Late last week school committee members met to discuss a variety of school and statewide issues. Present were superintendent Kim Grady, Regina DiLego, Dan Caplinger, Christina Conry, and Al Terranova. Steven Miller, Alison Carter, and Joe Bergeron were not present.

Regional Strategic Planning was an early topic of discussion. Parents and community members will be aiding in the development of the original regionalization plan put forth when the district regionalized. Grady disclosed that there will be no sub-committee of parents, but liaisons to the committee. There are already over twenty-five parents, faculty, and staff interested in volunteering. Over the summer, a final document will be written, which will then be presented to the School Committee in the fall. Grady reinforced that they “are in good shape.”

The committee also discussed sparsity aid. Sparsity aid can partially be accredited to Adam Hinds, who has worked with the state and is in Grady’s words a “champion for rural schools.” Sparsity aid aims to help schools in less densely populated and more rural districts, with aid given based on income per capita. It is a special part of the state education budget. However, a plan must be submitted by early February in terms of how the school will be using the funds. Grady made clear that she plans to “close the gaps” on regionalization, focusing on curriculum alignments and technology, with the funds. She emphasized her want to focus on joining the three schools into a more cohesive district so that they may run more smoothly.

Members of the the Parent Advisory Council were also present at Thursday’s meeting. The Council features regional representatives: four from Mount Greylock, three from Williamstown Elementary, and one from Lanesborough Elementary. Amy Hane, the President, spoke on their behalf. They are looking at allocations of special education resources and efforts to include all three schools in events, and they plan to continue serving as an advisory board to the School Committee.

The District Improvement Plan was the major point of the meeting. The plan focuses on social and emotional wellness and sharing different activities and different resources. It presents efforts that each school will be taking, set to be implemented in winter of 2019. Plans include continuing meetings with science teachers grades 6-8, keeping parents informed on school standards and curriculum, and having school-based technology plans that will be easily understandable for parents. In terms of curriculum, Mount Greylock currently has curriculum leaders, but with the plan Grady is hoping to fill the position of curriculum coordinator. Grady also hopes to tighten up regionalization and wants to focus on maintenance for older buildings. The committee unanimously voted in favor of the plan.