Houston Signs Six-Year Contract with Morem

At the May 2 regular Houston School Board meeting, the board reviewed and voted on the proposed six-year contract with Superintendent Mary Morem. Josh Norlien and Nickki Johnson voted against the contract, while Mimi Carlson, Arlin Peterson, Richard Erdmann and Mark Swenson voted in favor of the contract. Marissa Grams was absent. 

The contract was for $150,000 each year with no increases. In addition, Morem will receive single medical insurance until 2036. During the first three years, Morem will continue in her dual role as superintendent and director of MNVA. In the next three-year contract period, Morem will be executive director of MNVA solely; with a new superintendent hired for the brick and mortar Houston Schools.

Morem will be available to help in the hiring process for a new superintendent. As executive director of MNVA, Morem’s salary will be paid by K12 rather than Houston Schools. This is not a new position so the board is able to merely appoint Morem to the position without a search. 

In answer to a question from Nickki Johnson, the advantage of such a contract is that Morem has experience at the position and there will be no pay increases. Michael Mangan will serve as the Director of Educational Success and Innovation; his salary will be paid by K12. Morem will mentor the two assistant principals at the elementary and high school. 

MSBA called the contract unusual and was concerned about the length of Morem’s contract, noting that the board was locking in this contract for future boards to deal with. While it is an unusual contract, Mimi Carlson pointed out that Houston is an unusual school because of MNVA. 

Having Morem as the executive director of MNVA should prove beneficial when the ten-year K12 contract comes up for renewal in five years. 

Josh Norlien commented that he’d prefer a traditional superintendent and two principals as they had in the past.

Hurricane Hero

Speech teacher Kristi Griffin was recognized as May’s Hurricane Hero. Assistant principal Angela McQuinn called Griffin’s “unwavering commitment to ensuring that every child has access to effective communication tools nothing short of commendable. Kristi has instilled within us a profound sense of empathy and understanding.” 

Baseball/Softball Field

With the ball field in need of reworking, bids for the job were sought. Only two businesses bid on the project: Winona Nursery with a bid of $80,728.74 and Bernie’s Painting LLC with a bid of $55,730. 

Arlin Peterson shared that he had been involved in building the field back in the day at a total cost of $1,200. He pointed out that the lime Winona Nursery planned to use was Shakopee Red Lime, which is top of the line. Peterson felt that at this time only the outfield really needed to be done.  

Ultimately, Norlien made a motion to “have the best field in all the land!” He advocated to accept the Winona Nursery bid. This will be covered by LTFM (Long Term Facilities Maintenance); most of the bill will be paid by the state as a result. The motion passed with Arlin Peterson opposed. 

The high school baseball bleachers will also be replaced at an expense of $25,347. This will also be covered by LTFM, resulting in the school only paying about 12% of the expense with the remainder covered by the state. 

Elementary Flooring

The elementary floor in the cafeteria and  kitchen as well as halls and ramps need repair and replacement. The board approved the quote of $33,959.54 from Hiller Commercial Floors so the work could begin. June 3, Hiller will be coming to remove the old flooring and assess what repairs are needed. The type of replacement flooring has not yet been chosen.

Other Business

In other business, the board:

• Agreed to a one-year contract with Dependable Solutions for tech support;
• Heard reports from Angela McQuinn and all levels of MNVA principals;    
• Approved necessary graduation credits for MNVA at 45 and Houston High at 48;
• Decided not to run a summer lunch program since it would have an expected loss of $22,000;
• Learned that the elementary bathrooms near the kindergarten would be revamped with a $150,000 grant; high school main hall bathrooms will be done the following summer;
• Heard a REAP grant of $28,000 will be used to supplement title funds;
• Learned an $80,000 to $100,000 grant for indigenous funding was received;
• Added a special board meeting on May 16 to deal with insurance before a June deadline.