MeetingMinutes

Members present: Carole Wall Simmons, Elizabeth Middleton, Lesa Hodge Childers, Alison Long, Kathleen Geldhof 1. We reviewed classes taught by each teacher and what kind of credit students receive. Kathleen will verify this information with Kay. See table below. According to Kay, all freshmen are taking the Tech Literacy class this year. 2. Suggested discussion topics for our meetings this year and beyond: a. Clarify with the counselors the prerequisites and qualifications for the publications courses. b. Help educate teachers and students about copyright guidelines, especially with regards to images, art work, and music. This should include useful alternatives to unlawful downloading. c. Whose responsibility is it to contribute to the faculty resource page? d. We may set up a Wikispace page for our department to facilitate conversation, especially since Alison and Carole are part time.
 * August 13, 2010 **
 * TEACHER || CLASS || CREDIT ||  ||
 * Elizabeth || HTML || practical arts ||  ||
 * Lesa || Siren || fine art or practical art ||  ||
 * || Tech Lit || practical art ||  ||
 * || Digital Audio & video production || fine art or practical art. ||  ||
 * Alison || News magazine || practical art ||  ||
 * || Photoshop || fine art or practical art ||  ||
 * || Advanced Office || practical art ||  ||
 * Carole || Yearbook || practical art ||  ||
 * || Intro to Layout & Design || 1/2 fine art, 1/2 practical art ||  ||
 * || Intro to Journalism || Practical Art ||  ||


 * September 16, 2010 **

Present: Lesa Childers, Ellen Carmody, Kathleen Geldhof

1. Per Penny Selle's suggestion, we have decided to alternate our meetings with the Fine Arts Department. Several members of the P.A. Dept. teach classes which may be taken for Fine Arts credit. (Penny, Lesa, and Kathleen discussed this idea.)

2. We have created a wiki for our department. We hope this will help facilitate discussion since Carole and Alison are part time and Elizabeth primarily teaches Chemistry. I will post the meeting minutes on the wiki. Here is the wiki link: http://ndspracticalarts.wikispaces.com

3. We brainstormed some things to discuss at meetings and on the wiki. The discussion thread will be used for our "conversation".


 * October 21, 2010 **

Present: Lesa Childers, Ellen Carmody, Kathleen Geldhof

1.We reviewed the ISACS recommendations for the Practical Arts Department. Our response is on the ISACS page of this wiki.

2. The primary focus of the meeting was Open House on November 7th. Our understanding is that the Computer Lab will be the Practical Arts stop on the tour. We decided that Lesa will give a brief overview of the classes offered including: Le Journal, the Siren, Les Vitraux, Tech Literacy, Digital Audio and Video Production, Photoshop, Layout & Design, Le Flambeau, and HTML Web Page Design. Ellen and Elizabeth will also present to give Lesa a break. Carole and Allison will be available for questions. In the library, the Counseling Department will talk about guidance and accommodations, and I will talk very briefly about the library. Michelle said there would be students in the library working on the computers. We need more information on that. We plan to meet again to write the script for the Practical Arts presentation.

2. At a future meeting we want to discuss the job roles and expectations for Lesa, Ellen, and Elizabeth. As it stands now, anything with the least bit of technology is assigned to them.


 * November 18, 2010 **

We did not meet formally. Important information from the Department Chair meeting is listed below. Kathleen, Ellen, and Lesa attended the Social Studies Department meeting to see Charlie Murphy's demonstration of map software that incorporates Google Maps.

1. Sion will be initiating an advisory program next year (2011-2012). The details have yet to be worked out, but the goal is to build community and school spirit. Fran and Lara attended a conference on this and have lots of ideas and information. My understanding is that all faculty (not sure about part-timers), administration, and some staff would meet with a group of 10 to 12 students on a regular basis to discuss preselected topics such as response to guest speakers, studying for finals, etc. Time would be built into the schedule for this. When advisory groups are not meeting, this time could be used for club meetings. A committee will meet next semester to work out and discuss the details. Michelle wants a representative from each department on the committee. So if you want imput on how this will work next year, please let Kathleen know by November 29.The committee will begin meeting in January of 2011.

2. Parent-Teacher conferences will be moved closer to the end of the quarter next year. They will probably be held the week following the end of quarter. The availability of Power School seems to have resulted in fewer parents attending conferences. If further study confirms this, conference times may be shortened in the future.


 * January 13, 2011 **

Lesa and Kathleen met and discussed the scheduling process. We would like to see the process moved back several weeks to February where it was previously. We have only been back one week and with two snow days, a faculty retreat, and MLK day off, there is little time to prepare eligibility lists, applications, or discuss possible new electives. Next year we plan to start very early (Sept, Oct) to discuss possible changes in our courses and new electives we would like to see.

I (Kathleen) don't have a good handle on the decision-making process. I remember Michelle saying to me earlier in the year that Advanced Office would not be offered next year. However, Alison indicated to me that she is willing to teach it. Who makes that decision? How does it affect the student requirement for practical arts credit? I hope that next year all members of the department can meet together several times during the year.


 * February 10, 2011 **

Lesa and Kathleen met with Penny. Penny demonstrated how to access the Flickr photo galleries her classes have created. These photos could be used by the Photography, Yearbook, News magazine and Siren. See Penny's webpage for directions.

We also discussed the limitations of the Practical Arts Dept. Lesa and Kathleen are the only regular attendees. Elizabeth primarily teaches Science and attends those department meetings, Ellen has attended several, but works on both campuses, and Alison and Carol do not attend as part-time teachers. While Lesa and Kathleen appreciate the opportunity to share ideas and information, there is no cohesion or unity in the department. Perhaps this department needs rethinking. At the very least, we think all members should attend meetings.


 * March 10, 2011 **

In lieu of a meeting (only Lesa was available), here is a summary of items discussed at the department chair meeting on March 9.

Michelle handed out an article on using cell phones in class for learning. One teacher has allowed their use in class. If you are interested in experimenting with student use of cell phones in class, please see Michelle.

The advisory committee is still working out the details of next year's program. They are considering a 30-minute advisory period inserted after second hour one day a week. Two days for club meetings are also being considered.

Kay stated that if we have students who are consistently making As in class, we can initiate a conversation with them about switching to an honors class.They are not locked into a track.

Apparently some teachers have been having students who are not on the accommodations list make up work with the counselors after school. This is not the responsibility of the counselors. Only students on the accommodation list should be referred to counselors according to procedure.

Kay commented that Freshmen year is an opportunity to guide and influence the students with good study habits. She recommends that homework be checked periodically to avoid the development of bad habits. Please review your late work and retesting policies with this in mind.