At the June 25 Fillmore Central School Board meeting, Superintendent Heath Olstad reported that over 100 students are participating in Strength and Agility this summer. Summer SAC is going well and there are many adult and youth enrichment activities going on through Community Ed. There are multiple openings for jobs in the Child Care Center and in ECFE. The spring sports season has ended with many Fillmore Central athletes doing well in track and field, golf, clay target, baseball and softball. The girls golf team placed first at state and the boys golf team placed fifth. Jayce Kiehne achieved state champion and beat the school record set by Andy Bunge in the 800 meter finals.
Joey Pederson and Ryan Schroeder were hired as summer rec coaches for Community Ed, Kelsey Biel as the vocational and art teacher, and Nancy Broadwater and Jolene Cannon as paraprofessionals for Strength and Agility. A resignation from art teacher Samantha Bratland was accepted. Teachers Shelby Ristau, Kayla Koch and Alex Lange were approved for tenure. An additional probationary year was approved for teacher Ty Sloan. Contracts with elementary school secretary Kayla Carroll, high school secretary Brenda Ristau, guidance office assistant, DAC, and local scholarship coordinator Melanie Olstad, payroll and accounting clerk Keeley Todd, business manager Darla Ebner, maintenance director Jake Barfield, Community Ed director Angi Kaase, elementary dean of students and activities director Chris Mensink, and tech director Aaron Janssen were all approved for the upcoming school year. Contracts with the custodial staff and paraprofessionals were also approved.
The hourly wages for van drivers, Community Ed, and preschool staff were all increased for the upcoming school year. A $6 an hour increase for audiology services from HVED was approved. A contract with Houston Public School for up to 50 hours of special education services licensed in Physically Impaired and Traumatic Brain Injury was approved. A contract with Tonns of Fun for occupational therapy services was approved as was a contract with IEA, or Institute of Environmental Assessment.
The school’s policy is to close student activity accounts if there was no change in the account over the last year. Per that policy, Dance Line, NHS, and Jazz Band are all due to be closed. However, Superintendent Olstad noted that the district is hoping to have advisors for those activities next year. The board approved a waiver to keep the accounts open.
The board reviewed the projected operating budget for the 2024-25 school year. Enrollment is down and the ESSER funds may not be renewed after September so it was noted that the projected budget may still change. The budget was approved.
The board completed the first reading of the K-6, 7-12, Faculty, Paraprofessionals, and Coaches handbooks and restrictive procedures policy for 2024-25. Superintendent Olstad recommended several minor changes. One was the removal of all notification options for school closings except for KTTC as 99% of the families now receive notifications through JMC. A statement was added to the School to Work section noting that only seniors within 10 credits of graduating will be eligible to enroll in the program.
Increases were approved for family passes, individual passes, and individual event admissions costs.
Superintendent Olstad was approved as the district’s representative for federal programs.
The district’s memberships in the Minnesota School Board Assocation or MSBA, Southeast Service Cooperative or SSC, and the Minnesota Rural Education Association or MREA were all renewed.
The substitute teacher pay was increased by $10 for a full day and $5 for a half day. The substitute secretary, paraprofessional, and custodian pay were all increased by $1 an hour.
A quote from RAS for workers compensation in the amount of $32,217.00 was approved at a 15% increase from last year.
A resolution relating to the election of school board members and calling the school district general election was approved. Board members Jim Love, Deb Ristau and Aaron Bishop are all up for election this year.
A resolution revoking the existing referendum to approve new authorization was accepted.
The board approved a check run to take place on June 28th to reduce year-end accounts payable items.
The in-person learning planning guide for the 2024-25 school year was approved. Superintendent Olstad noted that this should be the last year the guide will be needed.
Olstad has met with several companies about some of the gyms and classrooms that are not dehumidified or air conditioned, to discuss options and possibilities. He will have more information at a later meeting. The ceiling in the stage gym at the elementary school needs to be stripped and repainted. He has had several companies look at it, but hasn’t received a quote yet. Several doors and doorways at the high school also need repairs.
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