1)
• Dan Mueller (+.2)
• Chris Curtis (+.2)
• Todd Birmingham (+.2)
• Lyndsay Mattice (Moore) (+.2)

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the appointment of the following Coaches for the 2022– 2023 school year, pending fingerprint clearance and fulfillment of NYSED coaching requirements, at a rate as per contract (unless outlined below), as recommended by the Superintendent:

WATERVLIET JUNIOR-SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Coaching Fall:

Varsity Football Volunteer: Rodney Dukes, Matthew McGrath

Girls’ Varsity Volleyball: Mikayla Rossier
Girls’ Junior Varsity Volleyball: Michele DeGuire
Girls’ Modified Volleyball: Thomas Hayes

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following:

WHEREAS, pursuant to the requirement of Education Law Section 3012-c and Part 30-2.9 of the Rules of the Board of Regents, the individuals named below have completed all the necessary training to be certified and/or recertified as lead evaluators of classroom teachers;

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby recertifies the following individuals as lead evaluators of classroom teachers:

Catherine Casey
Kirsten DeMento
Michael Foust
Ryan Groat
Molly McGrath
Jessie Richards
Kelly Webster
David Wareing

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following:

WHEREAS, pursuant to the requirements of Education Law Section 3012-c and Part 30-2.9 of the Rules of the Board of Regents, the individual named below has completed all the necessary training to be recertified as lead evaluator of building principals;

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby recertifies the following individual as lead evaluator of building principals:

Donald Stevens Jr.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted the Internal Claims Auditor Report for the month of August 2022, submitted by Michaeleen Backus, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the approve the following payment requests, submitted by Keith Heid, Business Manager, as recommended by the Superintendent:

WATERVLIET 2021 CAPITAL PROJECT – ADDITIONS & ALTERATIONS

• Gallo Construction
  Payment App #015
  $189,833.78
• DLC Electric, LLC
  Payment App #016
  $9,357.50
• R.F. Gordon Mechanical, LLC
  Payment App #012
  $49,984.62

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following:

WHEREAS, the Watervliet City School District Board of Education (BOE) seeks to undertake a capital project consisting of building renovation, storage building expansion, loading dock reconstruction, retaining wall reconstruction, pavement upgrades, digital school sign installations and electrical/stand by generator installations at the following sites:

• Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School
• Watervliet Elementary School

WHEREAS, the Watervliet City School District will utilize American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant and budgetary appropriations from the 2022 – 23 General Fund Balance for the cost of the capital project.

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education approves the following to cover the 2022 ARPA Project capital project expenses:

• $1,890,000.00 to be expended from the ARPA grant.
• $234,960.00 to be expended from the 2022 – 23 General Fund Balance

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the construction documents and permit applications shall be submitted to New York State Education Department Office of Facilities Planning for examination and approval of final plans and specifications and for issuance of the building permit for the 2022 ARPA project.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the Agreement for Services between the Watervliet City School District and Chelsea Place Psychological Services for support services for individuals with disabilities and/or social/emotional, cognitive and/or behavioral challenges, effective August, 2022 – June 2023, as outlined in the attached, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the Board of Education Minutes for the meeting held August 9, 2022, submitted by Bernadette L. Boardman, Clerk of the Board, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the Committee on Special Education’s recommendations for the meetings held June 28, August 9, August 10, August 11, August 12, August 22, August 23 and August 24, 2022, submitted by Veronica Bedard, CSE Chair, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the Committee on Pre-School Special Education’s recommendations for the meetings held June 27, August 10, and August 17, 2022, submitted by Sarah Horaczek, CPSE Chair, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved and adopted the attached Athletic Handbook 2022–2023 for the Watervliet Jr.–Sr. High School, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the home schooling request of the parent/guardian of A.V., a student in grade 2, for the 2022–2023 school year, as recommended by the Superintendent.

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board approved the following Student Teacher request at the Watervliet Jr. – Sr. High School, as outlined below, as recommended by the Superintendent:

• Name(s): Benjamin Candib
  Role: Student Teacher/Intern
  Cooperating Teacher(s): Louisa Boehlert Vaughan
  Date: Fall 2022 / Spring 2023 Semesters

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited, seconded by Sheri Senecal and unanimously accepted, the Board accepted, with thanks the $2,500.00 donation from Richard and Susan Denue, to the Watervliet Elementary School, to be used to purchase needed classroom supplies for students in UPK, Kindergarten and 1st grades, as recommended by the Superintendent.

Board of Education Discussion

Mrs. Senecal noted that the next BOE meeting is October 11. She offered condolences to the family of Miss DiSalvo.

Adjournment

On a motion by Mary Beth Whited seconded by Brian White and unanimously accepted, the Board adjourned at 6:22 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Bernadette L. Boardman
Clerk of the Board