Caledonia Area Public School board members met Monday, March 18 at Caledonia Elementary School in room #162. Board member Mike Peterson called the meeting to order at 6 p.m., led with the Pledge of Allegiance, then conducted roll call. Board members present included Derek Adamson, Tim Gunn, Leigh King, Melissa Marschall, Daniel Small and Spencer Yohe. Also, in attendance were Superintendent Craig Ihrke, Middle/High School Principal Nathan Boler, and Dean of Students John Wahlstrom. Elementary Principal Sue Link and Community Education Director Gretchen Juan were absent.
Board member Yohe moved, seconded by Adamson, to adopt the agenda. Motion carried.
No Warrior Pride took place. Superintendent Ihrke brought up that someone donated a van to the school district; the van will likely be brought up at April’s regular board meeting. The van is unable to be used to transport students so the van will need to be used for another means.
No Board Showcase or Public Comment took place.
The board unanimously approved the Consent Agenda which included approval of the February 20 regular board meeting minutes, the Treasurer’s Report, resignation of Emily Schroeder as junior high volleyball coach, and the hiring of Nate Wurm as the head boys golf coach.
Board member Small moved, seconded by Marschall, to approve the revised 2023-2024 budget. Motion carried. Board member Gunn asked Business Manager/Finance Director Barb Meyer further questions regarding the budget to which Meyer answered.
Activities Director Scott Sorenson addressed the board and requested two additional track coaching positions to be added for the 2023-2024 school year due to the larger number of participants enrolled. The extra coaches added would be beneficial in terms of safety for students in allowing additional supervision. Yohe commented, “It’s a good deal!” and moved, seconded by Small, to approve two junior high boys and girls coaching positions. Motion carried.
The board reviewed Elementary Principal Link’s board report.
Middle/High School Principal Boler presented his board report.
- Thursday, March 7 was the end of third quarter.
- Fourth quarter will bring a number of different events such as ACT testing, MCA testing, and field trips.
- Boler continues to work on the 2024-2025 master schedule.
- Boler will host a virtual parent informational meeting on Monday, March 25.
- The new PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) plan got rolled out to middle school students.
- Fifth grade orientation will take place Thursday, March 28.
Dean of Students Wahlstrom shared that data from DIRS (Discipline Incident Reporting System) was received. He commented, “The data is very thorough.” Elementary fifth grade teacher, Jake Hebeisen, generously offered to volunteer in assisting Wahlstrom in looking at data.
Superintendent Ihrke included in his report that he has worked to ensure that the school district offers “highly qualified” paraprofessionals. In order to be considered highly qualified one needs at least one of the following: 1) An associate degree or 60-plus college credits earned. 2) Pass a paraprofessional test. 3) Those with 3-plus years of experience can do a competency portfolio. Ihrke acknowledged the mathematics portion on the test to be the most difficult and will hold practice sessions focused on mathematics prior to the assessment.
In addition, Ihrke briefly explained how the Houston County Jail may serve as a Juvenile Detention Center. The facility is stated to hold up to eight juveniles up to a maximum of eight days. Since the Juvenile Detention Center will reside within the Caledonia Area Public School district, the school district will be responsible for educating juveniles at the facility. Ihrke stated he has been in contact with Sheriff Swedberg, reached out to other school districts who provide this service, and reached out to the Minnesota Department of Education regarding procedures.
There was no Old Business.
In New Business, the board reviewed school policies 901-907 and 910.
The board room where board members meet got rearranged to try a new layout where board members sit in closer proximity to one another. There is a possibility that by May, the board meetings will be live-streamed so those unable to attend in person can attend remotely.
The Caledonia Area Public School board meeting adjourned at 7:46 p.m. The next regular board meeting will be held Monday, April 15 at 6 p.m. The meeting will take place at Caledonia Elementary School in room #162. The public is invited to attend.
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