During the Mabel-Canton school board meeting on October 18, all members were in attendance (Traci Livingood participated via remote technology). Also participating were Superintendent Gary Kuphal, Aimee Lake, business manager; Lisa Halverson, district secretary; and Michelle Wiedemann, principal.
Principal Wiedemann said that “College Week” was in full swing, with posters and information from a variety of area colleges and universities. She also informed the board that Mabel-Canton has been approved for a $3,255 SHIP grant, and she added, “We put together a wish list for playground items and a wellness room… So our plan right now is to take Mr. Urbaniak’s old room and turn that into an exercise/yoga room.”
Wiedemann also said, with the first quarter ending soon, Mabel-Canton is organizing PBIS rewards. She said for students in grades 10 through 12, they will be taken bowling as a reward. Students will be asked to contribute $3 toward the cost of the outing.
Wiedemann offered appreciation to a teacher and students. She explained, “Mrs. Gallagher and the FAA did an awesome thing today. They delivered 50 meals to our local farmers. So, I just wanted to thank Mrs. Gallagher and all her students.”
Kuphal gave a summary of the recent open house, which was held in order for interested citizens to see the recent improvements made to Mabel-Canton facilities. He said he’d hoped for a larger turnout, but around 15 people showed up. Kuphal said it was “primarily senior citizens” but added, “We had lots of positive comments.” Kuphal also shared a two-page handout with photos and descriptions of the main improvements that were completed.
The board heard a presentation summarizing results of Mabel-Canton’s annual financial audit. Andrew Forliti, representing the firm of Smith Schafer, stated that the audit resulted in an “unmodified clean report,” and he walked through a 22-page report, including bar graphs to compare the most recent year (2022) to prior years.
Kuphal asked Forliti to give some clarification about the ups and downs seen in Mabel-Canton’s Unassigned Fund Balance. Kuphal stated, “For those who don’t understand, it’s kind of like after all of the other categories… This is kind of the money, I hate to use the term, but I’m going to, “money left over,” it’s not assigned to anything specific… Can you reiterate… what caused that to go down?”
Forliti explained that the bulk of the Unassigned Funds comes from General Education Aid, which was decreased, partially due to lower enrollment. He said overall enrollment was down about 28 students from the previous year. But Forliti and Kuphal agreed that with Mabel-Canton’s Unassigned Funds still representing 15.8% of annual expenditures, the district is in “good shape” since it’s common for schools to aim for a comfort zone of having the Unassigned be at least 12% of expenditures.
Forliti’s report showed that 57% of revenues came from State Aid, 19% from Property Taxes, 12% from Federal Aid, and 12% Other. These percentages were similar to the prior year. Food Service shows a fund balance of about $133,000, and there was discussion that Mabel-Canton may need to spend down some of that balance, likely on kitchen appliances and equipment. The report also stated, “The Building Construction Fund issued bonds to fund building improvements totaling $6.8 million in 2021 and has unspent proceeds of $3,275,641 as of June 30, 2022.”
The board gratefully accepted donations, including $20 to the Choir Department from an anonymous donor, $100 to the football activity account from Mabel American Legion, and $1600 for K-2 reading program from United Methodist Church of Mabel and Newburg. Strategic Planning committee meetings are scheduled for November 2, November 16, and November 30; all at 6 p.m. The board’s next regular meetings will be Tuesday, November 15 at 6 p.m., and Tuesday, December 20 at 6 p.m. The public is welcome at all open meetings.
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