Recap of January Regular Board Meeting

If it is the second Tuesday of the month, it must be Board Day!

At the January Regular Board meeting the 2012-2013 school year calendar, Inverness Middle School traffic flow and presentations by Food Service Director Roy Pistone were the primary items covered during the meeting.

This is not your old school lunch! A benefit to being a Board Member is that we often regularly are brought samples of foods, snacks and beverages served to students and staff.  In addition, I try to stop and have lunch at the different school cafeterias as well whenever I can.  Like the kids I have my favorites.  The samples we got at this meeting were Apple & Eve’s Fruitables made from fruits and vegetables and Smart Cookies which are small vanilla cookies with a picture and name of one of the United States Presidents on it.  The cookies will be given to all of our reimbursable lunch students near Presidents Day.  Citrus County Schools Food Service Director, Roy Pistone, presented the Wellness Policy Guidelines as revised by the State and Federal Departments that Food Services must comply with.  Mr. Pistone shared information about some of the new food programs that Citrus will be offering. One of the new guidelines is that, through a grant, Citrus Food Service will be providing a health snack and drink to all students who attend an after school program at no cost to the student or the district.  I encourage you to learn more about our Food Service Department by visiting their web site at cafe.citrus.k12.fl.us

Also, now with the Florida Department of Education moving the testing window to December for the 2012-2013 school year, the Board promptly moved to approve the new school year calendar with the first semester beginning, for students, on August 8^th, 2012 and ending on December 21^st, 2012.  For more background on this issue read my blog posted on January 9^th, 2012: DOE Reverses Decision: High School Testing Window Back to Dec.)

I want to thank the Calendar Committee who had to develop twice as many option calendars and take in to consideration the testing windows issue concerns and  other concerns not previously required or necessary.  I am so proud of the difficult work they did for our students. 

The Board also received an update on the traffic problem and concerns that occurred with autos entering and exiting out of Inverness Middle School Road and the parent pick/drop off route.  The Board formed a Task Force Committee to look for short term and long term goals to improve the situation at both IMS and parent pick up/drop off routes at the school.  The Committee will tentatively update the Board in February.

Next Board meeting is a Workshop on January 24^th, 2012 which will begin at CRHS at 9:00am and include tours of CRHS construction, CRMS and then reconvene at the Board room in the afternoon.

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