Board of Education Meeting Recap: Updates on District Facilities, Retirements and Policies

Dear Pelham Community,

The Board of Education received several important updates about District facilities, teacher retirements and other matters at its November 20 and December 4 meetings. A summary of the meetings is as follows:

View November 20 Meeting Video | View December 4 Meeting Video

Facilities Planning

The Board’s Facilities and Finance committees held their second joint meeting to consider strategies for upgrading District facilities based on the findings of the Buildings Conditions Survey and enrollment/demographic report. In addition to members of the Board, the meeting was attended by administrators and community members serving on the Facilities committee and representatives from KGD Architects. 

Among the facilities improvements being considered are:

• Making Siwanoy ADA compliant
• Updating aging infrastructure, such as heating units, windows, roofs and masonry
• Improving air quality and adding central air conditioning
• Addressing expected capacity issues based on the forecast for growing enrollment
• Upgrades to better support our instructional program, such as new science labs at the MS/HS

KGD presented conceptual cost estimates for the infrastructure upgrades as well as conceptual designs for potential building expansions at Colonial, Siwanoy and the Middle School/High School to optimize space based on current and future enrollment/capacity needs. The committees are exploring approaches to upgrading facilities in conjunction with anticipated reductions in debt service payments from previous capital projects and will work with the full Board to prioritize what plans may be most viable in the short and long terms. 

The Board will continue its conversation about facilities at its mid-year retreat on December 18 and the Facilities/Finance committee will continue to meet to further refine these options. Throughout the process, the Board will provide regular updates about these discussions and also seek input from the Pelham community. 

For more information about the Building and Conditions Survey, please view this video presentation by Dr. Champ using the link below.

Facilities Overview Video

Retirements

Dr. Trisha Nugent Fitzgerald, Executive Director for HR & Leadership, shared that so far 11 teachers/staff have submitted notice of retirement effective at the end of the school year. These individuals have impacted the lives of countless students during their time in Pelham and will leave big shoes to fill. 

Recognizing that a significant number of Pelham teachers and staff are nearing retirement age, the District, under Dr. Fitzgerald’s leadership, has begun strengthening recruitment efforts to ensure that our students continue to have access to excellent teachers and staff at all levels. 

The District and Board look forward to recognizing and celebrating each of our retirees in June. 

Policies

Over the course of the two meetings, the Board reviewed the following policies:

• Policy 1210: Board of Education Nomination and Election
• Policy 1610: Annual District Meeting and Election Budget Vote
• Policy 1611: Business of the Annual District Election
• Policy 1630: Legal Qualifications of Voters at District Meetings
• Policy 1640: Absentee Military and Early Mail Ballots

No changes were made to these policies. 

The Board also retired Policy 5240, School Tax Assessment and Collection and Senior Citizen Property Tax Exemptions as it was considered outdated and no longer necessary.

Finally, the Board approved changes to Policy 5574 - Medicaid Compliance Program.

The Board’s complete policy manual can be viewed on BoardDocs.