HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012_10_09 BoardMinutes
IDAHO FALLS SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 91
BOARD OF TRUSTEES -- BUSINESS MEETING
DISTRICT OFFICE BOARD ROOM -- 7:00 P.M.
690 JOHN ADAMS PARKWAY
OCTOBER 9, 2012
Present from the Board of Trustees: Present from the Administration:
Dave Lent, Chairman George Boland, Superintendent
Lisa Burtenshaw, Vice Chair Lisa Sherick, Assistant Superintendent
Deidre Warden, Treasurer Trina Caudle, Assistant Superintendent
Larry Haws, Clerk Gail Rochelle, Director of Student Achievement & School Improvement
Carrie Smith, Director of HR & Finance
Margaret Wimborne, Communications & Community Engagement
Excused: Trustee Brian Hillman Debbie Wilkie, Recording Clerk
Chairman Lent called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
6:00 P. M. WORK SESSION
The Board of Trustees, with Superintendent Boland and Margaret Wimborne, met to discuss plans for a presentation the
trustees will be giving at the Idaho School Board Association’s Annual Conference on November 14 -16, 2012. The Board would
like to meet on Friday, October 12, 2012 at 10:00 a.m. to continue their discussion and planning.
Trustee Deidre Warden made a motion to adjourn to Executive Session. Trustee Larry Haws provided a second. A roll call vote
was taken:
Dave Lent – yes
Lisa Burtenshaw – yes
Deidre Warden – yes
Larry Haws – yes
6:30 P. M. EXECUTIVE SESSION
The Board of Trustees met in Executive Session pursuant to IDAHO CODE §67-2345 (1) (b) to review a personnel and a student
issue.
Trustee Lisa Burtenshaw made a motion to return to Open Session at 7:16 p.m. Trustee Deidre Warden provided the second.
Motion carried 4 ayes, 0 nays.
BUSINESS MEETING
Chairman Lent called the business meeting to order at 7:16 PM.
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Lindy Lewis an eighth grader at Taylorview Middle School.
Page 1 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes
SPECIAL ORDERS OF THE DAY:
a.Emissary of Excellence
Skyline High School Assistant Principal Bill Cairns introduced Carla Rudolf, a Skyline math teacher, as the Emissary of
Excellence this month. Mr. Cairns stated that Carla is an impact player and her focus is always on the students. Carla is
known for her passion for math. Carla provided training on the Inspire calculators for other secondary staff. Assistant
Superintendent Trina Caudle added that Carla has been a leader in empowering other math teachers to be able to
engage students in meaningful and rigorous work through the use of innovative instructional practices and the use of
new technology available. Chairman Lent thanked Carla, on behalf of the District and the Board, and presented her
with a certificate and token of appreciation.
b.Volunteer of the Month
Diana Molino, Ethel Boyes Elementary Principal, introduced Lori Murdoch as the Extraordinary Volunteer of the
month. Diana stated that Lori has been a parent at Ethel Boyes for a long time serving as PTO Co-President last year
and thankfully she has accepted the position again this year. Lori has been nothing but tenacious in raising funds for
the school, she is incredibly motivated and organized and has done an outstanding job as president. Lori is a
wonderful role model for the students and she makes a huge impact at the school. Chairman Lent thanked Lori and
presented her with a certificate and token of appreciation.
c.Business Partner of the Month
Trustee Lisa Burtenshaw introduced Acoustic Specialties as our Business Partner of the Month and recognized them
for their part in helping the district save $15,580 on Dora Erickson and an additional $10,000 in weather protection
cost savings on Ethel Boyes. Trustee Burtenshaw introduced Joe Lazdauskas, Acoustic Specialties Project Manager, and
presented him with a certificate of recognition for their group. Trustee Burtenshaw thanked Joe for the work their
company is doing on behalf of the patron’s tax dollars and the students of District 91.
ADOPT AGENDA
Trustee Deidre Warden made a motion to adopt the agenda as amended. Trustee Haws provided the second. Motion carried 4
ayes, 0 nays.
REPORTS/INPUT/INFORMATION
a.Financial Audit Report
Judy Brower, Galusha, Higgins & Galusha, stated that she had met with the Board Budget Committee on October 2,
2012 to review in depth the 2012 Financial Audit Report. Judy stated this was a year of big changes in the district but
as far as numbers go the district did as planned using some of the fund balance to support programs despite the lack
of state funding. Judy provided a copy of the audit report and graphs’ showing what has happened to funding over the
last five years. Judy admitted she was excited about the passage of the bond and stated as a taxpayer it is exciting to
see the new schools being built. Judy stated that District 91 is one of the few districts that actually had a fairly good
investment return this past year because of the way it was invested in the diversified bond fund, it helped to augment
the general fund balance. Trustee Burtenshaw commented that even though the district has budgeted wisely it is once
again deficit spending and will need to monitor this closely. A discussion was held.
Page 2 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes
b.Student Reports –
i.Skyline High School Student Representative Paige Herrmann reported events and activities for SHS including:
Emotion Bowl Week activities and the football game, the Emotion Cup soccer game and the upcoming District
Tournaments for Volleyball, Cross Country, Swimming and Girls and Boys Soccer. Diversity Week is scheduled
for November 5-9, 2012.
ii.Idaho Falls High School Student Representative Caitlin McNamara stated she had addressed the challenge,
made by Trustee Burtenshaw at the last meeting, to update the school’s webpage to include the district’s new
vision statement. Caitlin was happy to report that as of today the vision statement had been updated. Caitlin
shared the IFHS October sports schedule and that the Choir is planning to attend and participate in the ISU
th
Festival on Saturday, Oct 13. The first Parent/Teacher Conferences of this year will be held on Monday,
th
October 15. Caitlin shared that students are taking advantage of the Advisory Days, especially seniors working
on their projects. IFHS also reported they received the third highest scores among schools in their division on
the SAT assessment that was given to all juniors last spring. They are very proud of this accomplishment. The
school also has a new electronic marquee to post activities and announcements for students and the
community to see.
iii.Compass Academy Student Representatives Sydney Borek and Andrew Guadarrama reported students at
Compass Academy are working on a system to create a student government as part of building the culture at
their school. Also, the group work required at Compass is teaching students to have more respect for each
other. Students are engaged in instruction by being required to make more decisions about a project once the
teacher gives them the guidelines. Students at Compass are fortunate to have technology that enables with the
laptops they use in class every day. Tomorrow the first ever Back to School Night will be held at Compass
Academy. The Booster Club will be hosting a raffle and selling food, in conjunction with the Back to School
Night, to help raise money for the school.
iv.Emerson High School Student Representative Phoebe Campbell reported that Emerson High School students
were recently provided an opportunity to participate in an art project, a paper mache’ mask as a representation
of themselves, during advisory if they were not working on their senior project. The first six-week session ends
thth
on Friday, October 12 and the second session will start on Monday, October 15. Emerson students are going
th
on an all-school field trip to the Civic Auditorium on October 19 to learn about tolerance for others.
c.Patron Input – No input.
d.IFEA Report – Mitzi Ellingson, President and Angela Gillman, President-Elect, reported:
Angela reported that the IFEA Emotion Bowl Tailgate Party was held prior to the game last week where about
80 people, members and their families, were fed before going into the game.
Angela had forwarded comments she had received from teachers to the Board regarding the cabinetry
reductions proposed for the new elementary schools and hope they will consider the input.
Angela reported Campaign Vote No on Props 1, 2 & 3 phone banks are up and going, this is not a Union
sponsored campaign but one for educators’ and education.
Mitzi urged the Board not to take a stand one way or the other when it comes to Props 1, 2 & 3.
Mitzi reported she has been hearing a lot of feedback from high school teachers regarding the senior
projects, they seem to be stressed out about what their role is and the amount of time it will take.
e.Education Foundation Report – Cami Smith, Director, reported:
The Teton Toyota Truck Raffle final sales came in at $54,160 raised by clubs and organization in the district.
Phil Breidenbach, a Skyline High School parent, was the winner of the Toyota Tacoma truck that was raffled
off during halftime at Emotion Bowl 2012. Teton Toyota also presented the Education Foundation with a new
Toyota SCION as the next vehicle for the fundraiser during the 2012-2013 school year.
Page 3 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes
The Maeck Foundation has again made a generous donation of $46,000 to the District through the Ed.
Foundation. The District is fortunate to have Mr. Maeck in our community and very fortunate that he is able
to give so much to education.
f.Superintendent’s Report
Superintendent Boland stated that he had followed up on a couple of items brought up at the last meeting. In
response to patron input by Mr. Gandhi, regarding the reduction in the Elementary PACE staff from three teachers to
two this year, the superintendent replied there are fewer students enrolled in the program this year so fewer teachers
were needed. Mr. Gandhi had also asked about the discontinuation of Kid Biz, a software program that teachers
indicated they were not using to monitor and adjust student performance or instruction but more as an enhancement
for homework and with a cost of approximately $77 per student the decision was made not to renew that license.
Superintendent Boland stated he had also relayed this information to Mr. Gandhi. In response to the question from
the IFEA as to why teachers at the two middle schools were asked to participate in a Back to School Night prior to their
first contract day, the superintendent replied that after talking with the building administrators he was informed that
this was a decision initiated by the teachers themselves in a faculty meeting last spring.
Superintendent Boland also shared that on two occasions in September secondary school administrators had
contacted him regarding mysterious fire drills being conducted by the city Fire Marshall and the State Building
Inspector without any notice. As stated in a letter the superintendent received later, the City had received complaints
of overcrowding, blocked exits and nowhere for students to sit at IFHS, SHS and the Holmes Building. The
Superintendent was happy to report complaints were unfounded and the district was to be commended on their
ability to respond in a timely and orderly evacuation of the schools as stated in the letter from the Fire Chief he
received today.
CONSENT AGENDA
Trustee Deidre Warden made a motion to adopt the Consent Agenda as presented. Trustee Lisa Burtenshaw provided the
second. Motion carried 4 ayes, 0 nays.
Items approved include:
Meeting Minutes: September 11 & 25, 2012
September 2012 Payment of Claims: $3,665,943.16
Staff Actions:
Emergency Hires: A hiring emergency exists, as declared by the Board of Trustees, for the
following positions:
Harriet Parrett – Teacher to New
Speech & Debate
Skyline High School
Heather Youinou – Teacher to New
German
Idaho Falls High School
Amy Keck – Teacher to New Renewal
Special Education
Eagle Rock Junior High
Page 4 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes
New Hires:
Patricia Desautel
Temple View Elementary
rd
3 Grade
Matching Funds:
Edgemont Elementary
Sound System $ 3,765.00
Total Matching Funds requested $ 3,765.00
Early Graduation Request:
Student 2012-2013B
PROPOSALS
a.Grades 4-6 Growth and Development Curriculum Proposal
Todd Brown, Curriculum Coordinator, provided an overview of the new Growth and Development curriculum
recommendations for grades 4-6. A committee consisting of elementary counselors and concerned parents met this
past year with Todd to review and update the video presentations that are currently being used in District 91. Todd
gave an overview of the proposed curriculum changes and stated the curriculum would be available on the District
webpage for patron review and comments. Parents may also preview the proposed videos by contacting the District
th
Office. This item will be placed on the November 13 board agenda as an action item.
b.2013-2014 School Calendar Proposal
Superintendent Boland shared a draft of the calendar proposal for the 2013-2014 School Year. The calendar has a
post Labor Day start, a week off for students at Thanksgiving, a two week Christmas Break, Spring Break the last week
in March and the final day of school on June 5, 2013. The focus will be on the start date, end date and scheduled
holidays knowing that some of the internal dates may be changed as needed once testing dates are announced. The
th
calendar draft will be posted on the district webpage for patron review and comments until the November 13 board
meeting as an action item.
ACTION ITEMS
a.Certification of Emergency Levy for $122,090 as per Idaho Code 33‐805 & 63‐805
Carrie Smith, Director of HR & Finance, reviewed this was the action approved by the Board at the last meeting to
move forward if indeed enrollment numbers had increased. The action tonight is to certify the amount, as per Idaho
Code, and then post a notice in the local newspaper for public notification.
Trustee Burtenshaw made a motion to certify the Emergency Levy in the amount of $122,090 as per Idaho Code 33-
805 & 63-805. Trustee Warden provided the second. Motion carried, 4 ayes, 0 nays.
b.New School Projects Multi‐Purpose Room Flooring
Superintendent Boland reviewed that the action tonight has to do with a flooring decision for the multipurpose rooms
in the new elementary schools. Mondo is a rubberized tile, verses VCT the most widely used tile. A committee of the
board and the four building principals toured other districts to compare the two kinds of flooring. If Mondo is used in
the multipurpose rooms it would require the district to purchase the larger floor scrubbers to maintain them correctly.
Trustee Warden made a motion to approve the use of VCT flooring in the multipurpose rooms of the four new
elementary schools. Trustee Haws provided the second. A discussion was held. Motion carried, 4 ayes, 0 nays.
Page 5 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes
c.New School Projects Cabinetry
Superintendent Boland reviewed that the cabinetry bids were based on a reduction of 9 cubic ft., per typical
classroom, for a savings per school of approximately $12,000. Facilities Committee members have met and reviewed
this with teachers at Dora Erickson who were ok with the reductions but other teachers in the district have voiced a
concern about the reduction of classroom cabinets. The Superintendent offered a recommendation to the Board to
only take action on the cabinets for Dora Erickson at this time allowing further discussion later on.
Trustee Haws made a motion to approve the cabinetry bid as is for Dora Erickson Elementary. Trustee Warden
provided the second. A discussion was held. Motion carried 4 ayes, 0 nays.
d.Ethel Boyes Construction Project Intrusion/Surveillance Rough‐Ins
Superintendent Boland reviewed that this item, also related to new school construction, has to do with security and
keyless entry capabilities. A discussion was held.
Trustee Burtenshaw made a motion to accept the Intrusion/Surveillance Rough-Ins at Ethel Boyes Elementary. Trustee
Warden provided the second. Motion carried 4 ayes, 0 nays.
e.Outdoor Restroom & Storage Shed Project at Skyline High School
Superintendent Boland reviewed that the Westside Athletic Club is seeking approval to proceed with building an
outdoor restroom and storage shed at Skyline High School. Terry Layland, representing the Westside Athletic Club,
reviewed building plans and financing for the project. Superintendent Boland recommended that if the Board decides
to give the go ahead it would be wise to have the district’s attorney draft a Memorandum of Understanding between
the District and the Westside Athletic Club absolving the district of any liability to complete the project in the event
that the group, for whatever reason, would dissolve before the project is finished. A discussion was held.
Trustee Burtenshaw made a motion to approve the outdoor restroom and storage shed project at Skyline High School
with the recommendation of the Superintendent for a Memorandum of Understanding with Westside Athletic Club
regarding the district’s financial responsibility. Trustee Haws provided the second. Motion carried 4 ayes, 0 nays.
Mr. Layland also asked about the location of a heart defibrillator that was donated to Skyline High School a few years
ago. Trina Caudle, Assistant Superintendent, offered to check on its whereabouts and let Mr. Layland and the school
staff know that it is available should they ever need it.
f.Employee 2012‐2013C
Trustee Warden made a motion to refer Employee 2012-2013C to the Professional Standards Commission. Trustee
Burtenshaw provided the second. Motion carried 3 ayes, 1 nay.
g.Student 2012‐2013A
Trustee Warden made a motion to readmit Student 2012-2013A into District 91 and that the student follows through
with the readmission plan set by the administration. Trustee Burtenshaw provided the second. Motion carried 4 ayes,
0 nays.
h.Skyline Tennis Court Rehabilitation Project Shared Project Costs (Amended)
Superintendent Boland reviewed that within the Joint Use Agreement with the City of Idaho Falls there is a process
identified with regard to the tennis court refurbishment and repairs. There was discussion regarding the work but with
the change of the Parks and Rec Director somewhere the ball got dropped. The City did not follow the process and
the District received an invoice for $19, 691.49 that came as a bit of a surprise. Within the Joint Use Agreement it is
agreed that the district will split the cost of refurbishing the courts therefore the City is requesting that the district pay
half of the $39,382.98 for the cost of the repairs. City officials reassured the district they would do everything possible
in the future to give the proper notification within the timeline permitted. A discussion was held.
Trustee Haws made a motion to approve the expenditure for the Skyline tennis court rehabilitation project costs in the
amount of $19,691.49 as presented. Trustee Warden provided a second. Motion carried 3 ayes, 1 nay.
Trustee Larry Haws moved to adjourn. Trustee Deidre Warden provided the second. Meeting adjourned at 9:37 PM.
Page 6 of 6
10/09/2012 D91 Board Minutes