Cobre School Board members met at Bayard Elementary on December 8 with all five directors present. Board President Toy Sepulveda called the general meeting to order about 7:17 p.m. He said the closed session was held at 6:00 and they had discussed limited personnel issues and goals and evaluations for Superintendent Robert Mendoza, and contract work. They had also discussed Senate Bill 9; no decisions were made.
At the first public input period, high school principal Frank Quarrell thanked the board and community for all their support at the state championship football game recently. This led to some excited input about the spirited efforts of the players and how close they came to winning. Final conclusion: If they had had one minute more they would have won! No, 30 seconds would have done it! Cordova commented on that "sea of red" that included college kids and others they hadn't seen for ages in the Cobre section, and said they had also sold 570 of the new T-shirts in less than 24 hours.
Mike Stone of Stone McGee & Company said the state has released the Cobre audit for public record, and he requested its approval. It stood unmodified, and while comments and recommendations were given, it had good numbers and was a good piece of work. The board approved it. It also accepted Freeport McMoRan's donation of $10,000 to be used for student activity expenses out of district, at regional, state and national events, as needed.
Mendoza spoke of Razanna Thomas' letter of thanks regarding her introduction to the district as Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition Coordinator. Cordova and the other board members took off their outer shirts to reveal new T-shirts proclaiming "I Am New Mexico Public Schools."
In the monthly review of bills, the board approved the November checks written. The Operational Fund spent $1,076,321.92. Special Revenue funds, paying for transportation, medical and other services, had a $199,052.83 total. Athletics amounted to $10,231.42, and the Activity Fund totaled $20,436.26. Food Service checks were $33,712.23. Senate Bill 9 expenses were $4098 in November.
Under the Superintendent's Report, Bayard Elementary, Central Elementary and Snell Middle School principals informed the board of their recent reports from the state, which outlined their strengths and areas of remediation. Bayard's Joyce Barela and staff related in depth the methods they used to turn logic and vocabulary development into creative writing skills that fit the Common Core standards. Some of Bayard's issues were the attendance, tardies and the increasing number of disciplinary referrals. Staff mentioned the extra reward recesses that incorporated attention from athletes at high school and college levels to encourage better behavior.
Daena Davis, principal of Central Elementary, reported four areas of strength. They included a very strong reading program, online lesson planning to CC standards, pacing and professional self-development. Areas needing improvement included adopting the unit methods of instruction, quick assessments on students, teacher training strategies, and identifying the gifted students. Davis said she and staff were considering moving the most proficient students up a level to keep them performing.
Chris Rottman of Snell also mentioned the reported need of identifying gifted students, starting at the elementary level. Advanced classes in 7th and 8th grades were needed; common preparation in math skills, language arts work, staff processes and parental involvement. He said he thought some of this should be done in the summer months, especially those with major skills development, such as science, history, reading and language arts elements.
Assistant Superintendent Jose Carrillo concluded the reports saying Cobre would host some regionwide professional development meetings, some in January and February. He also said that the school principals were already working on interventions. Some of their meetings were before school, 6:30 to 7:45, and some were after school, 3:45 to 5:30.
Mendoza introduced a new student representative, Jose Rubio, a junior, as Leticia Rodriguez, the former representative, was working and no longer available. He suggested that with this change, it might be good to rotate the student representative through the classes. In the past this had always been given to seniors, but other classes might benefit from the school board experience.
He reminded the board that Friday, December 19, would be an early release, and that staff could be dismissed early, too, after the buses left. Winter break would last from December 22 to January 6. Monday, January 5, would be a staff development day before students returned. He would be in Albuquerque on Tuesday and Wednesday, December 9 and 10, for the New Mexico Coalition of Educational Leaders Leadership Series Meeting.
After the Superintendent's Report, Rubio gave his first report to the board. He spoke of the football team making it to the state championships, some scheduling changes and testing schedules. Response from the proposal to make Cobre a four-day campus came back that parents were not ready to handle children on that fifth day; there would be too many babysitting problems to consider it. Rubio said the salad bar was going over well, and students appreciated it.
The next board meeting is scheduled for January 12. There will be no meeting on December 22 because of the winter break. Two items on this agenda were tabled until the January meeting—the superintendent's evaluation and contract renewal. This meeting lasted until 9:12 p.m., making it one of the longest in recent years.