The January regular meeting of the Board of Education was called to order by President J. Allene Smith at 6:11 p.m. at the Benton Harbor High School, Student Commons Area.

Present: Mrs. J. Allene Smith, Mr. Ken Woltman, Dr. Gladys Peeples-Burks, Mr. Anthony A. Henry, Mr. Dwight P. Mitchell and Mrs. Michelle Bennett

Absent: Dr. Perry Davis

Also Present: Student Board Members Brittney Hurst and Brett Closson

Minutes
A motion was made by Mr. Mitchell and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks that the Minutes of the work session of December 3, 2002 be approved as printed.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

A motion was made by Mr. Henry and supported by Mr. Mitchell that the Minutes of the regular meeting of December 10, 2002 be approved as printed.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Vendor Payments
A motion was made by Mr. Mitchell and supported by Mr. Henry that vendor payments in the amount of $1,589,635.66 be approved for payment.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Activity of the General Fund was reviewed and accepted as presented.

Recognitions
On behalf of the Benton Harbor Education Association and in respect of School Board Recognition month, President Marie Hobson expressed her gratitude for the support of the Board of Education in educating the youth of Benton Harbor and presented Trustees with certificates of appreciation.

The Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education presented Mr. Frederick J. Kirby, Director of the Benton Harbor Library, with a check for $4,000.00 in support of the literacy initiative, "Drive for Success."

In honor of School Board Recognition month, Superintendent Paula M. Dawning read quotes of inspiration and presented Trustees with certificates of appreciation.

Central Administration
Staff Report #1
A motion was made by Mr. Mitchell and supported by Mr. Henry:

THAT the Board of Education, Benton Harbor Area Schools, meet in closed session on the following dates:

Tuesday, January 14, 2003 before and/or following
the regular meeting of the Board of Education on
that date, and

Tuesday, February 4, 2003 before and/or following
the work session of the Board of Education on that date,

at the Benton Harbor High School, Student Commons Area, 870 Colfax Avenue, Benton Harbor, Michigan, in said District for the purpose of discussing with legal counsel litigations, negotiations and possible expulsions.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Operations/Facilities
Staff Report #2
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education award a three year lease to Mr. James Demski for the use of District property at the agreed upon price of $15,000.00 per year in addition to all other stipulations as stated in the lease as prepared by the District's legal counsel.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #3
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Mr. Henry:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education award the roofing contract to Richard Goff Roofing of Lawton, MI for various roofing replacement projects at the low bid price of $214,912.00. The State of Michigan Urgent Repairs Grant will fund this project.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education modify the Tri-County Head Start lease amount to reflect $.10 cents per square foot for a one year lease - thereafter, a graduated amount will take effect each subsequent year of occupancy. This will give the leasee adequate time to make proper budgeted corrections for future extensions of said lease.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Instruction
Staff Report #5
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Mrs. Bennett:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially accept and acknowledge the generosity of a grant in the amount of $600.00 from the Fredrick S. Upton Foundation to the Henry C. Morton Elementary School.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #6
A motion was made by Dr. Peeples-Burks and supported by Mr. Woltman:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially acknowledge and accept the generosity of a grant in the amount of $500.00 from the Berrien County Intermediate School District and the Upton Foundation to the Benton Harbor High School.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #7
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Mr. Mitchell:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially acknowledge and accept a grant of $300.00 from the Berrien County Intermediate School District and the Upton Foundation to the Benton Harbor High School.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #8
A motion was made by Mr. Mitchell and supported by Mr. Woltman:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially acknowledge and accept a grant of $400.00 from the Berrien County Intermediate School District and the Upton Foundation to MLK Elementary School.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #9
A motion was made by Mrs. Bennett and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially adopt the usage of the Computerized Measure of Academic Progress Test (MAP) published by the Northwest Evaluation Associates to evaluate the academic achievement of students in grades 4-8, beginning with the second semester of the 2002-2003 school year at a cost of $25,505.00.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #10
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education officially adopt the usage of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills published by Riverside Publishing to evaluate the academic achievement of students in grades K-3, beginning the second semester of the 2002-2003 school year at a cost of $17,865.63.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #11
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education approve the release of funds from the Hobart Bequest in the amount of $15,254.80, for the research and publication of local Benton Harbor history by BHHS students in the Future Leaders Journalizing Our Past class taught by Mrs. Louretta Powell.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Human Resources/Labor Relations
Staff Report #12
A motion was made by Mr. Mitchell and supported by Mr. Woltman:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education reinstate/create a Human Resources/Labor Relations Manager's position.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Other
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Mrs. Bennett:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education add staff reports 13 & 14 to the agenda.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #13
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Mr. Mitchell:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education approve the following internal technology connections costs:

Secant Network maintenance and troubleshooting - including routers, switches, CSU/DSUs and file servers - 200 service hours at a cost of $20,520;

Novell Network Operating System School License Agreement - 5,200 users at a cost of $10,400;

Cisco SmartNet Maintenance - on-site 24X7X4 support for Cisco 7513 Router, 3620 Router and 2912MF Switch at a cost of $30,205.

Grand total $61,125.00

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Staff Report #14
A motion was made by Mr. Woltman and supported by Dr. Peeples-Burks:

THAT the Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education approve the service contract with BTS Telecom, St. Joseph, MI for the period of July 1, 2003 - June 30, 2004 - 400 hours at a cost of $26,000.

The motion passed by unanimous vote.

Superintendent's Update
Superintendent Dawning was the keynote speaker at Lake Michigan College and Saint Mary's College on Martin Luther King Day.

State Congressmen Fred Upton and John Lewis were the guest speakers at the January 13^th Council for World-Class Communities (CWCC) luncheon and discussed common challenges faced by school Districts.

The Berrien County Intermediate School District is sponsoring a community event featuring guest speaker, Dr. Bruce Perry, a renowned authority on brain development and its impact on early childhood development.

A Benton Harbor Area Schools Board of Education retreat was conducted on January 11, to present and discuss a five-year District plan. The summary of the five-year plan will be presented to the community at upcoming Townhall meetings.

The Department of Education has approved a resolution that children with limited English proficiency (LEP) undertake alternate forms of MEAP testing. During such period, the LEP students excluded will not need to be included in the calculation of students tested in order to meet the minimum "95% tested" requirements of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation.

As of January 7, 2003, students have read 39,450 in the "Drive For Success" reading initiative.

Public Participation
Mr. Isiah Newson addressed the Board of Education to thank trustees and members of the management team for their commitment and betterment of the District.

Board Comments
Student Board member Brett Closson extended his appreciation for an excellent Board meeting.

Student Board member Brittney Hurst stated that she was a contestant in the Miss Benton Harbor contest and invited all to attend the fashion show scheduled for this weekend.

Trustee Henry invited trustees to visit the Creative Learning Center.

Trustee Peeples-Burks referred to the January 12^th issue of The Herald Palladium regarding the Council for World-Class Community (CWCC) and encouraged the community to vote.

Trustees expressed their appreciation for the informational Board retreat.

There being no further business, the January regular meeting of the Board of Education was adjourned at 7:40 p.m.