Lawrence School Council 

Meeting Minutes 

Monday, September 13, 2021 

5:00 – 6:00 p.m. 

Attendees: 

Thomas Bushy - Principal/Chair 

Francine Daggett - Community Rep/Co-chair 

Carmela Mayeski - Teacher Rep/Secretary 

Abir Zaineh - Teacher Rep 

• Approve June Meeting Minutes 

o The meeting minutes were reviewed and approved by Council members. 

• Principal’s comments 

o The council members reviewed the information from the summer school committee meeting (SSP) Goals and Actions items (School Safety, Cultural Proficiency and Partnership with the professional community) 

o Mr. Bushy summarized the mainly positive start to the school year. Although pre-COVID issues were seen (class avoidance, reluctance to get back into the rhythm of school, overall it has been a great experience for all to have students back in the building. Two positive COVID cases were quickly identified with over 100 students/staff impacted as close contacts (due to increased student movement and changing classes). However, only 1 student needed to quarantine as all other students/staff were either vaccinated or consented to test and stay for 5 consecutive days. Although initially the testing and tracking were time consuming, this was due to the initial newness of the procedure as well as the necessity to obtain written consent for testing. This will improve over time to shorten the disruption to the students’ day. 

• Lawrence School Updates 

o Paws of Behavior: 

▪ Has been amended to differentiate the Responses portion of the behavioral chart into interventions and consequences. District-wide, behavior plans have been changing to incorporate restorative practices. The newly revised plan is available on the Lawrence website and is included in the handbook. 

o Bridge Program: 

▪ Is looking to add staff to their current roster and is missing a teacher’s aide as the current aide is on leave. The program will continue to help students to be successful this year. 

o Pass to Advance: 

▪ Initially the program was instituted to teach kids about the credit system at the High school and to hold them accountable for core subjects. However, it has been changed to set in place the structure and supports necessary to help students get to the next level instead of imposing retentions, which research has shown to have more negative effects than positive. 

o Summer School: 

▪ Was successful this summer with about 50 kids in attendance.

o New Staff: 

▪ Lawrence has welcomed a number of new staff this year: 

• A Grade 7 ELA teacher 
• 2 Grade 7 History teachers 
• A Reading Essentials ELA teacher 
• A Music Teacher 
• A number of new Teacher’s Aides who were formerly building based subs 
• A Media Specialist 
• A Special Education teacher 
• School Council Responsibilities 

o School Council Responsibilities were reviewed amongst Council members. 

• Prospective Dates for future School Council Meetings (may be amended if necessary) o Monday, October 4, 2021 

o Monday, November 1, 2021 

o Monday, February 7, 2022 

o Monday, March 7, 2022 

o Monday, April 4, 2022 

o Monday, May 2, 2022 

o Monday, June 6, 2022 

Meeting adjourned at 5:45 p.m.