By Kaitlin Longhauser
Caledonia School Board members met in Caledonia Elementary School’s music room #162 on Monday, October 17, from 6-7:30 p.m. Board members present include Matt Blocker, Erin Hammell, Leigh King, Melissa Marschall, Daniel Small, Wendy Woyczik, and Spencer Yohe.
The board approved the consent agenda, minutes from the September 26 regular board meeting, the November 14 special school board meeting to canvas the election, winter sports coaching contracts, and the treasurer’s report/approval of bills.
The board approved the inclusion of Library Club as an extracurricular activity. Ben Glass, CMS/CHS media paraprofessional, will run Library Club. Glass states the purpose of Library Club is to “get more students involved in a group to promote the idea of ‘connectedness.’” Glass also states “the club will appeal to some of the less competitive and more introverted students.” The exact dates and times Library Club will be held has not yet been decided. Library Club consists of a variety of activities such as students sharing a special book of their choosing, exploration of cultural storytelling through folktales, educational games, story writing, design bookmarks to trade/collect, and more.
Rich Larson, Caledonia Middle/High School’s Agriscience Technology and FFA (Future Farmer’s of America) Advisor, gave a brief presentation about the school’s Summer Agriscience Program. The program is held over the summer. High school FFA students who partake in the program and successfully complete such are eligible to receive their Agriscience credit. Summer 2022, 19-20 students partook in the program with 9 of those students earning themselves their Ag. credit due to successful completion of the program. As students complete the summer program, they document their ‘work experience’ weekly on AET (Ag. Educational Tracker). Through the Summer Agriscience Program, students take part in tractor and farm safety, leadership development, community service, FFA garden, and more. In the past, the Summer Agriscience Program received funding through Perkins V Federal Grant for Career and Technical Education (CTE). For the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, the program received only half the funding compared to previous years. There is a two year grant application process.
The board addressed the inclusion of Art Club as an extracurricular activity, the board delayed a decision for the time being as there currently is nobody to run Art Club.
Six of the seven board members declined the inclusion of a Dance Team Coop between Caledonia High School and Houston High School for the 2022-2023 school year. Woyczik stated there to be “too many hurdles with transportation being an issue for this year.” Apart from transportation issues, there is also no driver available to transport Caledonia students from Caledonia to Houston.
Elementary principal, Sue Link, shared updates. October 3-7, teachers discussed ALICE with students. Additional mallets will be ordered in ensure all staff have a means to break windows if a situation necessitates it. Monday October 10, PACE (Parents as Allies in our Children’s Caledonia Area Elementary Education) parents met to discuss next year’s Homecoming, Club Choice, box tops, and more. Wednesday October 12, students took part in National Walk and Bike to School Day. Thursday October 13, the MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Support) team attended a training at Winona State University to further learn the MTSS process in identifying student needs and interventions to use at all levels. Parent/teacher conferences were held 1-7 p.m. the same day. Parent/teacher conferences are scheduled to continue Tuesday October 18, 4-7 p.m. Wednesday October 19, students in kindergarten through grade 5 will visit McCormick Pumpkin Patch/Corn Maze.
CMS/CHS principal, Nathan Boler, had not been present.
Gretchen Juan, Caledonia Community Education, shared updates. Juan states “Early Childhood Screening is scheduled for November 11-12.” School Age Care (SAC) began utilizing the board room after school as a quiet place for students to complete homework. CAPS (Caledonia Are Public School) Care is in need of both a toddler teacher and assistant teacher due to increased enrollment.
The next regular board meeting of the Caledonia Public School board is scheduled for Monday, November 21. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Caledonia Elementary in the music room #162. The board will hold a short meeting 5:30-6 p.m. prior to the scheduled board meeting. The short meeting prior to the regular board meeting will address Caledonia School District’s renewal of the flexible learning year program and early start beginning the 2023-2024 school year.
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