November 20, 2025 at 7:00 PM - Bethel Board of Education Regular Meeting

Rationale:  Congratulations to the Bethel Board of Education for officially being named a Level II - Board of Distinction.  

The following students were named Commended Students in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program:
Aiden Badia
Dane Cole
Anika Sharma
Preetha Shenoy

Athletic update from Mark Caron:
The Wildcat fall teams had a strong showing with 7 teams qualifying for the state tournament.  Boys and girls cross country, golf, boys and girls soccer, girls swim, and girls volleyball all qualified for the state.  The Bethel swim Coop and boys cross country both cracked the top 10 in their state meets and the boys and girls soccer teams both won their opening round games in the state tournament.   The boys soccer team also earned runner up status in the SWC league tournament. 

As for individual accomplishments, Bethel had 8 athletes earn 1st team All SWC honors and 12 other athletes earn 2nd team or all division. 

The Bethel High School Marching Band and Guard won the State Championship

Rationale:  As you are aware, the State released the accountability index recently.  This report will focus on the index and our results. We will also be exploring other measures from EdSight which are not on the accountability index.  

Accountability Index Revised 

Rationale:  (Please note:  The Board welcomes Public Participation and asks that speakers please limit their comments to 2 minutes.  Speakers may offer objective comments of school operations and programs that concern them.  The Board will not permit any expression of personal complaints or defamatory comments about Board of Education personnel and students, nor against any person connected with the Bethel Public School System.)

Rationale:  Challenging Behavior 
Roof Study 

Rationale:  Monthly Data  -  We include in the BOE agenda the monthly data as requested by the BOE.  

Rationale: 

Key Points of the Briefing: 

• We currently using the book, Myers’ Psychology for AP, 3th Edition, 2018, Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers.

• We are requesting to move to the next edition of the book, Myers’ Psychology for AP, 4th Edition, 2024, Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers.

• We are in need of this book for several reasons:

  • The textbook is fully aligned with the recent course and exam changes that  occurred in the College Board AP Psychology course.

  • These changes were significant including:

    • 5 content units (Biological Bases of Behavior, Cognition, Development and Learning, Social Psychology and Mental & Physical Health) instead of 9 

    • The course is now categorized as a science class, in addition to social studies, allowing for more flexibility and credit options

    • The course now includes new science practices that align with those in other AP science courses. These practices include application, research methods and design, data interpretation and argumentation- all included in the proposed textbook

    • The Multiple-choice section is reduced to 75 questions from 100 and the answer choices are now four per question instead of five

    • Free response questions include two new question types: Article Analysis Questions (AAQ) and the Evidence-Based Questions (EBQ). 

• We are seeking both the textbook and the 6 year Achieve digital access which includes an interactive eBook, videos, tutorials/activities and adaptive learning quizzes. It also offers translation and annotation tools.

• Official Quote  which includes:

  • 120 Textbooks with the Achieve digital access @ 166.98= $20, 037.60

  • Approximate Shipping Charge= $396.33

  • Grand Total= $20,433.93

Rationale: 

Key Points of the Briefing: 

• We are piloting a Horticulture course at BHS (Fall 2026) to introduce students to the horticulture industry which generally focuses on fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants. This course could be of particular interest to students who plan on pursuing careers in botany, horticulture, landscaping, and property maintenance. It will be included in the Program of Studies for the 2026-2027 school year.  

• A horticulture course is needed to address growing global demands for nutritious food, climate resilience, and improved well-being through green spaces. The field requires trained professionals for a wide range of roles in food production, landscaping, and environmental management with increasing opportunities in areas like urban agriculture, technology, and plant breeding.

• This course will provide another alternative for students rather than the traditional path of biology, chemistry, and physics. 

• The course is 1 semester and can be taken in Grades 10, 11, or 12, but mostly geared for juniors and seniors.  

• The units of study will include:

  • Horticulture Science Fundamentals

  • Plant Anatomy and Physiology

  • Soils and Growing Media

  • Plant Propagation

  • Pest and Disease Management

  • Landscape Design and Maintenance

• The course will support the Common Core State Standards for Literacy and the Next Generation Science Standards. 

• Curriculum will be written over the summer.

• Materials such as seeds, plants, soils, fertilizers, trays, trowels, watering cans and grow lights will be required. We will look at different funding options such as grants and the operating budget.

Rationale:  Revisions were made because of the law.  Items that need to be added are challenging behavior, and consideration of McKinney-Vento.

Rationale:  Policy 6171 has not been updated since 1992.  Due to some legislative changes at the State level, CABE introduced this model policy.   Dr. Sipala and her team will also be reviewing it and, as appropriate, providing input.  

Rationale: 

By Town Charter, the Board of Education needs to submit the 10 year Capital Plan to the Board of Selectman and Board of Finance by November 30th for consideration of the capital budget.  This year, the First Selectman and Comptroller asked us to specifically list all items, even if aspirational in nature.  This plan includes input from all departments and school principals.   

Capital Plan

Rationale:  Mr. Clayton, as Chair of the Board of Education, on behalf of the committee, will be recommending an Executive Search firm to conduct the superintendent search.  

Rationale:  At the November 6th RMBO meeting, the committee reviewed and approved transfers for the first quarter.  As you will note, the transfers were minimal.  The committee also reviewed the quarterly spending report, which is attached for your review.