You are here

2022-09 September 14 minutes

Call to Order -President Andy Sperfslage called the meeting to order at 5:00 pm.  The board recited the East Buchanan Mission Statement.  Board members present were Scott Cooksley, Tim Recker, Andy Sperfslage, Heather Steffens, and Shawn Stone. Administration attending were Superintendent Principal Dan Fox, HS/MS Principal Eric Dockstader, Elementary Principal Jacklyn Letzring, and Business Manager/Board Secretary Teresa Knipper.  Several visitors attended the meeting.  Motion carried with all ayes unless otherwise noted.

Public Forum - Andrew Maas addressed the board about concerns with a new policy not allowing parents in the building.

Approve Agenda - Motion to approve the agenda was made by Stone, second by Steffens.

Approve Consent Agenda - Motion to approve the Consent Agenda was made by Stone, second by Recker. Items included on the Consent Agenda:  minutes from the regular meeting on August 10, 2022; hiring of David Peck as van driver, Jersey Seber as associate, Lee White as Jr Class Fundraising sponsor, and Jayme Beyer as special education teacher; resignations of David Sattgast as robotics coach and Andrea Ries as associate; hiring of Abby Thurn, Shana Wall, Mandi Smith, Michelle Cooksley, Nathan Reck, Erin Kelchen, Tiffany Bowers, and Lee White as district leadership team members; Kelli Connolly, Andrew Machacek, and Kayla Gallup as Leader in Me team members; Teresa Snyder, Andrew Machacek, Jenalee McElroy, Kelsi Giese, and Jill Wilgenbusch as mentor teachers; expenditures listed; and financial reports.

Community/Program Presentations – Heather Huegel and George Aberle presented details regarding the Mexico trip and requested approval of the board to travel out of state.  Jon Doese and FFA members presented details regarding the FFA National Convention and requested approval of the board to travel out of state.  Erin Kelchen presented details regarding the Buc Bash.

Administrative Updates and Reports – Letzring reported that they are half way through FAST testing, PLC meetings have begun, third grade did butterfly tagging, she is doing walkthroughs every morning, the PTO event is September 30th, and elementary will participate in spirit day on Friday of homecoming week.  Dockstader reported that next week is homecoming with activities starting on Sunday, September 18th and PLC meetings have been held.  Fox reported that the district applied for a grant regarding Leader in Me and was one of 10 districts that received the grant.  The current phase of the athletic complex is almost completed.

Student and Employee Attendance Discussion – The board reviewed wording in the student handbook regarding absences upon the request of Recker.  Fox presented student attendance data that compared this year to last year.

Return to Learn Plan – Fox provided the Return to Learn plan to the board which will be posted online with changes as discussed by the board.

School Safety Improvement Funding – Fox will have an assessment/evaluation completed.

Amend 22-23 School Calendar – Fox requested that November 22nd be changed from an early dismissal day to a full day of professional development for Leader in Me training.  Motion by Steffens, second by Cooksley to amend the 22-23 school calendar as presented.

Mexico Trip – Motion by Stone, second by Steffens to approve the request for out of state travel for the Mexico trip with the district providing a bus for travel to and from the airport. 

National FFA Convention Trip – Motion by Cooksley, second by Stone to approve the request for out of state travel for the National FFA Convention.

Substitute Teacher Compensation –  Motion by Steffens, second by Recker to approve the substitute teacher incentive bonus of $100 for every 10 days during the 22-23 school year. 

Substitute Bus Driver Route Pay – Motion by Stone, second by Recker to approve the substitute bus driver route pay increase from $35/route to $50/route for the 22-23 school year effective September 15, 2022.

Shared Personnel Agreement – Motion by Recker, second by Cooksley to approve the shared personnel agreement with Central City CSD for Media Specialist as presented.

Cooperative Sharing Agreement – Motion by Steffens, second by Recker to approve the cooperative sharing agreement with Independence CSD for Robotics as presented.

Board Policy Review – 2nd Reading – Motion by Stone, second by Cooksley to approve the second reading of 501.14 and 501.15 as presented.

Board Policy Review – 1st Reading – Motion by Steffens, second by Recker to approve the first reading of 300 series policies with changes as presented.

#BucPr1de – Student attendance has improved and Buc Bash is a new event for the district.

Student Questions – Students asked if there will be training with students again for school safety, wanted clarification on the attendance policy, and asked about Buc Bash attendance options.

Adjourn – Motion by Steffens, second by Cooksley to adjourn the meeting at 6:45 pm.

The above are not official minutes until approved at the next regular board meeting.  A copy of the official minutes may be viewed in the office of the Board Secretary any Monday through Friday between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm.