October 23, 2012 Regular Meeting - Toppenish School District

TOPPENISH SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 202
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING MINUTES
DATE: Tuesday, October 23, 2012
TIME:
PLACE:
PRESENT:
7:00 p.m.
District Office-Board Conference Room
306 Bolin Drive, Toppenish, WA 98948
Maryrose Gonzalez, Richard Lommers, Gonzalo Macias, Jesse Orozco, and
Rick Schutz
OTHERS PRESENT: Superintendent John M. Cerna, Assistant Superintendent of Learning
and Teaching Patty Schmella, Executive Director of Personnel and HR Jeanette
Ozuna, Terri Winckler, Debbie Whitney, Teri Martin, Shawn Myers, Eric C. Franzen,
Larry Davison, Mandy Allen, Sylvia Allen, Vivian Dela Rosa, Atwice Kamiakun,
Stephanie Andler, Susan Rice, Renee Miles, Patsy Whitefoot, Eron Maltos, Charles
Murphy, Dave Andrews, Brenda Mallonee, Eligio Jimenez, Recording Secretary
Danelia Arellano and others
CALL TO ORDER
President Schutz called the regular meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
COMMUNITY INPUT
Patsy Whitefoot presented an extended field trip request for twelve Native American
students from EAGLE and Toppenish High School and two chaperones to attend the
Native American Student Day which would be held at the University of Washington. The
students would leave on Friday, November 1, 2012 at 4:00 pm and return on November
2, 2012 after the conference. The students will have the opportunity to meet future
classmates, learn about campus programs, participate in writing and application
workshops, cultural activities and get a chance to experience life as a future Husky.
ADOPTION OF SCHOOL BOARD AGENDA
President Schutz called for a motion to adopt the school board agenda with the
additional extended field trip request presented under Community Input by Mrs.
Whitefoot. Director Gonzalez moved to adopt the agenda, and Director Macias seconded
the motion. The motion was carried unanimously.
CONSENT AGENDA
President Schutz called for a motion to approve the consent agenda. Director Lommers
stated he had a problem with agenda items being submitted late. President Schutz
agreed but does not want to punish the students for adult’s misbehavior. Director
Lommers also agreed. Director Macias moved to approve the consent agenda, and
Director Gonzalez seconded the motion. The motion was carried unanimously.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 2
A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Approval of September 18, 2012 Board Meeting Minutes
B. APPROVAL OF NEW STAFF RECOMMENDED
• Chad Crinzi, Special Education Teacher for the Toppenish High School
• Douglas Matheny, Custodian, District-wide
• Lyle Taylor Jr. , Bus Driver, Transportation Department
C. APPROVAL OF RETIREMENT LETTERS
• Jane Berghoff, Paraprofessional, retirement effective 01/01/2013
• Patricia Schmella, Assistant Superintendent of Learning and Teaching,
retirement effective 01/01/2013
• Nan Sholtys, Substance Abuse Interventionist, retirement effective
11/01/2012
D. APPROVAL OF RESIGNATION LETTER
Approval of Lolita Ceja’s letter of resignation effective 8/31/2012
E. APPROVAL OF LEAVE OF ABSENCE REQUEST
Approval of Patricia Torres’ maternity leave of absence request, 9/24/12 to
1/2/2013.
F. APPROVAL OF OUT OF STATE TRAVEL
Permission granted for the THS Band Director to travel to Idaho with 35 students
and six chaperons to perform two concerts alongside the White Swan High
School Band. The trip is planned for May 25-26, 2013; insurance and financial
support will be provided by the students.
G. APPROVAL OF EXTENDED FIELD TRIP REQUEST
• Formal approval for the Toppenish Middle School’s extended field trip request
for the ASB officers to attend the Cispus Leadership Camp, October 21-23,
2012 in Randle WA. Verbal approval was obtained from President Schutz on
10/16/12.
• Approval granted for twelve Native American students from EAGLE and
Toppenish High School and two chaperones to attend the Native American
Student Day, which would be held at the University of Washington, November
1-2, 2012.
H. APPROVAL OF OUT OF ENDORSEMENT
Approval of Mark Delp’s out of endorsement assignment for Special Education.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 3
I. APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION NO. 13-12 AMENDMENT TO RESOLUTION
3-12 BOND REFUNDING
J. APPROVAL OF THE BUDGET STATUS REPORT FOR SEPTEMBER 2012
K. APPROVAL OF THE BILLS AND PAYROLL FOR SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER
• General Fund Accruals
Warrants No. 177604-177745 9/28/12 $1,106,658.49
Warrants No. 177746-177748 9/28/12 $9,033.55
• General Fund 2012-2013
Warrants No. 177749-177785 9/28/12 $143,541.59
Warrants No. 177786-177786 9/28/12 $270.04
• General Fund
Warrants No. 178033-178188 10/31/12 $850,928.70
Warrants No. 178189-178189 10/31/12 $1,315.22
• ASB Fund Accruals
Warrants No. 12655-12665 9/28/12 $9,843.65
• ASB Fund
Warrants No. 12666-12683 10/31/12 $11,096.42
Warrants No.12684-12684 10/31/12 $36.41
• Payroll
Warrants No. 177835-177882 9/28/12 $2,473,766.89
Warrants No. 177883-177921
• Payroll 10/31/12 $2,517,796.20
Warrants No. 177922-177994
Warrants No. 177995-178032
Warrants No. 178190-178190
REPORTS
STUDENTS AND STAFF RECOGNITION
Oscar Scockzesigh from Garfield Elementary School and Marcela Garcia from the
Toppenish Middle School were recognized for outstanding academics and citizenship
for the month of October. Sylvia Allen, a cook, at Lincoln Elementary School was
recognized as the Classified Employee of the Month.
Director Gonzalez said she looks forward to seeing the Students and Educators of the
Month flyer in her Board packet every month, and questioned why the flyer wasn’t in
the Board packet again this month. Superintendent Cerna said the nominations were
submitted late. He also said there should have been a nomination for a Professional
Learning Community of the Month submitted from each building and that didn’t
happened. Mr. Cerna apologized and said he will make sure it doesn’t happen again.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 4
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT
Enrollment - October
Superintendent Cerna reported the actual head count for the month of October is
3,714 students, which is an increase () of 51 students from last month. The FTE
count is 3,691.81 students reflecting an increase () of 48.75 FTE students. The
bilingual count increased () by 17 students and is at 1,082, which represents
29.13% of the student population. The special education count, including birth to
two years, is at 420 students, which is an increase () of 33 students from last
month, and represents 11.31% of the student population. The student count for
Northwest Allprep is up to 174 students and the Computer Academy of Toppenish
Schools is at 76 students. This month the CATS student count is low due to some of
the students transferring to EAGLE.
Impact Aid Conference - Sequestration
Superintendent Cerna reported he and Dave Andrews attended the Impact Aid
Conference in Washington, D.C. and said Sequestration was the main topic of
discussion. They had an opportunity to go on the Hill but none of the legislators
were there. They met with the legislative aids but felt their conversations didn’t go
anywhere. Mr. Andrews said Sequestration is the worst option for both parties; so
it’s in their best interest to settle that. He also said Sequestration arbitrarily cuts
across the board; we would rather see them eliminate the waste. Hopefully there
will be something done with Sequestration because it is bad.
WSSDA Regional Meeting
Superintendent Cerna reported the WSSDA Regional Meeting was very informative.
His biggest concern was hearing that there is a strong possibility that Governor
Gregoire is planning on giving our teachers the 1.9% back and giving them a 3%
raise. His concern is that we would start the biennium one billion dollars in the hole.
Director Gonzalez said there were also discussions on the pros and cons of charter
schools. There seems to be a lot of opposition on charter schools but it is not being
advertised. Director Orozco said he was invited to Radio KDNA, a Spanish speaking
radio station, to speak against Charter Schools today at 10:00 am. The interview
will be aired by KDNA twice a day until Election Day. Superintendent Cerna said the
State Superintendent and the superintendents along with the Washington State
School Directors Association are doing a lot of work to oppose charter schools.
Technology (Twitter, IPads)
Superintendent Cerna reported some of our teachers are using IPads as an
instructional tool, and the District is looking at leasing IPads for students in the
future. The district is also looking at implementing Twitter.
Principal Evaluation Tool
Superintendent Cerna said training for the new principal evaluation tool will begin
this Thursday; Othene Wade will be the trainer. This new tool is based on a growth
model.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 5
WA DC National Principal Recognition
Superintendent Cerna said he and Dave Andrews had an opportunity to attend
Trevor Greene’s national recognition as National Principal of the Year. The ceremony
was very nice and professional. Mr. Greene did an awesome job representing our
district.
Renaissance Program
Superintendent Cerna reported the Renaissance Program is going well; we are
meeting at least once a month with the overall group. There are a lot of exciting and
different initiatives going on at all the buildings. The training received during the
summer has already paid huge dividends.
Upcoming Events/Conferences
Bonds
• 14 th & 15 th Combined Legislative Event, November 7, THS, 6:00-8:00 PM
• WSSDA Annual Conference, November 14-17, Spokane Convention Center
Superintendent Cerna asked Business Manager Dave Andrews to give a report on
bond refunding. Mr. Andrews reported the Board passed a resolution to refund our
bonds whenever we could make the targeted goal of saving our taxpayers 5%. He
said this morning interest rates dropped again dramatically as the stock market
plunged due to economic reports. The good news for bonds and our District is that
we hit beyond our target point. We are going to refund about $9.2 million dollars
worth of bonds. Over the life of those bonds we are going to save our taxpayers over
$600,000 in payments. Mr. Andrews said our District was rated as an A2 School by
Moody’s Corporation, a credit rating company, which is a great rating due to our
growing enrollment and our fund balance/financial position. The sale of the bonds is
scheduled for tomorrow morning.
SCHOOL BOARD REPORT
The Board discussed a huge concern they have regarding items being submitted past
the deadline involving students which need Board approval. All Board members were
in agreement that they do not want to prevent students from taking advantage of
educational opportunities due to an adult’s mistake. However, the issue needs to be
addressed as it is occurring quite often. Superintendent Cerna said he would
address the issue and make sure people understand this is a priority.
President Schutz said Director Orozco provided a written report regarding the
WSSDA Legislative Assembly.
PUBLIC SCHOOL EMPLOYEE REPORT
No Report provided this month.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 6
TOPPENISH EDUCATION ASSOCIATION REPORT
Terri Winckler, TEA President, reported they have started the new teacher
evaluations and they have not heard any negative comments. The process does
take longer but the conversations principals and teachers have had before and after
the evaluation have been very enlightening. Mrs. Winckler also reported the monthly
meetings with District office administration continue to be very positive; issues are
being dealt as they arise.
ACTION ITEMS
PROCLAMATION FOR AMERICAN INDIAN HERITAGE MONTH
Patsy Whitefoot, Indian Education Director, presented the Proclamation for American
Education Week and recommended approval. President Schutz called for a motion to
approve the Proclamation for American Indian Heritage Month. Director Gonzalez
moved to proclaim the Month of November as American Indian Heritage Month, and
Director Macias seconded the motion. The motion was carried unanimously.
Out of State Conference Report-Patsy Whitefoot, Larry Davison, Atwice Kamiakun,
and Eron Maltos gave a report on the National Indian Education Association (NIEA)
Convention they attended in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Mr. Davison said the theme of the conference was “Maintaining Traditions in a Digital
Era.” A lot of the sessions dealt with taking things that are rich within the Native
American culture and making sure we are acknowledging them through current
technology. He said our District is posing itself in a great spot to do that. Mr. Davison
was really impressed and moved by the keynote message provided by, Dr. Dan
Wildcat. He said Dr. Wildcat had a great analogy that humans tend to use the earth
as an ATM machine; we take a lot of things out and we don’t really think about what
we are putting back. Mr. Davison also said he came back with a real sense of
responsibility about stewardship in instilling upon ourselves and our students to be
great stewards of the resources that we have.
Mrs. Whitefoot said a word she came back from the conference was “resolve.” She
attended a workshop on how the Native Hawaiians are leading the way in addressing
the goals of culture-based education. The workshop was titled Staying Centered:
Rigor, Relevance and Relationships. The work the Native Hawaiians have been doing
is around the language, family, their communities and the islands. This work is
based on Context, Content and Relationships. Context meaning family, community,
place, and world; Content meaning knowledge, practices, language, and values; and
Relationships with students, teachers, and evaluators. They emphasized observing,
listening, reflecting, speaking and teaching in the language and in the culture.
Atwice Kamiakun prepared a presentation board highlighting the conference and she
also brought some souvenirs to share at the school board meeting. Mrs. Kamiakun
said she attended a workshop involving the Executive Order on Indian Education,
which is an annual statement provided by the President.
Eron Maltos, reported he attended an interesting workshop on Acculturation and
Depression. He said some of the research provided was quite valuable. Another
session he attended was on the World War II Code Talkers. All the information was
presented in a play by Oklahoma State University students, which was powerful.

Toppenish School District No. 202
Regular School Board Meeting Minutes
October 23, 2012, Page 7
Mr. Davison reported Camella George also attended the conference but was not able
to attend this meeting. He said her focus at the conference was on special
education. Mr. Davison said he attended most of the same sessions that Ms. George
attended. He said she will be a driving force at the Toppenish Middle School in
looking at opportunities or situations for special education students and making a
rich environment for them.
Mrs. Whitefoot reported Krista Goudy-Sutterlict also attended the conference as a
representative of the NIEA Board of Directors on higher education. She completed
her term at this convention.
PROCLAMATION FOR AMERICAN EDUCATION WEEK, NOVEMBER 11-17
Superintendent Cerna presented the Proclamation for American Education Week and
recommended approval. President Schutz called for a motion to approve the
Proclamation for American Education Week. Director Lommers moved to proclaim
the week of November 11-17 as American Education Week, and Director Gonzalez
seconded the motion. The motion was carried unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT
President Schutz adjourned the meeting at 8:06 p.m. with no further business.
_________________________
John Cerna, Secretary to the Board
_________________________
Rick Schutz, President