Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 4:00 p.m.
Minutes
Attendees: Julie Liebersohn, Toni Gamils, Ann Marie Kiernan (Retired Chairperson), Mary Farrell, Carlene LoVecchio, (Eastchester UFSD), Sabina Kelly (Mt.Vernon School District), Ann Reilly, Sarah Johnson, Karen Griffin (Mt. Pleasant Central School District), Luis Barcelo, (Pelham UFSD) , Marjorie Clarke (Hawthorne Cedar Knolls,) Francia Jubilee (Mt. Vernon), Roxanne Franquelli (Valhalla), Rose Veltri (Port Chester-Rye)
Quorum Present? Yes
Welcome & Announcements:
Ann Marie welcomed all the members and asked everyone to introduce themselves around the table.
Approval of Minutes: Motion to approve October 18, 2023 minutes made by and seconded by and were passed..
Co-Director’s Report:
Julie gave the Board an update on the status of Grant Funds. The Teacher Center has been very busy providing Professional Development Courses for Teachers and have purchased many books for our Book Study Courses which have been very successful. We are doing well with our grant finances and we will be able to fund all the courses that we planned for this year. The Teacher Center has purchased a poster printer for use by all districts in our consortium. The Center is also in the process of purchasing Loanable Technology and the first one we have received are our Bee Bots. (programmable robots to introduce coding). The Bots are arriving, teachers will request the tools on a google form, and training will be provided either in the office or on-site. The first delivery will be to Eastchester Schools. What is the opinion of the Policy Board regarding the allotted time to loan these tools? If anyone would like to learn more about the Bee Bots, please contact Toni for a demonstration.
Math Workshops/CTLE hours – TCCW partnered with Cornell University and Cortlandt University to sponsor a five and one-half hour mathematics workshop. The workshop was held on January 28, 2023 and again was a success and well-attended by educators throughout New York State. The organizations will be sponsoring one more workshop this year on March 4, 2023.
Update on Enrollment – Toni gave an update on the enrollment this year. Last year we had a total of 511 participants and this year so far we have had a total of 489 registrants plus 385 for conferences. With these numbers, we will be exceeding our enrollment from last year. The ENL workshops are popular and Sue Baichwal who is one of our instructors gave a course on Learning Disability or Language Disability which was well received by the participants. She has done an outstanding job. We hope to use her for courses in the future. We have several new instructors Nancy Murolo, Leslie Brophy and Molly Eldridge. Please don’t hesitate to share your expertise and send a course description for next year.
New Business:
The Teacher Center is welcoming a New Parent Rep Lisa Pizzolla.
Teacher Center Spring Symposium Annual Conference:
Our annual conference is scheduled for March 7-8. The agenda has been posted. The Spring Symposium will provide information on the standards in Computer Fluency.
Committee of 100 – Toni Gamils and Ann Reilly will be attending this event on March 8 and 9th, 2023 and are looking forward to participating.
Continuation Application – Please remember to complete the survey so we can receive your input on the area of focus for Continuation Application which will be addressed at our next meeting. We must have a quorum at the meeting in order to review and approve the continuation grant.
Future Meetings – Toni has been looking into possibly holding our meetings in more than one location to make it more accommodating for all Board Members. She said this could be done if it is in a public place. Open meeting access can be any public space as long as it is made public and available to all. We need to announce the designated space 48 hours before the meeting.
TCCW Video – Julie shared a video the Teacher Center had made for us to give information on all that the Teacher Center offers and welcomed feedback from all Board Members.
STEM Conference – Toni spoke about the upcoming STEM conference which will be held in Ossining High School on April 22, 2023 – Earth Day. It will run from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. for K-12. The team feels this small fee will avoid excessive cancellations and help us plan. We are still finalizing the details with STANYS and CELF. Breakfast will be provided.
Course Scheduling for Summer and Fall:
We are waiting to schedule courses officially until we receive our grant funding. TCCW grant-funded courses will consist of 15 hours with 7 -8 hours synchronous. Our courses will run over four weeks since some districts won’t accept courses having less time.
LIMACON Conference – This conference will be held on Friday, March 17, 2023. It is being held in Old Westbury, Long Island and cost $65.28.
Next Board Meeting– May 23, 2023.
Meeting Your Needs – Please email jliebersohn@teachercentercw.org or tgamils@teachercentercw.org
Our goal is to serve the needs of the member districts of TCCW.
A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Carlene LoVecchio seconded by Luis Barcelo and passed.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Farrell
Teacher Center Policy Board Meeting
Tuesday, October 18, 2022 4:00 p.m.
www.teachercentercw.org
20 Broadway, Valhalla, NY 10595 *
Minutes
Attendees: Julie Liebersohn, Toni Gamils, Ann Marie Kiernan (Retired Chairperson), Mary Farrell, Carlene LoVecchio, Ruth Kambar, (Eastchester UFSD), Francina Jubilee, Michael Jernegons (Mt.Vernon School District), Karen Griffin, Ann Reilly (Mt. Pleasant Central School District), Rhonda Harding-Boyd (Tuckahoe School District) Patty McGee (Benchmark Education) Marjorie Clarke (Hawthorne Cedar Knolls SD) Yvette Vera-Pignato, Rose Veltri, (Port Chester UFSD), Roxanne Franquelli (Valhalla) Tina Fernandez (Blindbrook-Rye UFSD), Luis Barcelo, Paige Hefter (Pelham UFSD) Elizabeth Cirieco (Pocantico Hills School District) Larry Krute (Manhattanville College)
Quorum Present? Yes
Welcome & Announcements:
Julie called the meeting to order at 4:05 p.m. She welcomed all the members and introduced our newest board member, Paige Hefter from the Pelham UFSD.
Approval of Minutes: Anne Marie welcomed everyone to the meeting and asked all members to review the minutes from the June 7, 2022 Policy Board Meeting. A motion was made by Mike Jernegons to approve the minutes, seconded by Francina Jubilee and passed.
Co-Director’s Report:
Julie informed the board that TCCW would like to add Chapel School as our non-public school to our consortium. Chapel School is a K-8 Lutheran School located in Tuckahoe a member district in our consortium A motion was made to accept Chapel School into our consortium by Ann Reilly and seconded by Carlene DelVecchio and passed.
Our NYS grant was approved at the Department of State Education. Funds will be sent to the Mount Vernon School District to be distributed to the Teacher Center of Central Westchester.
Math Mini Institute with Cornell – TCCW partnered with Cornell University and Cortlandt University to sponsor a five and one-half hour mathematics workshop. The workshop was a success and well-attended by educators throughout New York State. The organizations will be sponsoring three more workshops throughout the year. These will take place the first Saturdays of December, January and March from 9:00 am until 2:30 pm.
Conference Attendance Opportunities – TCCW is offering the opportunity for teachers to attend two upcoming conferences. Those who attend, will be required to do a short workshop for the Teacher Center as a giveback. The workshop should be a 1-2 hour session.
Summer Courses -Toni gave an update on the summer courses which went well with 78-80 participating. The classes offered in June and July had good registration numbers. Registration for courses offered in August was not all high as the June/July courses. attended. Next year we will try to add more classes earlier in the summer..
New Business:
Appointment of Social Media Manager – This position will be for approximately 36 hours at $50.00 per hour for a total of $1,800. A motion was made by Ann Reilly to appoint Toni Gamils as our Social Media Manager, seconded by Ann Marie Kiernan and passed. Toni will submit timesheets in January and June and will only be compensated for the hours logged.
Poster Printer – We are in the process of ordering a Poster Printer through the grant. The goal is to make printing posters available for all educators in our consortium. The upcoming flier will have more information and directions for teachers on how they may access the printer.
Technology Manager– We are considering a Technology Manager position who will maintain, coordinate, and distribute our loanable technology. They will work approximately 20 hours at $50.00 per hour – total of $1,000. Toni said there are quite few people on the Steam Advisory Board who could be considered for this position. The upcoming flier will advertise the position.
Next Board Meeting– December 6, 2022.
Meeting Your Needs – Please email jliebersohn@teachercentercw.org or tgamils@teachercentercw.org
Our goal is to serve the needs of the member districts of TCCW.
A motion to adjourn the meeting at 5:04 p.m. was made by Francina Jubilee seconded by Paige Hefter and passed.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Farrell
THE TEACHER CENTER OF CENTRAL WESTCHESTER
Teacher Center Policy Board Meeting
Tuesday, September 29, 2020 4:00 p.m.
Zoom Meeting
Minutes
Attendees: Julie Liebersohn, Toni Gamils, Ann Marie Kiernan (Retired Chairperson), Mary Farrell, Ruth Kambar, Carlene LoVecchio (Eastchester), Claudia Levy (Port Chester-Rye), Francina Jubilee , Mike Jernegons, Warren Mitchell (Mt. Vernon), Janet Hoynes , Luis Barcelo (Pelham), Roseanna Cutietta (Hawthorne-Cedar Knolls, Laurel DeLuca (Blindbrook-Rye),Larry Krute (Manhattanville College)
Welcome & Announcements:
Julie introduced herself and Toni as the New Co-Directors of the Teacher Center and they both welcomed everyone to the meeting. Julie then read a letter from Mary Beth Anderson thanking everyone for their support and friendship during her tenure as Director.
Approval of Minutes: Julie asked all members to review the minutes from the June 2, 2020 Policy Board Meeting. A motion was made by Ann Marie Kiernan to approve the minutes, seconded by Francina Jubilee and passed.
Co-Director’s Report:
- Budget Update – Our Grant, as well as all NYS teacher centers are still under review. We were told we may know by the end of September but it could be as late as December. There was an increase in costs for insurance, Frontline Technology Services and to redesign our website. We are partnering with Rockland Web to host and design our website. Due to the uncertainty of our budget we are only spending on essentials.
- Website/Newsletter – Our top priority was to change the domain host and update our website. The theme is : Teachers Learning Together. Toni is hopeful that the newsletter and website, which are currently being worked on, will be available soon.
- Summer 2020 Courses: The TC ran nine courses this summer with approximately 45 participants.
- STEAM – The Steam Committee is meeting in October and will review the needs of our member districts. We are also waiting for the outcome of our funding before embarking on any expenditures.
- UPCOMING COURSE OFFERINGS AND COLLEGE PARTNERSHIPS – Toni has been setting up new partnerships with local colleges. We are partnering with Stony Brook and offering 15 CTLE Courses. We are in touch with Mercy College to pursue STEAM opportunities. We are continuing with the Teachers as Leaders program through Manhattanville College. A course submission form and syllabus template was developed that instructors need to complete. When meeting on Zoom, instructors must record the number of hours participants are in the presentation. There was also discussion on “Zoom Bombing” and Julie and Toni will look into it.
- Curricular Projects: This was previously referred to as awards and will now be referred to as Curriculum and Professional Projects. These projects will be reviewed within the parameters of hybrid/virtual teaching models. Due to remote learning, we do not want to fund projects this year that require the students to be in school.
- National Board Certification: Helene Alalouf agreed to delay the start of this program until we get an update on funding. The NBC will be revisited after we receive information on the grant status.
- Collegial Circle for New, Untenured, 2nd and 3rd Year Teachers: Ruth Kambar will be starting Collegial Circle on October 5, 2020 and she currently has approximately 16 or 17 registered.
New Business:
- Equity Grant: The Lower Hudson Teacher Network is offering an Equity Grant of $550.00 for each teacher center. There was a discussion on how this money could be spent. Ann Marie mentioned the Poverty Simulation held in White Plains last year and was attended by two Board Members. Francina said it was an excellent presentation and should be considered for the grant.
- Course Increase: There will be a price increase for courses of $25.00.
45 hour –Consortium $350 – Non Consortium $400
30 hour Consortium $250 – Non Consortium $300
15 hour Consortium $150 – Non Consortium $200
This is still below the amount charged by other teacher centers.
- Meeting Your Needs: Please email jliebersohn@teachercentercw.org or tgamils@teachercentercw.org if your teachers need and/or request anything from the Teacher Center.
- New Instructors If you want to apply to be an instructor we require resume/references and course description followed by a syllabus.
Discussion:
- Next Meeting Date – The next Policy Board Meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 1, 2020 and will probably be a Zoom Meeting.
A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Francina Jubilee seconded by Warren Mitchell and passed unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Farrell
Meeting minutes waiting for approval
The Teacher Center of Central Westchester Policy Board Meeting
Tuesday, December 2, 2020, 4:00 p.m.
Zoom Meeting
Policy Board Members:
Julie Liebersohn, Toni Gamils, Ann Marie Kiernan (Retired Chairperson), Mary Farrell, Ruth Kambar, Carlene LoVecchio(Eastchester UFSD), Claudia Levy (Port Chester-Rye UFSD), Janet Hoynes, Luis Barcelo(Pelham UFSD), Laurel DeLuca (Blindbrook-Rye UFSD) Ann Reilly (Mt. Pleasant Central School District), Ronda Harding-Boyd (Tuckahoe School District), Warren Mitchell (Mt. Vernon Board of Ed)
Quorum present? Yes
Others Present (non-voting): None
Proceedings: Meeting called to order Tuesday, December 2, 2020, 4:00 p.m. by Anne Marie Kiernan. Anne Marie Kiernan moved to approve the September 29, 2020 minutes. J. Hoynes seconded. Approved.
Co-Directors’ Reports:
- Website Update – We are very excited about our new website, and if you haven’t done so already, please check it out. There is some vital information on all that’s been happening at the Teacher Center.
- Fall 2020 Courses: Nine Courses ran from September thru November. We are still working on upcoming courses and our partnerships with Stony Brook and Manhattanville College. There are also many free courses offered by the New York State Teacher Center – check them out.
- STEAM – There will be a free course given by Liz Gallo on December 10, 2020, called Unplugged Activities for Remote Learning – Get kids off the screen. We currently have 21 people registered, and we are very excited that teachers can use these activities within their curriculum without using a computer. There is also a 6-hour course, Maker Ed, being offered in January. The goal is to make you feel confident, comfortable, and prepared to teach Maker Ed or STEM projects. Free kits accompany this course.
Budget Report provided by Co-Director Julie Liebersohn:
Our grant received approval with a small decrease, so we are in a much better place than in September. However, we have not received full confirmation, and because of this, we may get cut again in February or March. We have been working on solutions to these cuts if they come to pass but will go into details in the future. We will have a revised budget updated with all current information.
Other Business:
- Open Meeting Law: We must advertise our Policy Board Meetings publically. It will be in our Newsletter as well. Anyone is welcome to attend, but they cannot vote or talk. All Board Members should send out the list of our meeting dates and post them in a prominent place in your District. We would like you also to include the STEAM Meeting dates.
- Policy Board Vacancies: There was a discussion on how best to fill current vacancies on our Board. Julie stated Pocantico Hills seat on the Policy Board has been vacant for some time and asked if anyone on the Board knew of someone over there to reach out to or if you had a name, then Toni or Julie will reach out to them. Ann Reilly said there used to be an incentive for members who sat on the Board like free courses and that there could be a requirement to attend three meetings to be eligible for any incentive.
- Needs Assessment: Please email jliebersohn@teachercentercw.org or tgamils@teachercentercw.org if teachers request specific professional development from this Teacher Center. We will always be willing to look into any inquiries.
- Next Meeting Date – The next Policy Board Meeting will be Tuesday, February 23, 2021, and will be a Zoom Meeting.
Meeting adjourned at 5:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Farrell