April 17, 2024 minutes

Date: April 17, 2024

Kind of Meeting: Regular

Place: Herkimer Middle-High School District Library

Members Present: Brian Crandall, Diann Fischer, Joseph Lamanna, Robert Mihevc, Aleksander Verenich

Members Absent: Michele Gilbert and Scott Petucci

Others Present: Kathleen Carney, Superintendent, Chad Hess, Gina McKernan, Zachary Abbe, Maria Lindsay, Nicole Crandall, Renee Vogt, Cristi Paragi, Michelle Ploss, Correne Holmes, Various Staff and Various Students

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President Crandall called the meeting to order at 6:04 p.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was said. President Crandall stated:

“The Board of Education welcomes public comments and community input at our meetings. However, we caution speakers that we are not authorized to engage in conversations pertaining to individual students, faculty, staff, or administrators. Topics of this nature may only be discussed during the Executive Session and must be coordinated with the Superintendent prior to a Board meeting. We ask that the public comments are no more than five minutes.”

Public Comment:

None

Approval of the Agenda:

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Verenich seconded a motion to formally approve the consent agenda as submitted. All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0

Board Recognition:

Herkimer High School students had artwork on display at the board meeting.

Approval of the Minutes:

Mr. Lamanna moved, and Ms. Fischer seconded a motion to formally approve the Board of Education regular meeting minutes from Wednesday, March 13, 2024. All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Material filed in the supplemental file dated 4-17-24)

Approval of Financial Reports:

Upon the recommendation of Superintendent Carney, on a motion made by Mr. Mihevc, seconded by Mr. Lamanna, the Board approved the following financial reports:

• Treasurer’s Report – March 2024
• General Warrant – March 2024
• Internal Claims Auditors Exception Report– March 2024
• Extracurricular Summary Report – March 2024
• Budget Transfer under $5,000

All voted in favor; motion carried 5-0 (Material filed in the supplemental file dated 4-17-24)

Donation to School

­­­Mr. Lamanna moved, and Ms. Fischer seconded to accept/approve the following Board resolution:

“BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education of the Herkimer Central School District, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, does hereby accept receipt of a donation from Stewart’s Shops in the amount of $500.00, to the Civics Class to be used for support of the garden project”.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Disposal of Surplus Items

Mr. Lamanna moved, and Mr. Verenich seconded to accept the following Board resolution:

“WHEREAS the Herkimer CSD owns the items listed in Part C (Disposal) which are no longer useful or necessary for the school district’s purpose and are of no value to the Herkimer CSD, as indicated in Mr. Mitchell’s Fixed Asset Inventory Control Forms, and;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby declares those items to be surplus as they have no further value to the school district and authorizes the Business Office to inform the appropriate personnel to dispose of those items in the best interest of the school district.”

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Granting of Juneteenth as Paid Holiday

Mr. Lamanna moved, and Ms. Fischer seconded to accept/approve the following Board resolution:

“RESOLVED, that the Herkimer Central School District Board of Education does hereby authorize the Superintendent of Schools to grant the federal holiday, Juneteenth (Wednesday, June 19, 2024) to all 11- and 12-month employees as a paid holiday.”

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

2023-2024 School Calendar Adjustment

Mr. Lamanna moved, and Ms. Fischer seconded to accept the following Board resolution:

BE IT RESOLVED, upon recommendation of the Superintendent of the Schools, I would be seeking Board approval to adjust the 2023-2024 school calendar to reflect the following:

• April 8, 2024 – vacation day
• May 24, 2024 – vacation day
• May 28, 2024 – vacation day

THEREFORE, should there be a reason for the school district to use an emergency day, May 28, 2024, will be a day in session.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Adoption of Operations Budget/Board Vote

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Lamanna seconded the following Board resolution:

“RESOLVED, that the Board of Education of the Herkimer Central School District upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, does hereby adopt the 2024-2025 Operations Budget in the amount of $33,932,756 to be presented to district residents for a formal vote on Tuesday, May 21, 2024.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Non-Transportation Requests

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Lamanna seconded to accept/approve the following Board resolution:

RESOLVED, that the Herkimer Central School District Board of Education does hereby authorize the following transportation requests for the 2024-2025 school year:

Christian Heritage School

Student: Student 1
Address: 528 McKennan Road, Herkimer, NY

Student: Student 2
Address: 528 McKennan Road, Herkimer, NY

Student: Student 3
Address: 486 McKennan Road, Herkimer, NY

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

DCMO BOCES Cooperative Purchasing

Mr. Mihevc moved, and Mr. Verenich seconded to accept the following Board resolution:

WHEREAS, The Cooperative Purchasing Service is a plan of a number of public school districts in the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES Area in New York, to bid jointly equipment, supplies and contract items, and

WHEREAS, The Central School named below is desirous of participating with other districts in the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES in the joint bidding of the items mentioned above as authorized by General Municipal Law, Section 119-o, and

WHEREAS, The Central School named below wishes to appoint the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES to advertise for bid, accept, tabulate bids and award bids on their behalf; therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below hereby appoints the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES to represent it in all matters relating above, and designates the Evening Sun Newspaper as the legal publication for all Cooperative Purchasing bid notifications, and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below authorizes the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES to represent it in all matters leading up to the entering into a contract for the purchase of the above-mentioned commodities, and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below agrees to (1) assume its equitable share of the costs of the Cooperative Bidding; (2) abide by majority decisions of the participating districts; (3) abide by the Award of the BOCES Board; (4) and that after the award of the bid it will conduct all negotiations directly with the successful bidder(s).

CERTIFICATION OF DISTRICT CLERK

I, Gina McKernan, District Clerk of the Herkimer Central School Board of Education, hereby certifies that the above resolution was adopted by the required majority vote of the Board of Education at its meeting held on April 17, 2024.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

DCMO BOCES Generic

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Lamanna seconded to accept the following Board resolution:

WHEREAS, It is a plan of a number of public school districts in the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES Area in New York, to bid jointly equipment, supplies and contract items, and

WHEREAS, The Central School named below is desirous of participating with other districts in the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES Area in the joint bidding of the items mentioned above as authorized by General Municipal Law, Section 119-o, and

WHEREAS, The Central School named below wishes to appoint a committee made up of participating schools to assume the responsibility for drafting of specifications, advertising for bids, accepting and opening bids, tabulating bids and providing the information to their Board of Education who will make the awards; therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below hereby appoints the Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego BOCES to represent it in all matters relating above, and designates the Evening Sun Newspaper as the legal publication for all Cooperative Purchasing bid notifications and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below authorizes the above committee to represent it in all matters leading up to the entering into a contract for the purchase of the above mentioned items, and,

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Board of Education of the Central School listed below agrees to (1) abide by majority decisions of the participating districts on quality standards; (2) that it will award contracts based on information provided from the bid; (3) and that after the award of the bid it will conduct all negotiations directly with the successful bidder(s).

CERTIFICATION OF DISTRICT CLERK

I, Gina McKernan, District Clerk of the Herkimer Central School Board of Education, hereby certifies that the above resolution was adopted by the required majority vote of the Board of Education at its meeting held on April 17, 2024.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

BOCES Board/Budget Vote

Mr. Mihevc moved, and Ms. Fischer seconded the following Board resolution:

“BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Education of the Herkimer Central School District does hereby authorize the District Clerk to cast one vote on the Herkimer Fulton Hamilton Otsego BOCES Administrative Budget as presented for the 2024-2025 school year and cast three votes for BOCES Board of Education members.”

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

2024-2025 Property Tax Report Card

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Mihevc seconded to accept/approve the following Board resolution:

“RESOLVED, that the Board of Education of the Herkimer Central School District does hereby authorize the Superintendent of Schools to submit and certify the property tax report card to the New York State Education Department (SED) for the 2024-2025 school year”.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Management Advisory Group Business Operations, Inc.

Ms. Fischer moved, and Mr. Verenich seconded the following Board resolution:

“BE IT RESOLVED, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, that the Board of Education hereby agrees to enter into the 2024-2025 Management Advisory Group Business Operations, Inc. [MAGBO] as presented; and,

THEREFORE, it is the Districts desire for the Superintendent of Schools to sign the contracts on the Boards behalf.”

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Materials filed in the supplemental filed dated 4-17-24)

Herkimer Housing Associates

At a regular meeting of the Board of Education of the Herkimer Central School School District held on April 17, 2024, at 801 W German Street, Herkimer, New York.

Upon the motion of Mr. Lamanna, seconded by Ms. Fischer.

IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED that the Settlement Proposal and Settlement Agreement regarding legal proceedings filed by the HERKIMER HOUSING ASSOCIATES as well as the proceedings filed by the HERKIMER CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, filed in Herkimer County Supreme Court, Index Nos. EF2021-108785 and EF2023-110674 which provides for resolution of all pending claims between the parties, be and hereby is approved and that the School District’s attorneys are hereby authorized to execute said Agreement on behalf of the Board of Education.

The question of adoption of the foregoing resolution was duly put to a vote, which resulted as follows:

Ayes: 4 Nays: 0 Abstentions: 1

The resolution was thereupon declared adopted.

Superintendent Updates:

• Superintendent Carney thanked the several students that were in attendance at the BOE meeting
• Thanked the grounds crew on the great job of getting the fields in shape for the start of the spring sports season
• Thank you to Mrs. Lister for arranging the solar eclipse field trip on April 8.
• There will be safety training for the front end staff on April 24.

Administrative Reports:

Ms. Vogt, Ms. Paragi, Mr. Abbe, and Ms. Lindsay reports were reviewed with the BOE. Discussions followed.

CSE/CPSE Program/Placement Recommendations:

Upon the recommendation of Superintendent Carney, on a motion made by Ms. Fischer, seconded by Mr. Lamanna, the BOE approved the Sub-Committee on Special Education and the Committee on Preschool Special Education program/placement recommendations as presented.

All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Material filed in the supplemental file dated 4-17-24)

STAFFING RECOMMENDATIONS:

Upon the recommendation of Superintendent Carney, on a motion by Mr. Lamanna, seconded by Ms. Fischer, the BOE approved the following personnel actions as presented. All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0 (Material filed in the supplemental file dated 4-17-24)

Amend Teaching Appointment: (07-12-2023)

Name: Futscher, James
Position: Students with Disabilities – All Grades
Date of Commencement of Probationary Service in each Tenure Area: September 1, 2023
Expiration Date of Probationary Appointment: August 31, 2025

Teaching Resignation:

Name: Gravlin, Morgan
Position: Secondary Science
Location: Jr/Sr High School
Effective Date: August 28, 2024

Name: Lewandrowski, Kory
Position: Physical Education Teacher
Location: Elementary School
Effective Date: April 26, 2024

Non-Teaching Appointment:

Name: Petucci, Dina
Position: Typist
Location: Jr/Sr High School
Effective: April 17, 2024
Salary: $17.50/hour
(Probationary period from December 4, 2023 – June 3, 2024)

Name: Ward, Danielle
Position: Typist
Location: District Wide
Effective: April 17, 2024
Salary: $17.50/hour
(Probationary period from December 4, 2023 – June 3, 2024)

Short Term Substitute:

Name: Williams, Maurice
Position: Music Education
Location: Jr/Sr High School
Effective: On/About April 29, 2024 – June 30, 2024
Salary: Annual Payment Guidelines for Substitute

Substitute:

Name: Gallagher, Daniel
Position: Substitute
Location: District Wide
Effective: April 18, 2024 – June 30, 2024
Salary: Annual Payment Guidelines for Substitute

2023-2024 Spring Interscholastic Unpaid Coaching Appointments:

Marosek, Anna – Softball Assistant Coach (Pending SED Certification)

Board of Education:

President Crandall was glad Mrs. Listers class had some viewing of the solar eclipse. BOCES annual meeting was catered by local students. President Crandall reminded the board that the Budget Hearing will be Tuesday, May 7 in the High School Library.

On a motion made by Mr. Lamanna, seconded by Ms. Fischer, the BOE entered Executive Session at 7:05 for the purpose of legal and personnel issues. The Board may take action in public session after the Executive Session ends and the Board returns to public session. All voted in favor; motion carried 5:0

Executive Session:

The Board moved into Executive Session at 7:05 p.m.
The Board exited Executive Session at 8:30 p.m.

Adjournment:

On a motion made by Mr. Lamanna, and seconded by Mr. Verenich, the BOE adjourned the public meeting at 8:30 p.m. All voted in favor 5:0

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Gina A. McKernan
District Clerk