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March 28, 2008

Minutes

Meeting of the Board of Trustees
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

The first day of 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 March 28, 2008.

Call to Order:  Deborah Louder, Board President, called the meeting to order at 10:14 a.m.  In addition to Ms. Louder, the following Board members were in attendance: Jesus Bautista, Dr. Gene Brooks, Donna Clopton, Caroline Daley, Michelle Goodwin, Frankie Swift, and Jamie Wheeler. 

Introduction of Audience:  Others in attendance at the meeting included William Daugherty, Superintendent of TSBVI; Carol Vaughan, General Counsel; John Daude, Director of Operations and Construction; Malcolm Cleveland, Accounting Director; Dr. Lauren Newton, Principal of Special Programs; Debra Nesbitt, retiring Human Resources Director; Charlotte Miller, new Human Resources Director, Cyral Miller, Director of Outreach; Miles Fain, Principal of Comprehensive Programs; Barney Schulz, Director of Business, Operations and Technology; Ken Miller, Director of School and Student Services; Susan Houghtling, Director of Planning and Evaluation; Gay Sikors, Administrative Assistant to the Superintendent; Jaye Stepp, Internal Auditor; Shelly Allen, Residential Director; Susan Hauser, Assistant Principal; Chrissy Cowan, Mentor Coordinator; Paula Effenger, Administrative Assistant for Outreach; Miriam Miramontes, Administrative Assistant for Outreach; Tonya Rae, Lead Residential Instructor; Lisa Ricketts, Occupational Therapist; Roger Toy, Occupational Therapist; Gigi Newton, Early Childhood Specialist; Stacy Shafer, Early Childhood Specialist; Matt Schultz, Teacher; Jane Rundquist, Teacher; Linda Locke, Assistant Principal; Mark Ramirez, Lead Job Coach; and Jody Wright from the Legislative Budget Board.

Public Comments/Open Forum:  There were no public comments.

Award of Certificates of Appreciation:  Ms. Louder invited Miles Fain to lead the recognition of TSBVI Outstanding Staff Members.  Mr. Fain explained that these staff members are chosen by their colleagues and their names are also sent to the Principals of Schools for the Blind Award Committee, in nomination for national recognition.  Susan Hauser introduced Matt Schulz, who was chosen Outstanding Teacher of Students who are Blind/Multiply Impaired.  Linda Locke introduced Jane Rundquist, who was chosen Outstanding Teacher of Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired.  Cyral Miller presented the Outreach Department's traditional tiara to Stacy Shafer, Outstanding Outreach Services Provider.  Shelly Allen introduced Tonya Rae, who was chosen Outstanding Residential Life Staff Member.  Mr. Fain introduced Lisa Ricketts, Occupational Therapist, who was named Outstanding Related Services Provider.  Linda Locke introduced TSBVI Lead Job Coach, Mark Ramirez, who was chosen as Outstanding Paraprofessional.

Discussion of Proposed Goals, Objectives and a List of Action Plans for the 2008-2009 Annual Improvement Plan:  Susan Houghtling reviewed a draft of the TSBVI Improvement Plan for 2008 - 2009, which will be presented for final approval at the June Board meeting.  The annual Improvement Plan is required of TSBVI as a school, rather than a state agency, and consists of seven strategic long-range goals, short-term objectives to measure progress, and action plans to outline expected accomplishments and deadlines.

Consideration of Approval of Agency Strategic Plan Goals, Objectives, Strategies and Performance Measures:  Ken Miller reviewed changes to Agency Strategic Plan goals, objectives, strategies, and performance measures for 2009 - 2013.  The Strategic Plan is required of us in our role as State agency, and is tied to funding requests submitted to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB).  Proposed changes must be submitted to the LBB by April 15, 2008.  Michelle Goodwin moved that the Plan be accepted as presented, and Donna Clopton seconded the motion.  The vote to accept the Plan was unanimous.

Ms. Louder called for a lunch break at 11:30.  As scheduled, the Board had lunch with the TSBVI Student Council.  The meeting resumed at 12:45.

Facilities Master Plan Update:  John Daude presented a schedule of campus renovations to be completed between July 2008 and December 2012, as well as a procurement schedule for the same period.

Consideration of Approval of Minutes of January 25 and January 26, 2008 Board Meetings:  Donna Clopton moved that the minutes of the January Board meeting be accepted as presented.  Caroline Daley seconded the motion, and the minutes were unanimously approved.

Report from the Finance and Audit Committee:  The scheduled report from Wells Fargo on the Broday Trust was postponed until the June meeting.

Report from the Internal Auditor: 

Consideration of Approval of Purchasing Audit Report:  Jaye Stepp presented the Purchasing Audit Report and offered to explain and answer questions from the Board.  She reiterated her recommendation that all accounting procedures be documented in an Accounting Manual, and said that Malcolm Cleveland has already begun the process of outlining the procedures.  She also strongly recommended that TSBVI have two certified purchasers on staff.  We currently have only one purchaser, and while she and the Accounting Manager have both taken the training needed for certification, they have not taken the test.  Becoming certified will raise the threshold of purchases allowable without involvement from the Comptroller's Office, from $25,000 to $100,000.  Ms. Stepp is also developing a schedule for follow-up on prior years' recommendations, which she expects to finish by August.  Michelle Goodwin reported that the Finance and Audit Committee recommended approval of the Purchasing Audit Report as presented.  No second was needed, and the report was approved unanimously.

Consideration of Approval of Board Policies:  Ms. Goodwin reported that the following policies were considered for review or amendment:

• CNB          Transportation Management:  School-Owned Vehicles (Amend)
• CNBA        Transportation Management:  Bus Maintenance (Delete)
• COA          Food Services Management:  Food Purchasing (Review)
• CS            Facility Standards (Amend)

The Finance and Audit Committee recommended approval of these policies; no second was required.  The vote to approve was unanimous.

Consideration of Approval of Investment Report:  The Finance and Audit Committee also recommended approval of the Investment Report, and the vote to approve was unanimous.

Approval of Receipt of Gifts and Donations of Over $500:  The Point Venture Lions Club presented TSBVI with a check for $4,550 at the January Board meeting, which will be used for several purposes, including scholarships and purchasing sports equipment.  Professional Contract Services, Inc. donated $15,000 toward scholarships and $5,000 for the N. E. Gerke Technology Award.  Austin Council of the Blind donated $1,500 for the Junior/Senior Prom.  The Finance and Audit Committee recommended acceptance of these donations.  The Board voted unanimously to accept these gifts.

Approval of Request for Expenditure of Gifts and Donations:  A prior donation by the Delta Gamma Foundation has been designated for the purchase of an elliptical trainer, a wrestling time clock, and travel to SCASB events.  The total for these purchases was $9,187.14.  The Finance and Audit Committee recommended approval of these expenditures.  The Board voted unanimously to approve.

Report on Book Sales:  Barney Schulz reviewed the report of book sales for the past six months, along with historical data from past years.  Sales for the first half of the fiscal year totaled over 4,000 publications for the year, which is a good increase over last year at this time.  Sales have been recorded to nearly every state in the country, as well as over 80 different foreign addresses.  Ms. Swift suggested that the next report might include only five years history, and everyone agreed that that would be sufficient.

Report from the Program Committee: 

Consideration of Approval of Board Polices:  Jamie Wheeler reported that the Program Committee reviewed one policy for amendment:

• COD         Canteen Operation and Control (Amend)

The Committee recommended approval, and the vote to approve was unanimous.

Consideration of Approval of the School’s Calendar for 2008-2009:  The Program Committee reviewed the suggested calendar for the next school year, and recommended approval.  The vote to approve was unanimous.

Consideration of Approval of Recommendations of the Textbook Committee:  Ms. Wheeler commented that all textbooks recommended by the Textbook Committee are from the list of state-adopted texts.  The Board voted unanimously to approve.

Reports from Instructional Program Directors: 

Report from the Outreach Director:  Cyral Miller reported on the status of interveners' certification in Texas.  She said that the concept of interveners for students who are deafblind was introduced here fifteen years ago, working with educators in Canada.  In Utah, state money has been designated to provide interveners for every deafblind child at the preschool level.  In Texas, we have been training interveners through inservice training for the past fifteen years, but there are still no official or recognized standards or guidelines for certification.  We need college courses and tests to determine qualifications, and a system for hands-on experiences.  The Outreach staff will continue working with colleges and junior colleges to eventually establish a curriculum for this certification, and will continue training interveners through the Texas Deafblind Project.

Mel Dugosh, Individually and as Administrator of the Estate of Christopher Dugosh, and Richard Dugosh, Plaintiffs, vs. Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired:  Betsy Todd, from the Office of the Attorney General, came to provide an update on this lawsuit to the Board.  At 1:35 p.m. Ms. Louder announced that the Board would meet in closed session, in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code Section 551.071, for this report.  The meeting reconvened in open session at 2:29 p.m.

Special Programs Principal:  Ms. Wheeler reported for Lauren Newton, who could not attend the afternoon session of the meeting.  She reported that the Program Committee honored Chris Humes, who was instrumental in putting the summer 2008 programs and application process online.  She commented that the transportation survey for Short-term Programs is still in progress and results will be presented at the next meeting.  Summer school has had 471 applications this year, as opposed to 382 last year.  Ms. Clopton commented that she believes this increase reflects the variety of courses being offered, and Mr. Daugherty said that the summer program has expanded tremendously from when he was here years ago.

Comprehensive Programs Principal Miles Fain:  Ms. Wheeler also reported for Miles Fain, who gave the Program Committee an update on the growth of the Career Education program.  Two students spoke about their experiences with work, one on campus and one off-site.

Report from the Personnel Committee:  Caroline Daley introduced the new Human Resources Director, Charlotte Miller.

Consideration of Approval of Board Policies:  Ms. Daley reported that the Personnel Committee reviewed the following two policies:

• DBAA        Employment Requirements and Restrictions:  Criminal History and Credit Reports (Amend)
• DC            Employment Practices (Amend)

The Committee recommended the approval of all proposed amendments, and the Board voted unanimously to approve.

Consideration of Approval of Proposed Renewals and Nonrenewals of Staff Contracts:  The Personnel Committee reviewed the list of staff whose contracts are due for renewal, and recommended approval for all.  The Board voted unanimously to approve.

Report from the Superintendent:  Bill Daugherty briefly reviewed the results of the Survey of Organizational Excellence conducted by the University of Texas' School of Social Work in December.  These results were published on the intranet for staff.

Superintendent's Travel:  Mr. Daugherty will attend the Texas Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (TxAER) conference in Dallas in April.  He traveled to Nigeria during the spring break to participate in the West African Conference on Blindness and Low Vision, with the Hope for the Blind Foundation.

Campus visitors and activities:  TSBVI enjoyed visits from Craig Meador, Washington School for the Blind, Ralph Bartley of American Printing House for the Blind, and well-known professor emeritus, Dr. Natalie Barraga in February.  This month we welcomed a group of visitors from Tokyo National School. On March 26, Kathy Clayton, the State Special Education Director, visited with Mr. Daugherty and Cyral Miller.

Enrollment update:  As of March 26, enrollment in elementary is 24, middle/secondary is 109, and post-secondary is 3, for a total of 136 students.

Progress report on procedures required in policy:  Policies CDA and DH were reviewed at the November Board meeting, and outlines for the two procedures are in the process of development.

Review of Consultants’ Contracts Approved at the Administrative Level – Contracts Greater than $600 and Equal To or Less than $10,000:  There were two contracts in this range signed since the last Board meeting:  Rita Livingston contracted to teach a Braille class to staff for $1,500, and Implementations, Inc. will provide an organizational study of TSBVI management and staff for $9,900.

Status of All Blind Children of Texas Charity (ABCTX):  Gloria Bennett passed out examples of the new note cards featuring Virginia Bishop's lighthouse paintings, explaining that her sales efforts will now concentrate on these cards, and calendars will only be sold by advance order.  She will offer the cards for sale for the first time at the TxAER conference next month.  All profits will go toward scholarships for visually impaired students.  Information about and applications for the scholarships will be available at the TxAER conference.

ABCTX will send up to six students to Crested Butte, Colorado for a ski trip with Joe Paschall, TSBVI coach. 

Ms. Bennett has spoken with the Favrot Foundation, and this year they will provide a grant of $40,000.

H.E.B. sponsored White Cane Day for the first time last October, and were very impressed by the event.  Their local Diversity Council wanted to introduce this event to their statewide Diversity Council, to teach them about blindness and to develop an interest in sponsoring White Cane Day statewide.  So TSBVI, in cooperation with Criss Cole Rehabilitation Center, hosted a group from H.E.B. Diversity Council on March 27 at our Conference Center.  Ms. Bennett also told them about the play, "The Wizard of Oz," that our students will perform in April, and several of them plan to attend.

Discussion of Future Board Meeting Topics:  Debbie Louder said that the Board would write the previously discussed directive about including only five years data on the Book Sales Report and present it at the next meeting.  Mr. Daugherty and Dr. Newton will report the results of the survey on barriers to participation in short-term programs.  Ms. Louder asked Carol Vaughan to facilitate a one-hour training on open meetings; this will provide an hour of continuing education credit for Board members.

Discussion of March 29 Board Meeting:  Ms. Louder said that Saturday's session of the meeting would begin at 8:30 in the Conference Center, and end at 12:30, without a lunch break.

Announcements:  Mr. Daugherty announced that the Board-sponsored luncheon for graduates would be held on June 5, 2008 at 11:30.  The graduation ceremony will be at 2:00 p.m. that day.

The meeting was recessed at 3:20 p.m. 

BOARD DIRECTIVES AND FUTURE MEETING TOPICS

1. The Board will write a directive about including only five years data on the Book Sales Report.
2. Mr. Daugherty and Dr. Newton will report the results of the survey on barriers to participation in short-term programs.
3. Carol Vaughan will facilitate a one-hour training on open meetings.

Meeting of the Board of Trustees
March 29, 2008 
Minutes

The regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) was held at the TSBVI Conference Center, 1100 W. 45th Street, Austin, Texas on March 29, 2008.  The subject of this meeting was a TSBVI Board Governance Workshop.

Call to order: Debbie Louder, Board President, called the meeting to order at 8:34am.  In addition to Ms. Louder, the following Board members were in attendance:  Jesus Bautista, Gene Brooks, Caroline Daley, Michelle Goodwin, Frankie Swift, and Jamie Wheeler.  Donna Clopton was absent from the meeting.  The following TSBVI staff were in attendance:  William Daugherty, Superintendent; also present at the meeting were Ross Mitchel and Liz Solka with Implementations, Inc.

Overview of interview results: Mr. Mitchel provided a very general summary of results of interviews with TSBVI management staff regarding the role of the Board and Superintendent and of internal communication between departments.

Primary topics:  Mr. Mitchel discussed with the Board the role of the Board President and Superintendent, the role of Board members as experts versus advocates, and Board meeting structure and formats. 

Supporting protocols and tools:  The Board next discussed how to prepare for Board meetings, the use of rolling agendas, outside activities during meetings, Board contact with students and Board and staff interaction. 

Activities:  Ideas for new board member training were generated including meeting participation training.  The group also discussed organizational study objectives.

Adjournment:  Debbie Louder adjourned the meeting at 12:44pm.

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Deborah Louder, Board President                              Date

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Caroline Daley, Board Secretary                      Date

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Gay Sikors, Recording Secretary                     Date