Deer Isle
School board struggles to find common ground

by Colin Powell
At its core, the school administration in CSD 13 is asking the school board to turn five days worth of instructional time per year into professional development time for their staffs. Yet for three months in a row the school board has continued to struggle to get a majority of its members to agree on a plan for early-release Fridays. The proposal, brought before the board in December would release students at 1:30 p.m. every Friday to allow teachers a uniform block of time to work in professional learning communities (PLCs).

“I’m puzzled that we’re in a quagmire here,” said board member Andrew Vaughn. He noted that all the board members are supportive of the idea of PLCs and that both schools already use them, but that meetings are currently spread throughout the school day. The board is being asked to change instructional time to professional development time, which Vaughn said ought to be done only if tools are in place to evaluate the effectiveness of the change.

Board member Donald Sargent agreed. He told the board that in his research, what is usually lacking in most discussions of PLCs in other communities is independent data showing the effectiveness of teacher time spent in PLCs. “I want to vote for it right now, but I also want to see what the vision is for the future,” said Sargent.

Vaughn proposed forming a task force with a couple board members, the principals and a couple faculty members on it. They would address what he perceived as the three major issues with early-release Fridays for PLCs: 1) when to change the calendar and when to hold PLCs, 2) what outcomes to look for, and 3) what assessment tools will be used to evaluate for outcomes.

“I think we’re trying to answer questions that the administration has already answered amongst themselves,” said board member Amanda Larrabee. She argued that trying to tie PLC work to fix specific problems in a content area undermines the idea of PLCs.

Board member Mark Cormier countered that while he has no problem with “just doing” PLCs, problems have arisen because he feels reducing instructional time needs to have results to account for it.

“Sounds like we’d be in agreement,” said high school principal Todd West. “PLCs are goal-oriented by definition.” Mike Benjamin, principal in the elementary school, added that at its most basic level, a PLC must operate with goals, otherwise how would they know if their work with specific curriculum or student issues are effective?

Greenlaw seconded Vaughn’s proposal for a task force to look at addressing the three major issues he outlined. High school teacher and librarian Marcia Schatz added that while any group of people can be dysfunctional, PLCs are built around the idea of achievable goals and close cooperation with school administration. She said West has shown great leadership in setting up PLCs so far.

A change this significant, reiterated Cormier, deserves a system to make sure it is functioning. “I want to see more than a report every six to nine months about how PLCs are ‘going great,’” said Cormier. He added that the question before the board is not whether PLCs are worthwhile or not. The administration has already setup and been using PLCs, as they should, he added. “What they’re asking us for is 5.2 days of instructional time for professional development,” stated Cormier.

Vaughn added that the board seems to support PLCs, but that the three issues of timing, outcomes and assessments need to be addressed before he will vote for early-release Fridays. Sargent added that he sees the main impediment as the contractual issue with teachers, making sure that if the board approves early-release days, teachers are required to be there by contract.

Later in the meeting, the board voted unanimously to reopen contract negotiations with the teacher’s union for the sole purpose of discussing professional development time.

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