January 13, 2011
The January regular meeting of the Elementary and High School District No. 1 Board of Trustees was held on January 13, 2011 in the Choteau High School Library. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Chairman Mark Henderson.
Members Present: Mark Henderson, Mark Salmond, Brodie Gollehon, Kirk Moore, Jonathan Stoltz, and Ron Daley.
Members Absent: Sharon Rice.
Supt. St. John, Elementary Principal Gameon, High School Principal Achenbach, and Clerk Davis were present throughout the meeting.
A motion was made by Mark Salmond, seconded by Kirk Moore and unanimously carried to approve the elementary minutes of the December 9, 2010 regular meeting as written.
A motion was made by Jonathan Stoltz, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried (1 absent) to approve the high school minutes of the December 9, 2010 regular meeting as written.
Visitors: Choteau Acantha Editor Melody Martinsen, Teacher Rachel Christensen, and District Patron Jerry Stott.
A motion was made by Brodie Gollehon, seconded by Kirk Moore and unanimously carried to approve the elementary claim clearing warrants #16756-#16854 and payroll clearing warrants #21513-#21683 for payment. A vendor list for claims is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried (1 absent) to approve the high school claim clearing warrants #16756-#16854 and payroll clearing warrants #21513-#21683 for payment. A vendor list for claims is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
Correspondence: None.
PRINCIPALS’ REPORTS Elementary Principal Chuck Gameon reported to the Board on the following matters:
A) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that Missoula Children’s Theatre would be here next week and would put on a production with approximately 60 students in grades K-8 participating on Saturday January 22nd at 2:00 and 5:30 p.m.
B) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the preschool Boost program will get underway in the next several weeks with about 6 children from the Head Start and Trinity Preschool programs participating. Elementary Principal Gameon noted that he waited to start this program this year as a spring program will allow more flexibility.
C) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the Aimsweb winter benchmark probes would be conducted next week.
D) Elementary Principal Gameon took this time to provide information to the Board on the data based decision making process of RTI. This process involves progress monitoring, which is a weekly review of an arranged target; and diagnostic assessment, which is asking why. The process is very individualized with the problem solving team looking at the data and using it to address each individual students needs. Elementary Principal Gameon noted that fidelity is very important throughout the process and that the process not only assesses the students, but how the school is doing in providing programs to meet the needs of every student.
E) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the elementary, junior high, and high school student councils will once again share a quarterly rebate check in the amount of $1,250 from Cellular One. Elementary Principal Gameon again urged anyone who has not signed up for this rebate program to do so as it only takes a signature and 3% of your monthly service agreement charges are given as a rebate to the school.
High School Principal Nate Achenbach reported to the Board on the following matters:
A) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that a reading class that continues to teach reading is really needed for grades 7-12 and he is looking into adding such a class to the schedule. High School Principal Achenbach noted that Conrad and Cut Bank are offering such a class. Junior High English Teacher Jennifer Birnel would like to teach the class and has a Master’s in literacy. High School Principal Achenbach further noted that students that score at the novice or nearing proficiency level on the CRT tests would be referred into this class.
B) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that the 8th grade students would be visiting the Montana College of Technology in Butte on January 20th. High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that such a trip was organized in an attempt to motivate all students to consider their post secondary options before they enter high school, but especially those at a high risk of dropping out.
C) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that our 8th grade students were once again randomly selected to take the NAEP test. The test will be conducted during the first two periods on January 25th and will cover a combination of the core subject areas.
D) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that administrators have discussed providing more opportunities for academic challenges for high school students. This year Cascade will be hosting an Academic Bowl on March 26th. There is no limit to the number of teams or participants a school can send and there will be 15 categories for the students to sign up in.
E) High School Principal Achenbach reminded the Board of the new academic letter program that was initiated this year, where students with a GPA of 3.67 or above will receive an academic letter. High School Principal Achenbach showed the Board the letter which is a smaller C in black with a maroon border that will have an honor roll pin on it and students will receive a gold star pin for each semester they qualify.
F) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that the attendance committee will need to meet after the end of the first semester on January 21st to determine of credit should be reinstated for those students who missed 10 or more days in any given class. High School Principal Achenbach noted that Trustees Brodie Gollehon and Sharon Rice were appointed as the Board members to serve on this committee.
G) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that the high school enrollment is currently at 165 with many transfer and former students enrolling recently. High School Principal Achenbach stated that it has been quite some time since the District had that many high school students enrolled. It was noted that the elementary and junior high school enrollments have remained quite steady at 183 and 65 respectively.
H) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that the state football schedule was just sent out and our conference remains the same except that Cascade has gone to Class C and Rocky Boy does not field a football team, so we will travel to Harlem, Malta, Manhatten, Boulder, Conrad, Shelby, and Fairfield to play football.
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT A copy of the Superintendent’s Report provided to the Board by Supt. St John is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
A) Supt. St. John reviewed his written report with the Board at this time.
B) Supt. St. John informed the Board that he was in Helena yesterday to provide and hear testimony on HB15 regarding the Department of Commerce funding for such projects as our cafeteria renovation project that was approved. Supt. St. John informed the Board that our project is ranked 15th of the 30 approved. Supt. St. John noted that all of the testimony was positive so he is hopeful that this funding will remain in place for this cycle of projects so that the District will be able to proceed with the much needed renovations in the cafeteria, as such funding is doubtful in the future. Supt. St. John also informed the Board that he sat in on a legislative committee hearing that is proposing $55 million less or a 5-10% cut in education funding than the Governor’s proposal because they feel the Governor’s revenue projections are too high.
C) Supt. St. John informed the Board that he had just received a letter of resignation effective immediately from the Elementary PM Custodian Bobby Robles and that he had immediately accepted the resignation on behalf of the Board as allowed in accordance with policy #5251. Supt. St. John informed the Board that this vacancy will be advertised and filled as soon as possible.
POLICY
Third Reading of Revised Policy #5331 The Board held the third reading of revised policy #5331 on employee health insurance benefits that clarifies that a classified employee who is less than half time or scheduled to work less than 20 hours per week is not eligible for the group insurance plan. A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried (1 absent) to adopt revised policy #5331 on employee health insurance benefits as read. A copy of revised policy #5331 is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
ACCEPT TRUSTEE RESIGNATION AND APPOINT REPLACEMENT . Policy #1112 on the resignation of a trustee states that such a resignation must be submitted in writing to the District Clerk and is effective 72 hours after its submission unless withdrawn in writing in that 72 hour time frame. Chairman Mark Henderson informed the Board that Outlying Bynum High School Trustee Sharon Rice wrote a letter of resignation on December 9th, mailed it to him on December 10th, and he in turn presented it to Clerk Gloria Davis on December 13th. Chairman Henderson informed the Board that Trustee Rice’s letter of resignation was not withdrawn, so in accordance with policy #1113 this vacancy is to be filled by the remaining trustees appointing a replacement to serve until the next regularly scheduled election. The law book states that the Board will receive applications from any qualified persons seeking to fill a vacancy after suitable public notice, so the following block ad was published in the Choteau Acantha on December 22nd and 29th.
CHOTEAU HIGH SCHOOL BOARD VACANCY
The elected representative for the outlying Bynum Elementary District having resigned on Dec 9, 2010, the Choteau High School Board of Trustees is seeking applicants to serve in this position until the regular school election in May 2011.
Applicants must be: 1) 18 years of age; 2) a registered voter; 3) a resident of the outlying Bynum Elementary District #12.
Applicants should send a letter of interest to Board Chairman Mark Henderson in care of Choteau High School, 204 7th Ave. NW, Choteau, MT 59422 by Jan. 5, 2011.
The High School Board of Trustees will appoint a new trustee at the Jan. 13, 2011 board meeting.
Chairman Henderson informed the Board that no letters of interest in applying for this vacancy were received by the January 5th deadline. Chairman Henderson noted that he and several other members of the Board had contacted qualified individuals and to date no one has agreed to be appointed to fill this vacancy, but noted that Outlying Bynum District Patron Jerry Stott was present at the meeting and hoped that his presence was an indication that he was considering filling the vacancy.
Outlying Bynum District Patron Jerry Stott addressed the Board at this time. Mr. Stott indicated he did attend the meeting to see what the position entailed, stressing that he is very concerned about missing meetings because of his ranching responsibilities. Other members of the Board, the administration and Clerk Davis assured Mr. Stott that individual schedules are accommodated as much as possible, but it is inevitable that some meetings will be missed and that is okay. The administration and Clerk Davis noted that this would be a good trial run for Mr. Stott to see if he was indeed interested in filing a nominating petition for the May 3rd election. After further discussion among all parties, Mr. Stott indicated that he would agree to be appointed to fill Mrs. Rice’s vacancy.
A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Ron Daley and unanimously carried (1 absent) to acknowledge receipt of and accept Outlying Bynum High School Trustee Sharon Rice’s resignation. Mrs. Rice’s resignation letter is attached to the minutes of this meeting. Chairman Henderson took this opportunity to inform the Board that Mrs. Rice had informed him that her resignation was strictly a personal matter. Mrs. Rice has taken on four additional foster children from one family, and this additional commitment of her time and responsibilities dictated she resign her trustee position.
A motion was made by Jonathan Stoltz, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to appoint qualified district patron Jerry Stott to fill the Outlying Bynum High School Trustee vacancy until the next regularly scheduled election on May 3, 2011. The oath of office was taken by appointed Trustee Jerry Stott and he was issued a certificate of appointment that was notarized by Clerk Davis.
APPOINT NEGOTIATIONS COMMITTEE Chairman Mark Henderson noted that a negotiations committee needed to be appointed to negotiate with High School Principal Nate Achenbach as this is the last year of his two year contract and in case negotiations are re-opened for the 2011-2012 school year to specifically deal with an increase in health insurance costs of more than 12%. Chairman Henderson informed the Board that since any negotiations will simply be an extension of those just settled, he would like to have the same committee in place. Chairman Henderson appointed himself and Trustees Mark Salmond and Jonathan Stoltz to the negotiating committee, with Trustee Salmond serving as the spokesman, and appointed Trustee Ron Daley as the alternate.
ELEMENTARY FOOTBALL COACH RESIGNATION Supt. St. John informed the Board that he had received a letter of resignation as the Elementary Head Football Coach for the 2011-2012 school year from Jerry Breen. A motion was made by Brodie Gollehon, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to acknowledge receipt of and accept Jerry Breen’s letter of resignation, a copy of which is attached to the minutes of this meeting, as the Elementary Head Football Coach for the 2011-2012 school year. The Board and administration took this opportunity to thank Mr. Breen for filling this position for the past several years. The administration noted that this position will be posted and will be filled before next school year.
ELEMENTARY TITLE I TUTOR RESIGNATION Supt. St. John informed the Board that he had received a letter of resignation from Julie Dalrymple as an Elementary Title I Tutor effective January 7, 2011 to take a position with the local Alta Care program. A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Ron Daley and unanimously carried to acknowledge receipt of and accept Julie Dalrymple’s letter of resignation, a copy of which is attached to the minutes of this meeting, as an Elementary Title I Tutor effective January 7, 2011.
The administration informed the Board that this opening was advertised, six applications were received, and two interviews were held and they feel that Lance Stott would be a good fit to fill this vacancy. A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to accept the administrations’ recommendation and employ Lance Stott and place him on a specific non-certified contract for the position of part time Elementary Title I Tutor at the wage rate of $8.25 per hour in accordance with the current non-certified salary schedule, with the remainder of the 2010-2011 school year being a probationary period.
CONSIDER MONTANA HIGH SCHOOL ASSOCIATION PROPOSALS The Board and administration discussed the proposals that will be voted on at the annual Montana High School Association business meeting to be held in Billings on January 17th. Supt. St. John and High School Principal/Athletic Director Nate Achenbach will be present as representatives for Choteau School District No. 1
A motion was made by Mark Salmond, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried to authorize representatives for Choteau School District No. 1 present at the annual Montana High School Association business meeting to vote in the best interests of the District.
The administration proceeded to inform the Board that at this meeting they plan on submitting a low bid of minus $500 in an attempt to get the Divisional Girls Basketball Tournament back in Choteau.
ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL NEGOTIATIONS Negotiations Committee Spokesman Mark Henderson informed the Board that the Negotiations Committee had met with Elementary Principal Chuck Gameon before this meeting but did not reach an agreement, so no action can be taken at this time. Spokesman Henderson stated that he is hopeful that by the February Board Meeting a two year agreement can be hammered out with Elementary Principal Gameon, as has been done with everyone else.
APROVE DESTRUCTION OF RECORDS Clerk Davis informed the Board that law requires that they approve the destruction of old, non-permanent records and it is time to do so for the past two years, A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried to approve the destruction of old school district records as per the Montana Local Government Records Schedule. A copy of the list of records approved for destruction is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
It was the consensus of the Board to add the following two items to the agenda since they are not of significant public interest.
APPROVE ATTENDANCE AGREEMENTS A motion was made by Kirk Moore, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to approve the following attendance agreements as designated.
Attendance Agreements: ELEMENTARY – Rolfe Davidson (sending district – tuition waived) and Jacqueline Bogden (sending district – tuition waived).
ATTENDANCE COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT Chairman Mark Henderson noted that he should have appointed a replacement to the Attendance Committee when Sharon Rice’s resignation was accepted and would do so at this time. Chairman Henderson appointed Trustee Ron Daley to replace Sharon Rice on the Attendance Committee for the 2010-2011 school year.
ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT OF AND APPROVE DEPOSIT OF CHECKS A motion was made by Jonathan Stoltz, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to acknowledge receipt of and approve depositing the following checks in the appropriate funds.
1) Schwan’s Food Service check #262302 in the amount of $116.04 for rebates, to be deposited in the Elementary Lunch Fund.
2) Big Sky Special Needs Cooperative check #8020 in the total amount of $13,740.00 with $8,010.00 to be deposited in the Elementary Miscellaneous Federal Fund for IDEA-B ARRA funds, $4,192.00 to be deposited in the High School Miscellaneous Federal Funds for IDEA-B ARRA funds, $638.00 to be deposited in the Elementary Miscellaneous Federal Fund for Preschool IDEA-B ARRA funds, $240.00 used to restore the Elementary General Fund and $660.00 used to restore the High School General Fund for reimbursement of special education collaboration substitute costs.
3) Allegiance Benefit Plan Management check #253870 in the amount of $767.04 for 2010 Flexible Benefit Account forfeiture funds, to be deposited in the High School Building Fund.
4) Mountain View Coop check #438616 in the amount of $316.78 for a 2010 patron refund, to be deposited in the High School Building Fund.
MUST UPDATE Supt. St. John informed the Board that the District received a January 7th correspondence from the new MUST CEO Eric Schindler, stating that the final contribution adjustment needed to cover the 2009-2010 excess claims payments was 76% of the original amount. In addition to the final contribution adjustment being lowered substantially, it has been determined that a per participant adjustment is incorrect and the correct adjustment is to be based upon pro rata or premium contributions. Supt. St. John informed the Board that what this means for Choteau is the assessed contribution adjustment has been lowered from $26,880 to $15,913.52. Additionally, if the District allows MUST to provide a quote for the District’s health insurance coverage for the 2011-2012 benefit period and the District accepts their quote, this adjustment can be recovered in premium costs over the next two benefit periods; but if the District does not accept the quote the assessment is due in full 30 days from declination of the quote or if the District chooses not to allow MUST to provide a quote, the assessment is due 30 days from the date of this notice.
Supt. St. John informed the Board that the administrators of 10 to 12 districts which left MUST plan to meet at the upcoming MHSA annual meeting and discuss this matter to determine what is being assessed, if anyone has paid the assessment, and how they plan to address this matter. Supt. St. John noted that the District does not plan to pay this adjustment right away but continue to take a wait and see stance regarding this matter, since such a position will not cost more as interest is not being assessed.
CLERK/BUSINESS MANAGER’S REPORT Clerk Davis informed the Board that the following investments were made by the Teton County Treasurer on behalf of the Teton County Invdestment Committee.
1) $500,000 for 300 days from 12/16/10 in a certificate of deposit with Teton Banks at .85%.
2) $500,000 for 365 days from 12/16/10 in a certificate of deposit with Teton Banks at .95%.
3) $500,000 for 450 days from 12/16/10 in a certificate of deposit with Teton Banks at 1.00%.
4) $500,000 for 540 days from 12/16/10 in a certificate of deposit with Teton Banks at 1.05%.
5) $1,000,000 for 730 days from 12/16/10 in a certificate of deposit with Teton Banks at 1.55%.
SCHEDULE NEXT REGULAR SCHOOL BOARD MEETING The next Regular Board Meeting will be held on Thursday, February 10, 2011 at 7:30 pm. in the Choteau High School Library. Trustee Kirk Moore noted that the Class B State Wrestling Tournament will get underway Friday, February 11th in Hamilton and if he decides he needs to travel to Hamilton the night before, he will not be at the meeting.
DISCIPLINARY ACTION Chairman Mark Henderson announced that he had moved the disciplinary action item down on the agenda as this matter involves individual privacy. Chairman Henderson noted that the person involved in this matter was not present at the meeting to waive their right of privacy so he as the Chairman would invoke their right of privacy and close the meeting, as the right of individual privacy clearly exceeds the merits of public disclosure.
Chairman Henderson questioned of any member of the public wanted to address the Board with a compelling reason for the meeting not to be closed to discuss this disciplinary action. Choteau Acantha Editor Melody Martinsen questioned if the disciplinary action was an employee or student matter and was informed that it was an employee matter. Mrs. Martinsen stated that she wanted to verify that this was an employee, not a student disciplinary action; and that no action would be taken by the Board after closing the meeting. Chairman Henderson assured Mrs. Martinsen that this was indeed the case and she noted that she had no problem with the Board going into executive session do discuss this employee disciplinary action.
All visitors left the meeting at this time and the Board went into executive session at 9:25 p.m. to discuss this employee disciplinary action with the administration. After discussing this matter, the meeting was opened again for regular business at 9:45 p.m. Chairman Henderson noted that this employee disciplinary action has been resolved satisfactorily through the administration, so no action on the part of the Board was required at this time.
There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m.
ATTEST: _______________________ CLERK __________________________ CHAIRMAN