Manhattan Beach Education Foundation
Board Minutes – September 10, 2002

Meeting Place: Mira Costa High School, Adult Living Center, Room 113

Attendees:

Directors: Stephanie Beverly, Geoff Bremer, Webster Burns, Randy Dotemoto, Mike Dunitz, Chuck Kaminski, Craig Kline, Carolyn Leserman, Anne McLaughlin, LeRoy Nelson, John Oshiro, Pat Parker, Carol Rowe, Julian Ryder, Freddi Segal-Gidan, Gary Wayland, Richard Wennekamp

MBUSD Representatives: Dr. Sheralyn Smith, Dr. Teri Greene

MBEF Staff: Sherry Kramer, Susan Patterson

Guests: Susie Fragnoli, Anne Miller, Kim Siehl, Jeff Thaler, Ida VanderPoorte, parents

Call to Order: 7:39 PM

1. President’s Notes: Carolyn introduced the guests (listed above). She asked committee chairmen to try to keep their presentations under 3 minutes so that we can keep our meetings short. At DAC, it was mentioned that MBUSD expects to receive almost $11M in matching bond funds if Proposition 47 passes in November. The police department and city council have created a child safety program that will be presented at evening meetings at each school. Carolyn asked everyone to support the golf tournament as much possible.
    
2. Minutes: Motion by Gary Wayland/Pat Parker to approve August minutes was approved.
    
3. Financial Report: Treasurer Gary Wayland presented the financial reports. Gary proposed to move $10,000 that was not spent on 2001 grants to the 2002 grants budget (raising the total 2002 grants budget from $425,000 to $435,000). Motion by Gary/Mike Dunitz was approved. That leaves $9,350 unspent in the 2001 grants to cover any late expenses. Gary proposed that we approve a special 2002 grant of $500 for Grad Night, which was not included in the 2002 grants budget. Motion by Gary/Webster Burns was approved. Anne McLaughlin pointed out that the Discretionary item for 2002 should be $1,186. Susan Patterson reminded everyone of an outstanding proposal to consider a donation to the MCHS yearbook.
   
   Investment officer Geoff Bremer proposed to move $750,000 of our fund balance to a managed bond portfolio at Morgan Stanley to increase our rate of return. Motion by Geoff/Gary. All bonds would be rated A or better per the bylaws. Concerns were raised about the timing, since interest rates are currently at historic low levels. When interest rates go back up, the value of a bond portfolio will decrease. More information was requested about the proposed bond manager, including past performance data. Geoff suggested a separate meeting for those who are interested in discussing this proposal with representatives from Morgan Stanley. The motion was withdrawn. Directors were asked to email Geoff if they would like to attend the meeting.
    
4. Business Education Partnership Report: Sherry Kramer is focusing on the golf tournament. TRW’s merger with Northrop will delay those grants until October. Pacific School’s Grand Reopening is Sept. 12 at 4:00 PM. Sherry has MCHS cash cards.
    
5. Assistant Superintendent’s Report: Dr. Sheralyn Smith hopes everyone is happy with the start of school and with our test scores. She recommended the outstanding speakers of the Parent Talk program. She cannot fully explain the reported improvement in this year’s test scores at high school, the decrease in this year’s test scores at the middle school, or the statewide decline in test scores in the upper grades relative to the national averages. We are introducing a new middle school reading program as well as strong math articulation to get students ready for Algebra in 8th grade. The MBMS PTA website has charts for the district and for each school with cohort comparisons (www.mbmspta.com/mbusd_scores.htm) that show steady increases through middle school [through 6th grade for math and reading, through 8th grade for language]. The 3rd grade instrumental music program will be offered during the early/late bird periods when the students are normally not in class instead of as a pullout program. Elimination of early/late birds in 3rd grade will be part of contract negotiation.
    
6. MBUSD Board of Trustee’s Report: Teri Greene reported there will be appropriate 9/11 observances at each school. The School Board passed a new senior attendance policy to discourage unexcused absences. The drug/alcohol and cell phone policies are being reviewed due to law changes. Fundraising for the all-weather track is moving forward thanks to Gary Wayland’s committee. There will be only one School Board meeting each month for the rest of the year.
    
7. Fundraising Reports.
    
   1. Golf Tournament: Stephanie circulated a volunteer sign-up sheet. Julian reported that we are ahead of past years. We have over 100 players registered, and we can go up to 144. We need to acknowledge the outstanding contributions of Kirk Hawkins. There will be publicity in the Beach Reporter. Sherry promoted opportunity drawing, especially for directors who are not able to volunteer. Maria Kosanovich does the silent auction.
       
   2. Membership: Richard Wennekamp feels good about school coverage. The committee is on track to start the membership drive on November 1.
       
   3. Wine Auction: Chuck Kaminski reports that participation and enthusiasm are high for planning next year’s event.
       
8. Grants Committee Report: Nothing new to report this month.
    
9. Website: John Oshiro thanked everyone for the information they have provided. He will take photos of the executive board for the website. We need to start promoting our web site. The PTA web sites are adding links. We will reach the major search engines in two months.
    
10. Old Business/New Business: Updated phone lists and Mission Statements were distributed for the Board Books. Gary reminded us that July 7, 2003 is MBEF’s 20th anniversary. It will be a great publicity/party opportunity. We could bring back previous MBEF Board members for Super Circle. The charitable foundation fundraiser has been postponed until at least April. The Robinson Principal was not aware that the teachers did not use their participation grants.
     
11. Meeting Adjourned: 8:50 PM.
     
12. Next Meeting: Tuesday, October 1, 2002, 7:30 PM at Mira Costa High School, Family Living Center (new name for same room), Room 113.

Respectfully submitted by LeRoy Nelson on September 11, 2002
Approved as amended October 1, 2002