HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001_05_22 Board MinutesIDAHO FALLS SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 91
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Board Meeting Minutes
May 22, 2001
7:00 P.M.
Public Hearing: High School Boundaries
Dr. John Murdoch presented a review of the proposed boundary adjustment.
Student Art: Superintendent Manning presented a painting done by Sarah Hepworth of
Taylorview. The Superintendent will choose a piece of student art periodically. The
chosen artwork will be displayed in the Boardroom for a period of two years.
The Board of Trustees called for a recess from 7:15 P.M. until 8:00 P.M.
8:00 P.M. - Opening Ceremonies
Ken Schow led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Adoption of the Agenda
It was moved by Sharon Parry and seconded by Ernest Jensen to adopt the agenda as
presented. Motion passed.
Special Orders of the Day
The Skyline Scholastic Team and their Advisors were honored by the Board of Trustees
and the Administration for placing 7th in the National Science Bowl held at Chevy Chase,
MD.
Idaho Falls High School English teacher Shirley Murphy was honored for her work in
promoting cultural awareness in the Idaho Falls community and for receiving the Sam
Cikaitoga Minority Service Award from the Idaho Education Association.
Matching Fund Request: Taylorview PACE Instructor Lisa Horner requested matching
funds in the amount of $125 for the purchase of a scanner for the PACE program at
Taylorview. It was moved by Sharon Parry and seconded by Robert Collette to approve
the request for matching funds. Motion passed.
Total Amount of Matching Funds Awarded as of this date: $44,068.07
Page Two — Board Meeting Minutes
May 22, 2001
Consent Agenda
Superintendent Manning announced that Edgemont teacher Brian Armes had been
selected as the Assistant Principal for Eagle Rock Junior High School. It was moved by
Jerry Wixom and seconded by Ernest Jensen to approve the Consent Agenda which
included Board meeting minutes for May 8 and 15 and staff actions. Motion passed.
Patron Input
Bill Leake: Requested that the proposed attendance policy be revised to allow excused
absences for non -school sponsored sports, i.e., I.F. Ski Team members.
Lexie French: Urged the Board of Trustees to adopt the revised attendance policy.
Bruce Birk: Requested that the proposed attendance policy be revised to allow excused
absences and that students involved in non -school sponsored activities not be required to
make up class time missed because of their participation in these sports.
Ellie Hampton: Noted that the Attendance Committee had listened to parents during the
public hearings and changes were made to accommodate their concerns.
Linn MacAusland: Informed the Board that of her 140 students, she had experienced
514 absences in the last trimester and worked 42 additional hours helping them make-up
work missed.
Lydia Howard: Supports the changes to the attendance policy. The current policy causes
a great hardship for teachers. She noted that students have a responsibility to be in class.
Annette Alexander: Supports revised attendance policy and asked the Board to consider
language that would encourage perfect attendance.
Student Representatives
Idaho Falls High School Representative Mary Gilbert reported on spring sports and the
fact that the IFHS Tennis Team won first place at State for the second time in
approximately 40 years.
Skyline Representative Adam Harris reported on spring sports achievements. He
suggested that the Board consider that honors classes be required to have a higher point
range for awarded an `A' grade.
Westview Representative Desiree Dufur thanked the Board for providing an alternative
high school where students could receive a second chance to achieve a high school
diploma. She assured the Board that Westview students were not troublemakers, but
students who cared about their education.
IFEA Report
President Mary Farrier reported that the recent Retirement Banquet was a success. She
noted that Negotiations were scheduled to begin on May 23. She informed the Board that
the IFEA supports the proposed attendance policy and commended the efforts of the
Attendance Committee.
Page Three — Board Meeting Minutes
May 22, 2001
District 7 Health Youth Coalition
Amy Garner from the District 7 Health Department and Bethene Zohner representing the
Bonneville Youth Coalition informed the Board of Trustees of the group's efforts to
provide help and information to teens regarding abstinence and the prevention of teen
pregnancy. This group is a resource to the community, teens and parents. The focus is to
help high-risk teens.
Physical Education Program
Skyline Physical Education teacher Dale Guilford reported on the curriculum and goals
of the District's Physical Education program. He invited Board members to visit P.E.
classes at Skyline to observe the variety of activities involved in this curriculum.
INFORMATION/DISCUSSION ITEMS
1002.0 - Attendance Policy: 2"d Reading: Superintendent Manning reviewed three
changes that had been made in the policy since the first reading. These changes were
made in response to concerns expressed by parents during the public hearings. He asked
the Board of Trustees to review the comments and recommendations made by the
Attendance Committee. These comments are an important part of the implementation of
the revised policy. The recommendations will be prioritized and associated costs will be
identified.
Comments from the Trustees and District Administrators in support the proposed policy
included the following:
o Review student travel and field trips to insure that such experiences are
educational.
o Excused absences to attend school -sponsored activities are still counted towards
the average daily attendance (ADA). Non -school sponsored activities are
considered absences.
o A firm policy should be set and followed.
o Separate policy is already in place under Parent Concerns to hear appeals when
exceptions to the attendance policy occur.
o Parents and students must take responsibility and do what is necessary to
accommodate their special interests. If a student is aware of scheduled absences,
they should work with teachers in advance of the absence to establish a way to
cover class requirements.
a It was requested that a report of the number of student appeals received, related to
excused absences, be presented to the Board after the policy is established.
a Parents/students cannot be denied the right to appeal for make-up of class
time/assignments for excused absences. The penalty comes from not doing the
work associated with the class.
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Page Four — Board Meeting Minutes
May 22, 2001
ACTION ITEMS
Official Canvass of Trustee Election — Zone IV: It was moved by Jerry Wixom and
seconded by Robert Collette to accept the official results of the Trustee Election in Zone
IV. Trustee Ernest Jensen was reelected in Zone IV by a total of 124 votes. Motion
passed.
Travel Requests:
Longfellow Elementary: Students from Ms. Cox's sixth grade class requested permission
to participate in an overnight camping trip to Heise on June 4-5. The students reported
that the experience would be educational and include teamwork, Project Wild activities
and a friendship reward. The trip will be fully chaperoned and supervised.
Skyline High School: History teacher Debbie Woodard presented a proposal to take a
group of students, who are studying an elective course regarding Understanding the
Holocaust, to Washington DC in February 2002 to visit the United States Holocaust
Museum. The travel would involve three school days and include visits to various
historic sites in Washington DC and a visit with Idaho State Senator Michael Crapo.
It was moved by Jerry Wixom and seconded by Sharon Parry to approve both requests.
Motion passed.
Audit Contract Services — FY2001: Assistant Superintendent Ken Schow presented the
contract for Audit services for FY2001. The firm of Galusha, Higgins and Galusha will
perform this audit for an amount not to exceed $26,000. It was moved by Ernest Jensen
and seconded by Jerry Wixom to accept the services of Galusha, Higgins and Galusha for
the FY2001 audit. Motion passed.
District Equipment Policy — 3rd Reading: It was moved by Robert Collette and
seconded by Jerry Wixom to adopt the policy as presented. Motion passed.
Bond Refinancing Resolution: Assistant Superintendent Ken Schow informed the
Board that this procedure must take place no later than May 31, 2001. A special Board
meeting has been called for Thursday, May 31, 2001, at Noon to accept the results of the
refinancing and ratify the sale of the bond. This represents a saving of approximately
$450,000 over the life of the bond.
Certified Personnel Mentor Program (Ratification of Phone Poll): It was moved by
Jerry Wixom and seconded by Ernest Jensen to ratify the phone poll to implement this
program. Motion passed.
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Page Five -- Board Meeting Minutes
May 22, 2001
High School Boundary Change — 3rd Reading: It was moved by Robert Collette and
seconded by Ernest Jensen to approve the high school boundary proposal which will re-
establish a boundary along recognized geographical lines and balance growth areas as
follows: Beginning at Boulevard and Sunnyside, West to 5th West (Park Road), South to
the District boundary.
All affected families living in this area at the time of the boundary change will be
permanently grandfathered to Skyline High School. Waiver requests will be handled
according to current Board policy and transportation will be provided as needed. Motion
passed.
Award Roof Bids: It was moved by Ernest Jensen and seconded by Jerry Wixom to
award roof bids to Robison Roofing and Wilson Roofing in the amount of $72,762 and
$147,412 respectively. Clair E. Gale, Eagle Rock, Edgemont, Erickson, York and Idaho
Falls High School are included in these bids. The bids awarded were under the amount
estimated by engineers. All work will be completed by August 10, 2001. Motion passed.
Hard Surface Repairs: It was moved by Sharon Parry and seconded by Ernest Jensen to
award Project 41 which includes crack fill, seal coat and overlay portions at Skyline and
Idaho Falls High Schools, Emerson and Westside Elementary Schools to TMC
Contractors in the amount of $88,243. It is anticipated that all work will be completed by
July 27, 2001. It was further moved and seconded to reject all bids related to Project #2 —
Concrete Surfaces. All bids received were over the engineer's estimate. These projects
will be done on a piece -by -piece basis. The costs saved on Project #1 will help cover
these projects. Motion passed.
ADJOURNMENT
It was moved by Jerry Wixom and seconded by Robert Collette to adjourn the meeting.
Time: 10:07 P.M. Motion passed.