At the August 12, 2026, school board meeting, board members David Sovinski. Tom Keefe, Josh Thompson and Katie Priebe were present. Board members Jill Harstad and Mark Johnsrud were absent. Also present were Superintendent Ed Harris, elementary Principal Shane McBroom, high school Principal Eric Nelson and Athletic Director Matt Mauseth.
Reports
Tom Keefe, who represents the board at HVED (Hiawatha Valley Education District) encouraged board members to attend the Open House on August 26 for the new HVED building in Winona. All of the services of HVED will now be under one roof and the former mall has been renovated to accommodate all special education services for the cooperative. He also gave an update on cell phone usage language. There will be a meeting of all stakeholders; staff, parents and students before the next board meeting and hopefully this will result in a policy that will be acceptable for all parties.
Shane McBroom reported that the back to school conferences will be held on Monday, August 31 and Tuesday, September 1 with an elementary teacher work day on Wednesday, September 2. The first day of school for elementary students will be Thursday, September 3. He noted also that the rock climbing wall had been added to the gym, which looks great and will provide some added exercise for students. He thanked the CEF (Chatfield Education Foundation) for funding this.
Eric Nelson said the Wall of Fame by the cafeteria should be finished by the time school starts. This is a digital frame that has an interactive video screen and was donated by the CEF, the Chatfield chapter of the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He also brought forth the student handbook and discipline matrix. It basically follows the template from the Minnesota School Board Association. In it he also recommended changes to the document.
Superintendent Harris stated that five candidates have filed for the three positions for school board. They are Josh Thompson, Mark Johnsrud, David Sovinski, Danielle Hoffman and Jeremiah Halloran. During workshop this year there will a presentation called The Anxious Generation. The presentation argues that the sharp rise in anxiety, depression and other mental health challenged among young people is closely tied to the transition from a play-base childhood to a phone-based childhood. This presentation gives practical recommendations for parents, schools, technology companies and policymakers to create healthier environments for the next generation. Harris commended Steve Smith and coaches that assisted with the summer strength and conditioning. All students had pre and post testing. One hundred kids, (60 boys and 40 girls) participated in the program that met five days a week. He feels this is an excellent program for our students. He was also happy to announce that the high school will now have on-site mental health counseling for eight hours a week. The elementary has had this support for the last couple of years and the district has been advocating to bring it to the high school too.
Consent Items
The following consent items were approved:
• The meeting minutes of July 8, 2026, and the July 8, 2026, meeting minutes of the special meeting;
• New hires: Nikki Grover, student senate advisor; Cresta Lee, high school SPED teacher; Sean Trewin, PLC facilitator; Nathan Neis, assistant/JV softball coach; Jessica Grobe, C-squad girls basketball; Caleb Maughan, assistant cross country coach; Sandra Seha, .5 elementary art teacher and Brittany Agrimson .39 youth enrichment/early childhood screening coordinator;
• Resignations: Stacie Conway, PLC facilitator;
• All fall coaches and advisors.
Action Items
The board approved the Truth in Taxation Hearing date to be held on December 9 at 7 p.m. They also approved the 2026-2027 food service contract renewal with Taher which has a reduced management fee and should produce a positive balance. They approved the handbooks for employees, K-6 students, and 7-12 students. Lastly, they approved the substitute rate increase from $135 to $150, an increase of 11% that will cost approximately $8,000. Harris stated the increase was necessary because Chatfield was much lower that other districts and contributed to the lack of available substitutes.
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