January 12, 2022 City Commission Liaison Meeting Minutes •
CITY COMMISSION LIAISON MEETING MINUTES
JANUARY 12, 2022
2:00 P.M.
Aventura Government Center
19200 West Country Club Drive, Aventura, FL
A City of Aventura Commission Liaison Meeting was held at the Aventura Government
Center on January 12, 2022 and called to order at 2:00 p.m. The following Commission
Liaison members were in attendance: Commissioner Dr. Linda Marks and Commissioner
Robert Shelley'. Also present were Mayor Enid Weisman, Vice Mayor Rachel S.
Friedland2, City Manager Ronald J. Wasson, City Clerk Ellisa L. Horvath, Assistant City
Manager Bryan Pegues, ACES Principal Dr. Anthony Tyrkala, DSAHS Principal Dr.
Geoffrey McKee, Charter Schools USA South Florida Deputy Director Rachel Windler-
Freitag, and Rita Weaver CSUSA Director of Board Governance.
The following items regarding the Aventura City of Excellence School were discussed:
teacher leadership programs, COVID-19 cases and possibility of providing testing kits or
providing testing, voluntary weekly testing and protocols to do so, acceptable absences,
the use of Zoom for hybrid learning, alternate options for August, vertical alignment with
the high school, Cambridge approval process and review of the program at other schools,
staffing, open enrollment process, residency requirement for Aventura residents, the
enrollment of teachers' children, the loss of teachers associated with non-mandatory
retirement benefits, increasing teacher knowledge about the retirement benefits available,
proficiency rates, meeting additional needs of exceptional student education (ESE)
children, review of school calendar for half days to be addressed at the governing board
meeting, and a request to include the Commission letter commending the teachers in
their personnel files.
The following items regarding the Don Soffer Aventura High School were discussed: a
request to include the Commission letter commending the teachers in their personnel
files, K-12 school system, possibility of City matching teacher contributions to retirement
program, school advisory board, academic recognition, homecoming dance, senior
privilege, COVID-19 update, 2021 Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT) highlights
for the class of 2023, National Honor Society, staffing, International Holocaust
Remembrance Day, Israeli Delegation of Lone Soldiers and Israel-is presentation,
enrollment, and class of 2023 graduation, use of mental health professionals to assist
students with back to school adjustment period, NWEA diagnostic testing and training for
teachers to use the information provided, bicycle racks, skateboard racks, and student
parking.
Mr. Wasson provided a brief report on the K-8 school expansion.
1 Left the meeting following Mr.Wasson's report on the K-8 school expansion.
2 Participated via virtual communications media technology.
City Commission Liaison Meeting Minutes
January 12, 2022
Discussion continued on the following items: joint program with ACES for those students
ready to take high school classes, presentation to elementary schools and brochure on
after-school buses for high school open house, ordering of material and equipment for
the 12th grade program requested to be done by the end of February, the importance of
the use of computers in addition to Pads in 12th grade, the need of a program for
television production and morning announcements, hiring additional staff, and the need
for additional office space to be reviewed by Mr. Wasson to house additional staff for the
high school.
The importance of the schools having everything they need was made clear by the
Commission members in attendance including staffing, equipment, materials, etc.
No members of the public provided comments.
The meeting adjourned at 5.01 p.m.
•
Ellisa L. Horvath, MMC, ity Clerk
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