A Publication for

The Boarder

the CFSD Community

Staff

A Summary Report of the April 12, 2016,

C F S D Governing Board Meeting
CFSD Star Award
The governing board recognized the Catalina Foothills
High School Science Olympiad State Championship
Team. Amy Krauss, board vice-president, honored the
individuals with a certificate and star pin.

Sunrise Drive Elementary School

Ventana Vista Elementary School

The governing board recognized Southern Arizona

Research, Science and Engineering Foundation
(SARSEF) Science Fair project winners. Board
member Carole Siegler honored the students from all
four elementary schools and one middle school with a
certificate and star pin.

Canyon View Elementary School

Manzanita Elementary School

Superintendent Mary Kamerzell shared the following

student and staff achievements.
Science Olympiad State Champions
Our CFHS Science Olympiad team won the Arizona
State Championship and will now advance to national
competition. The team members are seniors - Sumhith
Aradhyula, Isabel Burgess, Jack Burgess, Eric Liu,
Liam Donovan, Noah Deetman, and Amy Liu; juniors Bassil Ramadan, Meena Venkataramanan, Amanda
Fordyce, Kara Thompson, Daniel Wieland, Deven
Carmichael, George Jiang, Emma Potter; sophomore Mark Cai; and freshman - Danilo Malo-Molina. Their
coach is CFHS teacher Aaron Steindler.
Page 1 of 4

Southern Arizona Research, Science and Engineering

Foundation (SARSEF)
Many CFSD students were award winners at this
years SARSEF science project competition. Note:
Their coach/teachers name is shown in parentheses.
Canyon View Elementary School
th
Julia Beskind, 4 grade, Do dogs who receive antivenom after a rattlesnake bite have a better chance of
survival than those who dont? (Jeaneen Ghori)
th
Priti Kari, 4 grade, Pills vs. Shots (Scott Suter)
th
Larissa Limesand, 4 grade, How frequently do
students have to clean school desks? (Scott Suter)
Sahasarakshi Dasika and Harini Rajendran,
th
4 grade, Wasting water in irrigation? No!
No! (Jeaneen Ghori)
th
Eden Bae, 5 grade, Does age affect hearing? (Josef
Torres)
th
Kyle Cagno, 5 grade, Science is such a drag. (Josef
Torres)
th
Scarlett Henderson, 5 grade, Nails for
breakfast (Josef Torres)
th
Avery Turley, 5 grade, Cookie Science (Josef Torres)
Manzanita Elementary School
th
Grant Cohen, 5 grade, SPF Incognito (Jennifer
DeBenedetti)
th
Logan Douglas, 5 grade, Strike three youre
out. (Jennifer DeBenedetti)
th
Jack McNeilus, 5 grade, Does temperature affect
generators? (Jennifer DeBenedetti)
th
Rohan Patel, 5 grade, All sorrows are less with bread,
unless the bread is moldy. (Jennifer DeBenedetti)
th
Katie Weeks, 5 grade, Sleep affecting test
performance (Jennifer DeBenedetti)
Orange Grove Middle School
th
Emmeline Close, 6 grade, What Katniss Everdeen
should know: At what angle does an arrox travel the
farthest distance? (Laird Close)
Sunrise Elementary School
nd
Yash Chauhan, 2 grade, How to prevent an Arizona
dust storm (Hilary Woodhams)
nd
Basil Wood, 2 grade, Rocketry: Travel to the Moon,
Mars and Beyond (Maura Baker)
rd
Jack Borens, 3 grade, Oil Spills (Jessica Coleman)
rd
Vivianna Colson, 3 grade, Soccer Ball + Pressure =
Distance??? (Brittany Eggert)
rd
Caitlin Dessent and Maddy Hazzard, 3 grade, Do
soccer ball sizes matter?
(Yu-Hsin Lien)
rd
Grant Miller, 3 grade, Look, that dog is wearing
shoes. (Wren Tremaine)
th
Liliana Coppel, 5 grade, Sleep and the Student (Amy
Nies)
th
Lily Gibney, 5 grade, How the planets mass affects
gravitational orbit around the sun (Teri DeFoor)

Ventana Vista Elementary School

Scarlett Bonomolo and Camille Garcia,
kindergarten, Does color affect which M & M melts the
fastest? (Maria Jimenez-Baca)
Sofia Garcia, kindergarten, Water for the
garden (Rebecca Garcia)
st
Ezra Mandel, 1 grade, A Sticky Situation Which
surface does a suction cup stick to the best? (Leah
Glashow-Mandel)
nd
Ethan Bialis, 2 grade, The power of junk (Maribel
Miranda)
High School Vocal Music
The CFHS Change of Pace Choir earned a "Superior"
rating at the Northern Arizona University Madrigal
Festival. The choir also performed at the Arizona State
Senate. Leah Seitz is the group's teacher.
Arizona All-Section Athletic Teams
These CFHS student athletes were voted to Arizona's
All-Section Teams by the head coaches in the AIA
statewide Coach's Poll: Girls Basketball 1st Team AllSection -Kelsey Siemons, Junior; Boys Basketball 1st
Team All-Section - Sam Beskind, Sophomore, Jared
Irwin, Junior, Nik Nehls, Senior; Boys Basketball
Honorable Mention - Aaron Ayres, Senior, Liam Giffin,
Senior, Boys Basketball 2nd Team All-Section Spencer Lewis, Sophomore.
Boys Basketball Head Coach, Doug Damore, was
voted Section Coach of the Year.
Speech and Debate
The CFHS Speech and Debate Team won the 2nd
place Team Sweepstakes trophy at the State
Tournament. The team won 1st in Lincoln Douglas
Debate with Gabe Cohon taking first place, and Josh
Cohen taking second place. Meena Venkataramanan
took 1st place in Poetry, and Max Quint took 1st place
in Impromptu.
Odyssey of the Mind (OM)
Manzanita's Something Fishy Team won 2nd place at
the state Odyssey of the Mind competition and now
moves onto World Competition in May. The student
members of the team are Jordan Andrews, Dillan
Douglass, Logan Douglass, Keona Kuo, Brendan
Miller, Asiana Sana, and Montana Wright. They are
coached by Manzanita's music teacher, Jae Fagan.
Manzanita's Furs, Fins, Feathers, and Friends OM
team placed third at state. Team members are Anabel
Close, Anissa Madrid, Jake Toole, Katherine Willems,
Johnny Yu, and Bethany Zashin. They are coached by
a parent, Lisa Zashin.

Page 2 of 4

Teacher Author
Sunrise Drive's 2nd grade teacher, Maura Baker, just
published her third children's book, The Glue Monster.
Ms. Baker's other two publications are Soul
Witness and Lack of Attention.

next year. The governing board approved the issuance

of these contracts, as presented.

The governing board approved the proposed two

salary schedules, with and without Prop 123 funds, as
presented.

Consideration of New High School Math Course,

Applications of Mathematics (first reading)
Associate Superintendent Mary Jo Conery presented
the first reading of the academic content standards of
the course. Dr. Conery reported that the Applications of
Mathematics is a new fourth year high school
mathematics course that was approved by the board
on January 26, 2016 for the 2016-2017. The academic
standards for mathematics provide a consistent, clear
understanding of what the student is expected to learn.
The standards are focused, coherent, and relevant to
the real world, describing the knowledge and skills that
students need for success in college and career
pathways. By steering high expectations with a
commitment to succeed with all students, the district is
positioning the future workforce to be internationally
competitive.

Approval of District Contribution to Cafeteria Plan

of Employee Benefits
Dr. Bartlett presented the proposed benefit renewal
options for qualifying employees for 2016-2017.

Dr. Conery reported that similar to other curriculum

areas, the course content has been designed using
four-point scales and measurement topics to
specifically define proficiency expectations.

The proposed district sponsored plan, Classic Gold,

is a change from the Co-Pay Gold offered during 20152016. There is a 7.49% to the premium cost. This plan
has a $300.00 deductible. The district contribution
necessary per full-time qualified employee will increase
from $4,644 to $4,992 per employee. If Proposition 123
were successful, the districts contribution to the
cafeteria plan for medical benefits would be $4,992.00.
If Prop 123 fails, the district contribution will remain at
$4,644, and employees will be responsible for the
increase.

Consideration of Redesign Middle School Math 7

Accelerated Course Content Standards for the
2016-2017 School Year (first reading)
Dr. Conery presented the first reading of the proposed
redesigned course. The content of the course has been
redesigned to provide a bridge from middle level math
to Algebra I to high-level mathematics. Dr. Conery
reported that the redesign of Math 7 Accelerated
provides students with the opportunity to move into
more demanding math and science courses at the high
school level.

Dr. Bartlett reported that the dental plan rates for

Employer Dental Services will increase by 3%, and
Delta Dental rates will remain the same. The rates for
SightCare services will increase by 3%. Other benefits
under the CFSD cafeteria plan will continue to be
offered at the same premium rate as this years: Basic
and Voluntary Employee and Dependent Life
Insurance, Voluntary Short-Term Disability, and United
Pet Care. P & A Administrative Services, a third party
administrator, will continue to provide COBRA and
Flexible Spending Account management with no
increase in cost. The governing board approved the
$4,644 and $4,992 contribution depending on the
election outcome and the list of benefit providers, as
presented.

For both proposed math course, a curriculum team has

created essential questions and understandings for
standards along with recommended instructional
practice strategies, examples of problems, and deep
learning proficiencies. The personalized curriculum
framework will attain district goals and extend and
enrich the educational experience for our students.

Approval of Professional Salary Schedule for 20162017

Assistant Superintendent Denise Bartlett presented
two
proposed
2016-2017
professional
salary
schedules. On May 17 Arizonans will vote on
Proposition 123. If the election is successful, the
administration proposes raising the starting base salary
for certified employees to $38,500 and adjusting the
step intervals to $750. If the election fails, the
recommendation is to freeze employee salaries.

Fiscal Year 2017 Maintenance and Operations

(M&O) Budget Proposal
Superintendent Mary Kamerzell presented revisions to
the FY17 budget proposals. They included an updated
revenue projection for Prop 301, changes to
expenditures in the Instructional Improvement Fund,
and other deletions and additions to budget lines
based on revised revenue projections.

Approval of Certified Contracts for 2016-2017

Dr. Bartlett presented a list of professional staff being
offered contracts and addenda for the 2016-17 school
year. This was the first round of contract offerings for
Page 3 of 4

Pima County Board / Superintendent Collaborative

Meeting Report
Board president Eileen Jackson shared information
and discussed highlights from the Pima County
Board/Superintendent Collaborative Meeting on March
28. There was a short presentation from Tucson
Values Teachers. The meetings agenda focused on
Proposition 123 and legislative activity. Also discussed
were revisions to the Collaboratives bylaws to reflect
current practice.
2016 Arizona Legislative / Governmental Activity
Board members shared information regarding State
Superintendent Diane Douglas position on the Arizona
Department of Educations capacity to implement
current year funding in 2016-2017, and the Prop 123
voter pamphlet.

CFSD

Please welcome these new hires/rehires:

Dana Preston, EA Classroom, MZ
Erin Usie-Cooper, EA Classroom, VVEL

Consent Agenda Items

The governing board approved the following consent
agenda items.

March 22, 2016, regular governing board meeting

minutes
Expense voucher memorandum
Personnel memorandum
Gift and donations memorandum
Fund raising request memorandum
Field trips request memorandum
Award of RFQ 16-04-17 Qualified Select Bidders
List Sunrise Drive Elementary School Final
Phase Renovation Project

Upcoming Board Meeting

The next regularly scheduled governing board meeting
is Tuesday, April 26, 2016, 6:30 p.m., Catalina
Foothills High School, Building 4, Room 712.
The tentative agenda is:
Super Volunteer Recognition
Approval of New High School Math Course,
Application of Mathematics (second reading)
Approval of Redesigned Middle School Math
Course, Math 7 Accelerated (second reading)
Consideration of New Middle School World
Languages Course, Global Perspectives (first
reading)
Fiscal Year 2015 Audit Report
Fiscal Year 2017 Maintenance & Operations
(M&O) Budget
2016 Arizona Legislative /Governmental Activity
April 18 Pima County Board / Superintendent
Collaborative Meeting Report

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