Minutes 1-28-2008

The Glacial Hills Elementary School Board held a regular board meeting on January 28th, 2008 at Glacial Hills Elementary School.  President Lara Amundson called the meeting to order at 7:02.  Board members present were Lara Amundson, Nancy Rapp, Ernie Watson, Kurt Swensrud, Kurt Amundson, Vanessa Larson, and Joy Peterson.  Also present were Dyanne Parsons, Steve Dinsmore, Chad Koenen, Jayne Swalbach, Jon Jordahl, Jason VanEngen, Kaley Poegel, Mary Johnsrud, and MaryKay Fredrickson.  Board member absent was Mike Scott.

A motion was made by Joy and second by Kurt Swensrud to amend the agenda to include the election of officers and be placed before the addition of a teacher to the board.  The motion carried unanimously.

A motion was made by Kurt Swensrud and second by Joy to accept the amended agenda.  The motion carried unanimously.

A motion was made by Kurt S. and second by Joy to approve the meeting minutes of the December regular and special board meeting.  The motion carried unanimously.

Dyanne Parsons gave her Director’s report covering what happened during the month and what will be happening in the upcoming weeks.

-          January 2nd- back to school

-          9^th- Dyanne participated in the Pope County Protection meeting

-          17^th- Dyanne attended the MCA workshop

-          21^st- No school

o         Curriculum committee meeting- teachers requested salary schedule

o         Discussed continuing ed.- we are members of the Learning for Leadership

o         Staff attended a team building activity

o         Steve met with the staff to do an explanation of the finances

o         Accelerated Math training

-          23^rd- DARE Program started- it will  be once a week for 9 weeks

-          28^th- parent meeting for the Audubon trip

-          30^th- Kindergarten and 4^th through 6^th will be sledding at the State Park

-          3 new students will begin on Wednesday the 30^th.  A 1^st grader, 2^nd grader, and 5^th grader

o         The board then discussed the 2^nd and 3^rd grade combination classroom, how will the addition of a student be handled, hiring another teacher or hiring a full time para for that classroom.

-           GHES will now have 102 students in the Fall of 08

-          Shaklee has approached the school about doing a fundraiser.  The Parent Committee already has a fundraiser lined up for the spring.

Old Business:

-          Joy and Lara attended the MSBA Convention and would like to share more with the board and staff about the staff development, parent involvement, and the positive behavior interventions that they learned about.

-          A motion was made by Ernie and second by Kurt S. to hire an independent contractor for speech therapy after school one day per week for one hour at 33.23 per hour plus mileage.  The motion carried unanimously.

New Business:

-          Steve reported on the financials.  Checking account at First National balance 13,427.62, Bremer Money Market balance 90,804.78, Lowry Money Market balance 15,634.68.   A motion was made by Kurt Amundson and second by Joy.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          The Federal Grant was discussed with the list of expenditures given.  The curriculum that the teachers would like to look into yet is science. A curriculum meeting was scheduled for Wednesday the 30^th at 7AM.

-          A motion was made by Kurt Swensrud and second by Joy to terminate the contract with LeRoy Mackove.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A motion was made by Ernie and second by Vanessa to change the mileage rate from 48.5 to 50.5.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          Discussed garage space for the bus and it was decided to table this until a later date.

-          The board will work on an hourly rate for teachers for staff development during a board working session.

-          A motion was made by Joy and second by Vanessa to approve to pay teachers for providing targeted services an amount that is within the grant.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A motion was made by Joy and second by Kurt Swensrud to hire Zeth Lardy as an After School care provider at minimum wage.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A bill was received from the Minnewaska Area Schools for the use of the playground totaling 2,175.00 for the first semester of this school year.  A contract or price negotiation was never done.  A motion was made by Joy and second by Kurt Swensrud not to pay the bill.  The motion carried.

-          Reviewed document received by Minnewaska Area Schools regarding the use of the small gym.  Original request was from 12:30 to 3:00 but the document received listed a starting time of 1:30.  A motion was made by Kurt Swensrud and second by Ernie not to enter into this agreement because of the time constraints.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A motion was made by Kurt Swensrud and second by Kurt Amundson to have the office manager and custodian work on non student days on as as needed basis.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A motion was made by Joy and second by Ernie for Mary Giese to become a board member.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A motion was made by Joy and second by Vanessa to accept Kurt Amundson’s resignation from the board.  The motion carried unanimously.  The board thanks Kurt for all of his work and time he devoted to the board and the school.

-          A motion was made by Kurt Swensrud and second by Ernie for the nominations of Lara as Chair, Joy as Vice Chair, and Vanessa as Clerk/Secretary.  The motion carried unanimously.

-          A request from the teachers of the board to create a salary schedule was discussed and will be looked at during the working session to be scheduled.

-          Each board member will be taking a goal listed within the charter.  This will be discussed more in the working session.

-          A curriculum meeting was scheduled for January 30^th at 7:00AM.

-          Continuing Ed. Committee was discussed and decided that it was not needed at this time.

-          A motion was made by Joy and second by Ernie to continue with the Palmer Bus Service for the 08-09 school year.  The motion carried unanimously.

Other Business:

-          A special meeting date was set for a board working session on Thursday February 7^th for 7:30.                                     

The next regular meeting date was set for February 25th.

A motion was made by Joy and second by Ernie to adjourn the meeting.  The motion carried unanimously.  The meeting ended at 8:45.

Nancy Rapp

Secretary, Glacial Hills Elementary School Board #4168