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APPROVED 1011102 MINUTES <br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />BUDGET WORK SESSION <br />7:00 p.m. <br />June 17, 2002 <br />The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session for a budget work <br />session on Monday, June 17, 2002 at 7:04 p.m. in the boardroom of the Southern Human Services <br />Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. <br />COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Margaret <br />W. Brown, Moses Carey, Jr., Alice M. Gordon and Stephen Halkiotis <br />COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Manager <br />Rod Visser and Clerk to the Board Beverly A. Blythe {All other staff members will be identified <br />appropriately below) <br />NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT <br />AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. <br />1. MINORITY STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT <br />Chair Jacobs said that he plans to share information on the Minority Student Achievement <br />report before the budget discussion. He commended the school boards, teachers, and <br />administrators for the exemplary jobs they do. <br />Brenda Stephens said that she appreciates the increase in the per pupil allocation. This is <br />the first year they will be able to fund some of their expansion items. <br />Orange County School Report an Minority Student Achievement <br />Superintendent Randy Bridges made this report that is hereby incorporated by reference. He <br />said that the fact is that children that need additional help cost additional money. He presented a <br />graph which showed the minority student achievement over afour-year period. He is pleased and <br />proud of these numbers with the exception of sixth grade reading. The proficiency levels are pretty <br />much the same as last year. The End-of-Grade (EOG} Performance -shows what the school <br />system has done aver time to close the achievement gap. They instituted an accountability policy <br />in 1997. Having instituted this policy meant that some students would be retained because the bar <br />had been elevated. They have a low teacher-student ratio which has also helped close the gap. <br />They put money into the reading recovery program in their K-8 schools. Early Beginnings is a <br />program that has benefited children as well as their pre-K program this year. There has also been <br />consistency in leadership, which has helped. This past year they have had three groups involved <br />in bridging the gap and evening out the transition from 5t" to 6t" grade and 8t" to 9t" grade. They <br />also formed community focus groups and talked about the absence of minority students in upper <br />level courses. Parents, students, and teachers provided same feedback about haw to improve this <br />process of getting more students involved. The Closing the Gap committee was in operation for <br />two years. Eleven recommendations came forth from that committee. Dr. Bridges said that <br />obviously they still have work to da but they are improving their efforts. <br />Commissioner Carey asked about the success plan and some examples of the results of <br />students enrolled in upper classes and what was learned from the focus groups. Dr. Bridges said <br />that a success plan is used to identify weaknesses and to have a structured plan on addressing <br />those weaknesses. One of the biggest things they found out from the focus groups was a lack of <br />