Board of Trustees - Minutes
January 28, 2005 MINUTES
Meeting of the Board of Trustees
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
The regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) was held in Room 116 of the Administration Building, located at 1100 West 45th Street, Austin, Texas on January 28, 2005.
Call to Order: Debbie Louder, Vice President, called the meeting to order at 10:35 AM. In addition to Debbie Louder, the following Board members were in attendance: Gene Brooks, Jamie Wheeler, Janet Ardoyno, Mary Sue Welch, Toby Galindo, and Donna Clopton.
Introduction of Audience: Others in attendance at the meeting included Phil Hatlen, Susan Houghtling, Kim Nagy, Barney Schulz, Malcolm Cleveland, Miles Fain, Debra Nesbitt, Russell Gregorczyk, Cyral Miller, Carol Vaughan, Sharon Maynard, Brenda Gregory, and Lauren Newton.
Public Comments/Open Forum: There were no public comments.
Consideration of Approval of Minutes of November 18, 2004 Board Meeting: Donna Clopton moved that the November 18, 2004 minutes be accepted with the proposed addition. Toby Galindo seconded the motion. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Report from the Program Committee:
Consideration of Approval of Board Policies: Jamie Wheeler presented policies BBFA-E, BDF, BE, EHA, EHAA, EHAB, EHBC, EHBF, EHBH, EHBJ, EHBK, EHDD, and EHDE to the Board for approval. The Program Committee moved to table consideration of policies BBFA and BBFA-E until the next Board meeting. Since the motion for approval came from the Program Committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous. The Program Committee moved to adopt and amend the following policies as presented in the Board Agenda: BDF, BE, EHA, EHAA, EHAB, EHBC, EHBJ, EHBK, EHDD, EHDE. Since the motion for approval came from the Program Committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous. The Program Committee moved to not delete policy EHBF, but instead to maintain all the language presented in the policy except for the language in the paragraph “Applicability” which is proposed as: The following provisions apply to the school in the event the school receives federal career and technology education funds. 19 TAC 75.1021. Since the motion for approval came from the Program Committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Consideration of Approval of Membership to the School Health Advisory Council: Jamie Wheeler asked that the Board consider appointing Laura Boenig as an alternate parent member to the School Health Advisory Council. As an alternate, she would fill in when other parents were unable to participate. The committee moved to accept the recommended appointee. No second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Reports from Instructional Program Directors: Miles Fain reported on Comprehensive Programs. A new publication from Curriculum called “Transition to Adult Life”, edited by Debra Sewell, Peggy Wade and committee, was given to the Board. Mr. Fain reminded the Board that Peggy Wade had given an overview of this project in the spring of last year, and this is the completed product. A handout was then given to the Board on developing self-determination curriculum and integrating it across varying student levels. This was also the update presented to the Instructional Planning Council, where parents and community members provided positive feedback on this subject.
Cyral Miller, Director of Outreach, reported that they just completed training on Quality Programs for Students with Visual Impairments (QPVI), with both in-state and out-of-state participants. The Taking Charge Workshop will be this weekend, and Ms. Miller invited the Board to come join them at the Marriott Hotel at 7pm. Ms. Miller also reported on her recent trip to Melbourne, Australia, where she gave 4 presentations at the South Pacific Conference for Educators of the Visually Handicapped. She stated that many professionals there use our website regularly, and are familiar with terms like National Agenda and Expanded Core Curriculum. They adopted a set of “Principles and Strategies” that are based on our National Agenda.
Lauren Newton reported on Special Programs. Part of today’s exchange of information included visits by school board members to the Short Term Programs classrooms. Dr. Newton stated that we currently have a local teacher of one of the students attending the short-term program for two days in order to learn the technology that her student is learning. Sharon Nichols is providing the training. This is uncommon, since Outreach normally handles teacher training, but the circumstances allowed for her participation with this program. Mary Sue Welch added that this teacher had expressed to her that she had learned much, and was very thankful to have been allowed to join. Peggy Brisco, a Special Programs teacher, suggested a way to obtain a wide range of low vision and other technology hardware and software from vendors at little or no cost. Currently we are unable to introduce students to many devices because we cannot afford them. We would set up a demonstration lab here on campus for use by short-term program students when they are here. Certain staff from Outreach and Comprehensive programs would also have access to the labs, to show TSBVI or visiting staff and parents the range of options that are available. The benefit to the vendors would be that academic students would learn about and request appropriate technology they use at TSBVI.
Report from the Personnel Committee:
Consideration of Approval of Board Policies: Donna Clopton presented policies DBB, DBD, DBE, DC, DCA, DCB, DCD, DCDC, and DH to the Board for approval. The Personnel Committee moved that the policies be accepted as presented. Since the motion for approval came from the Personnel Committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Discussion of Costs and Control of Sick Leave Usage: Debra Nesbitt presented information regarding the costs and control of sick leave usage. She stated that there is not much that we are allowed to do to control this. First of all, there is very little incentive from the state for employees to save their sick leave. All employees earn one day of sick leave per month, with no cap on accumulation, but there is no pay out for unused sick leave upon termination. The only incentive is that it may be used for additional retirement service credit, but this is not very important to short-term employees. The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides that eligible employees may be off work for up to 12 weeks in a 12 month period with no loss of job security or benefits. If an absence is covered under FMLA, there may not be any adverse consequences to the employee for the absence. An employee must have medical documentation when an absence extends beyond the third consecutive shift, and the employer may require medical documentation for shorter absences. At TSBVI, we can use this option to require medical documentation if the pattern of leave use suggests possible abuse of sick leave. Two incentives that were previously used at TSBVI to control sick leave usage were awarding Performance Leave for consecutive months of no unscheduled absence, and documenting poor attendance in performance appraisals, which could negatively impact the likelihood of getting merit raises. However, both Performance Leave and merit raises have not been available recently because of budgetary reasons. In addition, any system of reward or consequence for leave use must not penalize for FMLA use and must not exclude FMLA users from a reward. Efforts to discern legitimate sick leave use from leave abuse could have the effect of more FMLA use or ADA accommodation claims. Efforts to control sick (or other unscheduled leave) use are difficult to make cost effective within the state leave system.
Discussion of Rehiring Retirees: Debra Nesbitt stated that under state law there are no restrictions other than that the retiree must be off the state payroll one full calendar month. Under TSBVI policy DEG, a position must be posted to the public, and the retiree must apply in competition with qualified applicants, both internal and external. We are required to post jobs with Texas Workforce Commission. Before the position is posted, the following issues are considered: 1) the position might not be filled; 2) the position might be filled with different responsibilities and/or a different salary, or at a different percentage of time, 3) the position might be posted for internal applicants only, in which case the retired employee would not be eligible to apply for the position. Employees know that they have no guarantee of re-employment in their own or any other position after retirement. Once the employee has retired, the state no longer has to contribute to the retirement fund on his/her behalf. The ex-employee does not accrue additional retirement service credit. The ex-employee is not “double dipping” because the annuity is paid from the retirement fund, which is the investment income earned on the employees’ and employers’ contributions, not from the state treasury. The retiree would be paid the retirement incentive, which is 25% of the last 12 months of their base salary, and therefore the agency would incur that cost, regardless of whether they rehire the retiree or hire someone new. TSBVI has had 24 staff receive the incentive to date. Of those, 17 have been rehired. Jamie Wheeler asked when people will start retiring for good. Ms. Nesbitt stated that projected retirements for each general category of staff are addressed in the Agency Strategic Work Force Plan. Dr. Hatlen added that we have an aging administrative staff, and we will have a significant retirement rate soon. He stated that when asked if the administrators had plans for succession, most did not or it was only an informal plan. Ms. Nesbitt noted that some employees that are being primed for succession get frustrated when positions do not open up, and then decide advance their career elsewhere. She stated that another way we are being mindful of future retirements is by stressing documentation of responsibilities, which she feels will be the key to successful transition.
Discussion of Employment of a Volunteer Coordinator: Debbie Louder requested that this item be rolled into the next agenda item.
Discussion of the Needs of TSBVI for a System of Better Utilization of Volunteers and for More Active Fund Development: Phil Hatlen reported that he met with Paul Goebel, Senior Community Relations Specialist at the Department of Aging and Disability Services, and discussed with him what the former Mental Health and Mental Retardation Department (MHMR) has done regarding the use of volunteers. Mr. Goebel said that historically MHMR has not done well in developing ways to use volunteers, which Dr. Hatlen stated is similar to our experience at TSBVI. We have tried very hard to create a volunteer mentor program here, but it has not succeeded, partially because we have been trying to work with the American Council for the Blind (ACB) and the Austin Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and have not received much response. Another problem with establishing a mentor program is that we think our students equate the word “mentor” with “tutor”. MHMR uses the term “visiting friend” instead. Dr. Hatlen proposed that we put together a task force to assess our volunteer needs and the need for a full-time volunteer coordinator. Dr. Hatlen asked if we can have an employee of the school work solely for our non-profit. Carol Vaughan answered that she did not believe we could have an employee working solely for the non-profit. Ms. Vaughan asked Ms. Welch about the scope of the mission of the non-profit. Ms. Welch said that the non-profit mission was to serve all blind children of Texas, which would include the students at TSBVI. Ms. Vaughan said that, under the bylaws of the nonprofit, it would be possible for a donor to make a donation to the non-profit and that no part of the donation would go to TSBVI. Janet Ardoyno explained that volunteerism and fundraising link together, because the people who volunteer become your committee members for fundraisers, and the companies they work for become your donors. Debra Nesbitt noted that many corporations choose only to donate to organizations with 501C3 tax-exempt status, so they can donate to our non-profit organization, but not to the school. Debbie Louder suggested getting Peer Assistant Leadership (PAL) students involved, since they must complete a certain number of volunteer hours each year. Janet Ardoyno stressed that it is good to develop long-term relationships with the teachers of student volunteers, then it does not matter that there is a high turn over rate among the actual volunteers. Ken Miller stated that if we start using more volunteers in direct services, then we will need to train staff to support and recognize the usefulness of volunteers. He stated that typically our residential and recreational staff are more knowledgeable than our school day staff on how to use volunteers. Dr. Hatlen stated that Paul Goebel said to do an organizational assessment first and make sure that you are going to have an outcome. Mr. Goebel also said to use the website Association for Volunteer Administration at www.avaintl.org as a resource. Dr. Hatlen again proposed that a task force on volunteerism be created, which involves external people and at least one Board member, and that we report back to the board at the next Board meeting. Debbie Louder suggested that a student be on the task force. Janet Ardoyno volunteered to be on the task force, and suggested that the task force meet with Student Council. Ms. Ardoyno will be available to meet on Thursday, February 24th in the afternoon, and Friday, February 25th in the morning.
The Board recessed for lunch at 11:51AM. and reconvened at 1:13 PM.
Report from the Finance and Audit Committee:
Consideration of Approval of Investment Report: Barney Schulz reported on the status of the Legacy Fund, which is where we have investments. The balance of the Legacy Fund account as of December 31, 2004 is $219,248.82, denoting an increase of $1,270.54 since September 1, 2004. The Finance and Audit Committee moved to accept the Investment Report as presented. Since the motion came from committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Consideration of Adoption of a Resolution Regarding the Review of the Investment Policy and Strategies of TSBVI: The Committee made a motion to adopt the resolution regarding the review of the Investment Policy and Strategies of TSBVI. Since the motion came from committee, no second was necessary. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Approval of Receipt of Gifts and Donations over $500: Malcolm Cleveland stated that we had no donations over $500 since the last board meeting.
Approval of Request for Expenditure of Gifts and Donations: Since there were no donations over $500, there was no need for this request.
Report by the Internal Auditor:
Report on the Internal Audit Program: Russell Gregorczyk reported that he had prepared the Internal Audit Report for TSBVI for FY 2004. He then prepared the Risk Assessment. Pending the approval of the 2005 Internal Audit Plan, Mr. Gregorczyk will conduct the following audits: Campus Security, Review of Procedures for Reporting Abuse and Neglect, Information Services, and Human Resources. An audit of Information Services is of highest priority, since it has high visibility and it is expensive. Since the State Auditor’s Office is about to conduct an audit on accounting and budgeting, Mr. Gregorczyk will not duplicate their work in these areas. Jamie Wheeler stated that she appreciated the “readability” of the Internal Audit Plan.
Consideration of Approval of 2005 Internal Audit Plan: Mr. Gregorczyk presented the 2005 Internal Audit Plan to the Board for approval. Mary Sue Welch made a motion to approve the plan as proposed. Toby Galindo seconded the motion. The motion to pass was unanimous.
Public Discussion of TSBVI’s 2003-2004 Annual Report: Phil Hatlen stated that this was the first attempt at creating an Annual Report, and he feels that it was a superb document. Debbie Louder agreed that it was a very good report, especially since it was a first try. Susan Houghtling stated that the report was sent to all parents of TSBVI students, their school districts, Education Service Centers, other state agencies, and agencies and organizations serving the visually impaired.
Report on Work with the Legislature: Phil Hatlen reported that the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) has recommended the restoration of Summer Programs at the level that they are currently appropriated, not at the level they were a few years ago. The LBB also restored teacher salary increases. The actual dollar figure of the appropriation means that we are getting some amount above baseline. However, they maintained the 5% budget reduction to administration. Dr. Halten then passed out the brochure that Carol Vaughan and others have created regarding restoration of school facilities. This presents a cost validation from the Texas Building and Procurement Commission for what is being requested of the legislature. This will be given to legislators, and the Board can have copies as well. He also passed out a brochure on the upcoming Sesquicentennial, and discussed a third brochure that has not yet been created called “Meeting Unmet Needs”, which will let the legislators know that there are students who are not being served because we do not have the resources to do so. Dr. Hatlen also wanted to make the Board aware of two important bills: Senate Bill 188, which clarifies text in the Memorandum of Understanding between TSBVI and TEA, and Senate Bill 189, which clarifies/rewrites our Education Code.
Consideration of Charging for Summer School Programs: This item was not discussed because enabling legislation does not currently allow TSBVI to charge for summer school.
Status of All Blind Children of Texas Charity: Mary Sue Welch reported that ABCT is planning a music fundraiser, that will be held at Threadgill’s Restaurant on April 23, 2005 from 11am to 10pm. The first two hours will be geared towards children, with children 12 and under admitted free. A musician will perform a special children’s concert and there will be face painting, balloon animals, etc. Starting at 1:30 ticket prices increase to $20, and bands will then play short sets leading up to the headliner bands. They will advertise on the Internet, in newspapers, and on television. She stated that the charity is having a difficult time establishing a board. The board members are needed to make decisions on projects, and then to help start up committees to accomplish those projects. She asked the Board to please offer suggestions for board members that live in the area. Dr. Hatlen is going to talk to some parents that he feels may be interested in helping. Mrs. Welch stated that Malcolm Cleveland will talk to James White about working with ABCT, and he will also talk to a friend who is connected to the UT Performing Arts Program. ABCT is also planning to have a creative writing course done by Badger Dog. It will hopefully occur here at the school in November, and involve a small group of our students. We are in the process of procuring grants for both the Badger Dog course and for developing ABCT. They have created a needs assessment survey to be given to VI teachers and parents that will ask them to list their top 5 projects they would like ABCT to do. Mrs. Welch also stated that ABCT is interested in trying to contact the actor Jamie Fox, who recently starred in the movie “Ray” about Ray Charles, to be involved in the charity. Donna Clopton suggested trying to contact Oprah Winfrey as well. Ms. Welch then reported on the status of the Sesquicentennial Committee. They are going to combine the first celebration with Black History Month festivities. Janet Ardoyno suggested that Mary Sue try to contact Jamie Fox and Oprah Winfrey to join that function. Mrs. Welch stated that they will be inviting legislators and their aids, plus ex-students and ex-teachers to this initial function. A final celebration will be centered around the student holiday concert. Also, a sesquicentennial theme will be used for the school play that year, and for the track meet.
Report from the Superintendent:
Superintendent’s Travel: Dr. Hatlen reported that he did not travel anywhere since the last Board meeting.
Campus Visitors and Activities: Cyral Miller stated that we had visitors from Arizona for QPVI training. We also have an intern from Heidelberg, Germany named Katrin Herz. She is teaching secondary students Spanish. Campus activities included a holiday student music assembly held on December 15, a SCASB tournament in Oklahoma on January 7-9, a Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration held in the auditorium and followed by a trip to Metz Elementary School to participate in the Dream Team March on January 14, and an Outreach Technology training on January 22. Future campus activities will include a Mentor Center held at TSBVI on February 6-8, an Outreach Technology training on February 12, Mentor Training on February 18-19, and a Black History Assembly is scheduled in the auditorium on February 15 at 8:45AM.
Enrollment Update: We currently have 16 elementary students, 31 middle school students, and 93 high school students for a total of 140 students.
Progress Report on Procedures Required in Policy: Policy DEC was reviewed by the board in September 04: “The Superintendent shall develop procedures to implement the provisions of this paragraph (Employees Returning from Medical Leave). The procedure development is in process.
Use of Facilities by Outside Groups: The City of Austin Aquatics Program used the pool on December 19-22 to teach a water safety instructor’s course. The Austin Downtown Lions Club meets each month in the Silverrain Conference Room. Dr. Hatlen stated that we are very pleased to have them here, since they are such strong supporters of the school. Employee Carl Smith is scheduled to use the auditorium for music rehearsals on Monday evenings once per month from November through April.
Monthly Report of Web Site Visitors: Dr. Hatlen reported that the monthly report of website hits for December was 145,701.
Success of the Student Holiday Card Project: The project proved to be more successful than the student’s expectations, with the original run of 100 boxes quickly selling out. The students decided that, in the future, online orders would enable them to determine the number of boxes needed prior to printing, and it would increase sales potential. The main focus of the project is to introduce entrepreneurial concepts and experiences to the students. Many Board members encouraged the continuation and expansion of the project.
Report of Consultants’ Contracts Approved at the Administrative Level – Contracts Greater than $600 and Equal To or Less than $10,000: Phil Hatlen reported that 13 contracts for over $600 were approved since the last Board meeting. Most contracts were for professionals involved with Outreach’s Deafblind programs.
Discussion of Completion of Board Member Training Requirements for the Past Year: Debbie Louder reported that no Board members completed all the requirements, nor did any exceed all the requirements. Janet Ardoyno needed 10 hours of training within her first year of service and has completed 0. She also needed a basic 3-hour orientation to Texas Education Code (Tier 1) within her first year of service. Jesus Bautista needed 5 hours of continuing education in 2004, and completed 0 hours. Gene Brooks exceeded Tier 3 continuing education requirements, since he needed 5 hours and completed 8 hours. Donna Clopton exceeded Tier 3 continuing education requirements, since she needed 5 hours and completed 10 hours. Toby Galindo needed 5 hours of continuing education in 2004, and completed 0 hours. Deborah Louder needed 5 hours of continuing education in 2004, and completed 2 hours. Frankie Swift needed 5 hours of continuing education in 2004, and completed 0 hours. She also needed training in duties of a Board President. Mary Sue Welch needed 5 hours of continuing education in 2004, and completed 0 hours. Jamie Wheeler exceeded Tier 3 continuing education requirements, since she needed 5 hours and completed 8 hours. All Board Members needed a team building training session with the Superintendent in 2004. Such a session is scheduled for January 29, 2005. Jamie Wheeler stated that the TASB training she received was not as helpful as the training session from the Governor’s Office. This is because she is a board member for a state agency, and TASB training is often not applicable to her. Ken Miller suggested that he would get together with Dr. Hatlen and Carol Vaughan and bring the Board some new training options at the next meeting.
Discussion of the January 29th Board Retreat: Debbie Louder stated that the Board retreat will be held in the Conference Center, from 8:15AM to 2:00PM.
Discussion of Future Board Meeting Topics: Debbie Louder stated that a needs-assessment task force on volunteerism will need to report to the Board at the next meeting. She also stated that a catalog of training options will need to be prepared. Donna Clopton suggested we formally invite our Senators and their aids to have lunch with the board during meetings. Carol Vaughan said that would be legal, but that it would have to be posted as a public meeting if you wanted to be able to discuss the school. Dr. Hatlen suggested we also invite Marisa Negovetich, Mr. Miller suggested Don Green, and Debbie Louder suggested Amy Erben. Ms. Louder noted that the Board will be eating lunch with the Student Council in April. Mary Sue Welch suggested that we involve middle-school students with that luncheon, since they are often left out. Dr. Hatlen said he would follow up on her suggestion.
Announcements: Dr. Hatlen updated the board on the status of Alan Koenig’s health. He is now in a skilled nursing facility near his parents, but his benefits are almost completely used up. Kay Holbrook and Alan’s family are realizing that his recovery is going to be a long process.
Adjournment: Debbie Louder adjourned the Board meeting at 3:35PM.
Debbie Louder Date
Board President
Donna Clopton Date
Board Secretary
Kim Nagy Date
Recording Secretary
BOARD DIRECTIVES
January 28, 2005
- Place on April Board meeting – Report from the task force on volunteerism needs. (Phil Hatlen)
- Present a catalogue of Board training options. (Ken Miller)