HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-04-00 Informal Meeting •
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Informal iitetting of the 3 rub Common QCoinut i
The October 4, 2000 Informal Meeting of the Common Council of the City of South Bend
was called to order by its Vice-President, Council Member James Aranowski, at 6:00 p.m. in the
Council Informal Meeting Room.
Persons in attendance included Council Members: Aranowski, Kelly, King, Kirsits,Ujdak
and Varner,Health and Safety Committee Citizen Member Isabele Gonzalez,Parks and Recreation
Committee Citizen Member Kimberly Kilgore, Mayor Stephen J. Luecke, Dr. Joan M. Raymond,
Superintendent of the South Bend Community School Corporation;Uniform Division Chief Larry
Blume, Council Attorney Kathleen Cekanski-Farrand,and members of the public.
Council Member Aranowski introduced Dr. Joan M. Raymond, Superintendent of the
South Bend Community School Corporation, as the Council's featured guest (introductory
remarks attached) and presented her with a City of South Bend paperweight and wooden apple.
Dr. Raymond thanked the Council for the invitation to discuss several community issues
and in particular the current status of the South Bend Community School Corporation. She began
with a brief overview of the school system. She noted among other facts that the school
corporation has approximately 21,500 students with 31% being African Americans, 10% being
Hispanic, and 51 % being White. Five percent(5%) of the school population does not use English
as its first language; 51% are considered disadvantaged and therefore entitled to free-lunch
programs;one-fifth(1/5)are handicapped;and 13 %are gifted/talented.
Dr. Raymond noted that in 1999 the cost to educate one(1) student was$8,323. There are
1,650 teachers who teach in the thirty-four (34) schools which make up the school corporation.
The average teacher salary is $ 42,000, with $ 54,000 being the maximum teacher salary. The
average SAT score was 964, which she noted is below the State of Indiana average. The school
corporation's budget is $ 169 million dollars. She noted that there are currently three (3) new
building projects underway in the $ 70-75 million range. She stated that the mistakes which
continue to plague the Riley High School construction project were not the fault of the Board, and
that appropriate steps have been taken by the school corporation to have a construction manager
oversee the current construction projects and address the Riley High School problems.
Dr. Raymond then highlighted several issues she believes must be addressed for the best
interest of the South Bend Community School Corporation and our community as a whole. They
include:
1. Finance: By having the State of Indiana and the school corporation on different
budget calendars creates confusion at best and needlessly complicates the
overall financial picture.
2. Image: The image of the South Bend Community School Corporation needs to be
positively and creatively addressed.
Note#1: A social hour from 5:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Immediately preceded the Informal Meeting of the Common Council
which included in Beverly Crone,President of the St Joseph County Commissioners,Joseph Baldoni,President of the St.
Joseph County Council,Fire Chief Luther Taylor as well as those in attendance at the Informal Meeting of the Council.
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Informal Meeting of the South Bend Common Council
October 4, 2000
Page 2
3. Redistricting: Dr. Raymond noted that she has always been a staunch advocate of civil
rights and believes that neighborhood schools should be discussed and
considered under the applicable legal guidelines.
4. Communication:
Dr. Raymond recommended that communication within the school
corporation and throughout the community be improved, citing examples
with the news media seeking information and appropriate responses.
5: Administration Infra-Structure:
Improved internal procedures and data retrieval need to be developed to
further professionalize the overall operation of the school corporation. Dr.
Raymond cited examples of access to basic information on students,
teachers, administrators and staff which needs to be standardized.
6. Concerns of Public Education in General:
Dr. Raymond noted that in her twenty-two year career as a School
Superintendent in several different school systems, that she has a growing concern of the direction
of public education. She voiced concern with regard to the additional roles and burdens placed on
the public education system by society. She noted that the South Bend Community School
Corporation averages 175 expulsions per year which are mostly drug-related. She stated that she
has never been in a school system with such a high rate.
Dr. Raymond suggested that the school corporation, elected and appointed
public officials and concerned citizens need to come together as a community with regard to
developing alternatives to expelling students. She stressed that she is open to suggestions and
believes that this is one example of a growing community problem.
General discussion then took place on several topics including but not
limited to applicable state legislation governing public education; alternative career centers; bi-
lingual programs; school corporations creating partnerships with private industry for additional
educational opportunities;ratings of the school system by the realtors; funding and grants;etc.
Dr. Raymond thanked the Council for the opportunity to meet and hoped
that she would be invited back to continue discussions affecting the community.
There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting was adjourned at
7:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Council Member James Aranowski
Vice-President
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