Regular Meeting Board of Education Independent School District #300 September 18, 2013 Chair Jandt called the regular meeting of the Board of Education of Independent School District #300 to order at 7:01 p.m. in the Middle & High School Media Center. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was recited. Roll call was taken by Clerk Nissen. Board Present: Jandt, Nissen, Wright, Morken, Tornow, Dockendorff, Summerfield, and Superintendent Wilke Administration Present: Julie Holman, Business Manager, Jay Woller, Elementary Principal, Steve Smith, Middle School Principal, Rick Wolter, High School Principal, and Beth Theede, Community Education Director Chair Jandt referenced a donation of $1000 received from Community Member Duane Heier designated for use in the High School Courage Retreat offering. He further advised that the gift provides for the potential of a $1000 match from the Boeing Company and extended the appreciation of the District for the repeated generosity of Mr. Heier. MOTION: Dockendorff moved, Wright seconded, to accept the $1000 matching gift from Duane Heier as provided. Motion carried unanimously. MOTION: Dockendorff moved, Summerfield seconded, to approve the agenda as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Due to extra-curricular activity obligations, Student Board Member Jennifer Ingvalson was not in attendance. MOTION: Nissen moved, Tornow seconded, to approve the following consent agenda: A. School Board Minutes August 21, 2013, Regular Meeting B. September, 2013 Bills Due for Payment C. Staff Resignation Pam Fahy - Paraprofessional Effective 9/3/13 D. Maternity/Child Care Leave Melanie Anderson E. Staff Employment Tyler Woodke - 1 st Grade Teacher Approximately 12/11/13 thru 3/31/14-7 th Grade Football Coach - Replacement Kristi Lieser-Hager - Curriculum Facilitator - Special Education - Replacement
Shelley Gates - Curriculum Facilitator Social Studies - Replacement Suzanna Barnhart - Curriculum Facilitator Science - Replacement Kelly Kirchoff - Lead Custodian Elementary School 1.0 FTE Replacement Doug Holmstadt - Custodian 4 hrs/day Replacement Julie Ingram - Health Assistant Increase from.5 to 1.0 FTE Increase to position. Suzanne Sivertson - MS Art Teacher -.5 FTE Replacement Jean Lensing - Elementary Custodian 6 hrs/day - Replacement Position Tara Grattan - Paraprofessional 6.5 hrs/day Replacement Victoria Genrich - Paraprofessional 7 hrs/day Replacement Danna Olson - Paraprofessional 7 hrs/day Replacement Celeste Mader - Paraprofessional 3.5 hrs/day Replacement Amy Sibik - JV Soccer Coach - Replacement F. Reduction Request Allison Katz - Math Teacher Reduction from 1.0 FTE to.9 FTE First semester, with option for full year. G. Electronic Transfers Bills & Payrolls August 7 Health EFT $157,710 August 15 Payroll (gross) $308,028 (net) $177,104 August 30 Payroll (gross) $314,888 (net) $175,914 August Bills $513,562 August 15 Fed/FICA/Med Withholding Tax $ 61,978 August 30 Fed/FICA/Med Withholding Tax $ 62,464 August 15 MN Withholding $ 9,938 August 30 MN Withholding $ 10,190 Total $1,168,860 Motion carried unanimously. High School Principal Rick Wolter advised that Spanish Teacher Jodi Petersen is seeking approval for the Spanish II Class to attend a long weekend at the Concordia Language Villages Spanish Camp located in Bemidji, MN. The trip is tentatively scheduled for April 3 rd -6 th, but Board approval is necessary to move forward with plans and obtain parental consent. Ms. Petersen informed the Board that this is the 7 th trip she has planned to the Village, having attended it herself five times. Costs for the trip are $250 per student, plus transportation. Several fund raisers are being planned to fray costs. The value of the immersion experience was confirmed by several members of the Board. MOTION: Wright moved, Morken seconded, to approve the continuation of plans for the Spanish II class trip to Concordia Language Villages. Motion carried unanimously. Business Manager Julie Holman discussed the proposed 2014 property tax levy. She recommended the levy be certified at the maximum proposed for all areas of the allowable levies to allow for the inclusion of any changes and/or adjustments that may occur before final certification in December. The proposed 2014 levy is $2,139,420.26, which is a 10.40% decrease over the payable 2013 levy. 2
MOTION: Dockendorff moved, Summerfield seconded, to approve the proposed 2014 of $2,387,980.88 as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Superintendent Wilke discussed a proposed agreement with Winona State University for District teachers working on special assignment (TOSA), utilized for the past several years. The Joint Powers TOSA Agreement documents the expectations and reimbursement for District staff working on special assignments. A portion of the employment of Science Teacher Lish Olson and Band/Music Instructor Jeff Copp is assigned to the TOSA agreement. MOTION: Nissen moved, Wright seconded, to approve the Joint Powers TOSA (Teachers on Special Assignment) Agreement as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Business Manager Julie Holman presented a Purchase of Service agreement with the Montessori Academy for speech and language services provided to them by District staff for the 2013/14 school year. The costs for this year are estimated at $4700, but the Academy will be billed at the end of the year for actual hours worked, plus mileage. MOTION: Nissen moved, Summerfield seconded, to approve the Purchase of Service Agreement with the Montessori Academy for speech and language services as presented. Motion carried unanimously. The fiscal year 2013 agreement with the Hiawatha Valley Mental Health Center for the provision of day treatment services for our District was reviewed by Business Manager Julie Holman. She noted the services were previously provided at the Hokah Learning Center, but are now extended in our schools. The approximate costs are $11,700, which is less than in previous years due to the elimination of per/pupil charges, a part-time assistant, and transportation costs. The net result reflects greater savings, but more importantly is in the best interest of the students being served. MOTION: Dockendorff moved, Tornow seconded, to approve the agreement with Hiawatha Valley Mental Health Day Treatment Services for fiscal year 2013 as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Community Education Director Beth Theede discussed the proposed Memorandum of Understanding and Contract for Services with the Semcac Head Start program for the integration of services with the District s Early Childhood Program. The proposed contract reflects changes in how the services are provided to cut down on the need for Head Start staff. She indicated that though the first year of the integration went well, tweaks will be made to better meet the needs of both entities. MOTION: Morken moved, Nissen seconded, to approve the Memorandum of Understanding and Contract for Services with the Semcac Head Start as presented. Motion carried unanimously. As no changes were made to the Middle and High School 2013/14 Q-Comp Goals and Action Plans, the Board was provided the goals for the Elementary and Bluff Country Learning Center, both centered on reading goals. The following individual level goals were reviewed for final approval. High School - The percentage of students in grades 9 and 10 who meet or exceed their proficiency on all state accountability tests in reading will increase from 61.9% to 63.9%. 3
Middle School - The percentage of all students in grades 5-8 who meet or exceed proficiency on all state accountability tests in math will increase from 56.0% in 2013 to 58.7% in spring 2014. Elementary School - The percentage of all students in grades 3-4 who meet or exceed proficiency on all state accountability tests in reading will increase from 54% in 2013 to 56% in 2014. BCLC - The percentage of all students enrolled by January 17 th, 2014, in grade 10 who meet or exceed proficiency in reading on all state accountability tests will increase from 28.6% in 2013 to 42.9% in 2014. MOTION: Nissen moved, Wright seconded, to approve the individual level Q-Comp Goals and Action Plans as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Board Negotiations Member Sam Jandt addressed the proposed 2013-2015 Network Manager Letter of Assignment. He noted that the Meet and Confer Committee collaborated on the resulting increase in wages due to the increase of duties and responsibilities of the Network Manager Position. Those duties include management and support of infrastructure, budgets, hardware, purchasing, technology planning, and e-rate responsibilities. MOTION: Dockendorff moved, Wright seconded, to approve the 2013-2015 Network Manager Letter of Assignment as presented. Motion carried unanimously. Community Education Director Beth Theede advised that revisions to Policy 902, Use of School District Facilities and Equipment, were necessary due to a proposed change in co-sponsored activities. This eliminates the Co-Sponsorship offering with Community Education that offered liability coverage for outside community organizations utilizing our facilities. The changes to the policy reflect the striking of language that indicates the coverage and is required by the District s insurance carrier. She further advised that additional improvements to the policy will be recommended once the new Operations Coordinator is on staff and part of the discussion and proposals. MOTION: Nissen moved, Summerfield seconded, to approve the first reading of the revisions to Policy 902, Use of School District Facilities and Equipment, as provided. Motion carried unanimously. Superintendent Wilke provided an update on the progress of the Lancer Learning HD 1:1 computing initiative, reiterating that the main focus of the initiative is to Innovate, Individualize, and Inspire learners. He advised that devices are being placed at different levels throughout the District and a new survey named Clarity is being considered to provide information on student skills, knows, and do s to integrate instruction. The 3 rd draft of the Facilities Feasibility Survey was reference by Superintendent Wilke, noting that it was provided to the Board for their review. The survey is designed to test elements of the facility improvement options under consideration to see how they resonate with the public. The data from the survey will be used to guide the next steps in the planning to meet the facility needs both at the elementary and across the District. No changes to the survey were suggested, but one grammatical error was noted. 4
Following a review of the beginning year student enrollment numbers, Business Manager Julie Holman noted that the numbers are an early snapshot. With the exception of Kindergarten being lower than projected, the total enrollment is in line with spring 2013 estimates. Administrative and Board reports followed, with a welcome to Elementary Principal Jay Woller. Education Minnesota Representative Jeff Copp reported on News from the Classroom updates from staff. MOTION: Tornow moved, Dockendorff seconded, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 8:02 p.m. Ruth Nissen, Clerk 5