Conestoga Board of Education
October 12, 2009 Minutes
Pending Approval
The Tax Request Hearing was opened at 7:05 p.m. by President Gary Todd on Monday, October 12, 2009, at the Conestoga Elementary School, 104 East High Street, Murray, NE. Present were Board Members Pat Neu, Scott Moore, Linda Rice, Gary Todd; Administrators Mark Sievering, Robin Frost, David Friedli, Eric Dennis, Sandra Peterson. 7 visitors. Absent board members Jeff Stanley, Dean Nickels; Administrator Eric Dennis.
Notice of the meeting was given in advance by publication and/or posting in accordance with the Board approved method for giving notice of meetings. Notice of this meeting and the subjects to be discussed at this meeting were given in advance to all members of the Board of Education. A current copy of the agenda was maintained as stated in the publicized notice.
At the beginning of this meeting, Gary Todd, President, announced and informed the public that a current copy of the Open Meetings Act is posted on the East wall of the meeting room.
Mark Sievering, Superintendent, explained the Tax Request information: 1.034081 General Fund ($5,157,354.26); 0.213785 Bond Fund ($1,066,135.07); 0.020768 Special Building Fund ($103,575.50); 0.030379 Qualified Capital Purpose Undertaking Fund ($151,500.00).
As there was no further testimony, the Tax Request Hearing was closed at 7:08 p.m.
The regular meeting of the Conestoga Board of Education was held Monday, October 12, 2009, at the Conestoga Elementary School, 104 East High Street, Murray, NE. Gary Todd, President, called the meeting to order at 7:08 p.m. Present were Board Members Pat Neu, Scott Moore, Linda Rice, Gary Todd; Administrators Mark Sievering, Robin Frost, David Friedli, Eric Dennis, Sandra Peterson. 7 visitors. Absent board members Jeff Stanley, Dean Nickels; Administrator Eric Dennis.
Notice of the meeting was given in advance by publication and/or posting in accordance with the Board approved method for giving notice of meetings. Notice of this meeting and the subjects to be discussed at this meeting were given in advance to all members of the Board of Education. A current copy of the agenda was maintained as stated in the publicized notice.
At the beginning of this meeting, Gary Todd, President, announced and informed the public that a current copy of the Open Meetings Act is posted on the East wall of the meeting room.
Motion by Pat Neu, second by Linda Rice to approve the minutes of the Tuesday, September 8, 2009, Budget Hearing and the Tuesday, September 8, 2009, regular meeting. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Motion by Pat Neu, second by Scott Moore to approve the claims as submitted. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Eric Dennis entered the meeting at 7:17 p.m.
The agenda was set as presented.
SCHEDULED AUDIENCE: None
REPORTS:
Eric Dennis:
1. 98% parent attendance at Parent-Teacher Conference.
2. Remainder of report as submitted.
David Friedli:
1. Current 7-12 enrollment, 264. Based on the 9th-12th grades enrollment the athletic classification will probably by C-1 for the 09-10 school year.
2. Class schedule changes submitted. Rule 10 Accreditation has been met. Will need to discuss staffing and space before the 2010-11 school year. Expecting a class of 56 7th grade and graduating a class of 34.
3. Pat Neu requested exterior areas of the high school building to be cleaned up.
Robin Frost:
1. Current enrollment is 16.
2. Parent attendance at conference was 33%. This year did not have scheduled appointments.
3. NeSA Testing – trained elementary teachers on reading and math pilot assessments.
Sandra Peterson:
1. Placement of out of district students submitted.
Mark Sievering:
1. H1N1 preventative measurements are being taken. It is a local decision to close school due to illness.
2. Received two new school vans.
3. State Education Conference will be held November 18, 19, 20 at the LaVista Conference Center. Election results will be announced for the Nebraska Association of School Boards Board of Directors. Pat Neu was nominated for the position.
4. It is expected that a special session of the Legislature will be called to deal with the $40 million budget deficit. State Aid to Education will likely be affected.
NRCSA/NASB:
Legislative Forum for NRCSA will meet in March.
NASB will monitor upcoming Legislative session.
COMMITTEE:
Buildings and Grounds: No report
Budget and Finance: No report
Negotiations: No report
Policy/Americanism/Instruction: Policies reviewed and submitted as an action item.
Transportation: No report
Legislation: No report
DISCUSSION ITEMS:
1. Discussion of instructional hours and staff hours. No further discussion at this time.
ACTION ITEMS:
Early Graduation:
Katelyn Ensor, 11th grade, requesting early graduation after the end of the school year. Plans to attend Iowa Western College and take CNA and early childhood classes during the summer of 2010.
Katie Nash, 12th grade, requesting early graduation at the end of first semester. Plans to begin classes at Southeast Community College in the area of CNA.
Motion by Scott Moore, second by Linda Rice to approve the early graduation requests of Katie Nash and Katelyn Ensor upon successful completion of graduation requirements and the approval of their parents. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Cass County Going Green Program: Nancy Josoff explained the program. Grants are being sought for purchase of trailers for the project. Eric Hodges and Jonathan Anderson are interested in sponsoring the project at Conestoga High School. All types of products will be recycled.
Motion by Pat Neu, second by Scott Moore for Conestoga Public Schools to participate in Cass County Going Green program. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Medicaid Resolution:
NASB Medicaid Consortium membership agreement submitted for review.
Motion by Scott Moore, second by Linda Rice to approve the resolution with NASB for membership in the Medicaid Consortium. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Qualified Capital Purpose Undertaking Fund Bonds: Jay Spearman, representative of Ameritas Investment Corp., reviewed cost and payment of bonds for the program. Build America and/or Qualified Capital Purpose Bonds are available. Bonds can be purchased for repayment up to 30 years. District needs concrete bids before bonds can be issued. Building/Grounds Committee, Mark Sievering and Tadd Holliman will meet to review bids and complete a schedule of projects. Conestoga is reviewing the cost of bonds for approximately 6 years.
Kyle Steckler, Activities Director, further investigated the condition of the track. It has been suggested that the foundation of the track will need to be reconstructed. A track surface and foundation will normally last approximately 20 years. The current track is 30 plus years. In order to continue to host track meets, not only will an 8th lane need to be added, the track will need to be completely restructured.
The locker room and showers at the high school also need to be redesigned and updated.
No action taken on the Qualified Capital Purpose Bonds. A finalized plan is recommended to be submitted by December 2009 .
Mid-States School Bus: Contract renewal for two years with a 3% increase annually has been presented. Also would involve the bus barn rental being reduced from the monthly bill, as well as all fuel being paid by the district.
Motion by Scott Moore, second by Pat Neu to approve the renewal contract with Mid-States Bus, minus the dead-head miles listed in the contract. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Motion by Scott Moore, second by Pat Neu to approve the 2009-10 Tax Request Resolution as presented. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote.
Policy Updates: Tabled for board member review.
Kyle Steckler informed the board of education members that the 2010-11 football schedule will involve eleven man participation in the NSAA.
After discussion of the availability of staff to work at extra-curricular activities, Mr. Steckler was given the authority to assign staff members as needed.
FUTURE DATES:
NASB/NASA State Education Conference, November 18-20
Board of Education meeting, November 10, 2009
Motion by Pat Neu, second by Linda Rice to adjourn as there was no further business to be brought before the Board of Education. Motion carried 4-0 by roll call vote. President Gary Todd adjourned the meeting at 9:20 p.m.
