High School BET meeting
Tuesday, March 5, 2007, 2:30 PM
High School Library
Present – K. Sauer, K. Mundell, L. Miller, J. Merwin, C. Hermann,
C. Fuller, J. Boyd, S. Harrington, S. Fisher

Mr. Sauer started with a brief overview of our present HS BET goals and the proposed goals for 2007-08.
The graduation goal – Maintain the graduation rate at or above 90% – (at least 90% of our students graduate with a high school diploma, 10% with a GED), will continue as a building goal, but will not be part of the BET action plan

Goal 1 - Increase the % of students passing Regents at mastery by 5% will be continued but a determination of the final percent of mastery (the end goal) needs to be determined. 

Proposed goal 2 for 2007-08
Increase literacy levels/skills of all students in grades 9-12.
The need for more staff development to ensure all staff members have a solid understanding of literacy goals in general and for their specific curriculum area was stated.

Discussion began on the validity of the test being used for evaluation of this literacy goal. The use of only the ASSET test for literacy evaluation was discussed. The statement that the literacy goal is not just the responsibility of the English department was supported by all present, although the results of the English Regents are part of the evaluation of this goal.

The PSAT Analysis of Performance on Critical Reading and Math Skills was discussed as a valid summary of our students’ abilities.  The test is taken in October by sophomores and juniors.  The cost of the test is ~$12.  Discussion included the desire for all sophomores to take the PSAT, as a valid assessment of their literacy skills, this information would be used to plan accordingly, for both the grade as a whole and individuals’ needs.  It was proposed that the district pay the fee for the tests, payment coming from the high school building budget.  The ASSET test would be given to all juniors.  Mention was made that students need to be encouraged to take it seriously.  The final piece for evaluation would be the English Regents, also taken in junior year.

The Average English Regents Scores: Per Task/Per Year was explained by Ms. Fisher and discussion followed on how to get this information, particularly the recommendations and anecdotal evidence, to the rest of the staff, the BOE and the public.

There was a brief discussion of the high school course offerings, both required and elective. -- How do they meet the five goals outlined by the BOE vision?

Students will be/have
Basic core knowledge
Effective communicators
Responsible citizens
Problem solvers
Productive workers
(Added to the Webutuck High School course Offerings – March 1, 2007, were AP English and Agriculture Business)
No potential offerings were discussed.  Not much discussion followed, the BET is to determine if further discussion/evaluation is needed.  How do we know all the electives are supporting the BOE vision?

For the April meeting, the BET is planning to have more information from the guidance department about the PSAT analysis, more input from other staff members regarding the literacy goal and how the 5 BOE vision components are reflected in their courses.

Next meeting, Tuesday, April 10th, 2:30 PM, Library

Kenneth H. Sauer, Principal
Webutuck Middle/High School