September 10, 2009
The September regular meeting of the Elementary and High School District No. 1 Board of Trustees was held on September 9, 2009 in the Choteau High School Library. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. by Chairman Kirk Moore.
Members Present: Kirk Moore, Mark Salmond, Mark Henderson, Perri Lindgren, Brodie Gollehon, Jonathan Stoltz, and Sharon Rice.
Members Absent: None.
Supt. St. John, Elementary Principal Gameon, High School Principal Achenbach, and Clerk Davis were present throughout the meeting.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to approve the elementary minutes for the August 6, 2009 regular and final budget meeting as written.
A motion was made by Sharon Rice, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried to approve the high school minutes for the August 6, 2009 regular and final budget meeting as written.
Visitors: Choteau Acantha Editor Melody Martinsen and District Patrons Randy Williams, Cliff Heuscher, Sally Heuscher, Lorraine DeBruycker, Ron Daley, and Nikki Ley.
A motion was made by Brodie Gollehon, seconded by Mark Henderson and unanimously carried to approve the elementary claims clearing warrants #14991-#15117 and payroll clearing warrants #19488-#19529 for payment. A vendor list for claims is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Perri Lindgren and unanimously carried to approve the high school claims clearing warrants #14991-#15117 and payroll clearing warrants #19488-#19529 for payment. A vendor list for claims is attached to the minutes of this meeting.
Correspondence:
A) Supt. St. John shared with the Board a communication written to himself and Head Football Coach Robert McKay by Linda Sentz on behalf of the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program. Neighbors Helping Neighbors is a community based program to help meet the unmet needs of community members and promote independence. Mrs. Sentz wrote this communication to thank Coach McKay and a number of his football players for volunteering and providing the man power and vehicles to move an individual from the Skyline Retirement Center to a downtown apartment.
PRINCIPALS’ REPORTS High School Principal Nate Achenbach reported to the Board on the following matters:
A) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that sexting is a hot topic for schools at this time, with it being reported that 1/5th of the nation’s students have transferred nude pictures or sexually explicit messages and by doing so these students can be charged with the possession and distribution of child pornography. High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that he has scheduled for the FBI to provide a student and parent training regarding this issue on Friday, September 18th, with age appropriate information being provided to Grades 9-10 at 9:00 AM, Grades 6-8 at 10:00 AM, Grades 11-12 at 11:00 AM, and Parents and Community at Noon.
B) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that student volunteerism continues to be a topic at the weekly staff meetings and all staff and school groups are being encouraged to promote such volunteer work. As noted, the football team helped the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program, the volleyball team helped with Shakespeare in the Park in August, and the student council is currently helping the Lion’s Club with a flower selling fund raiser.
C) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that homecoming will be held the week of September 28th-October 2nd with the “Bulldog Walk of Fame” through movies being the theme this year. Seniors will depict action movies, Juniors horror movies, Sophmores Disney movies, and Freshmen science fiction movies on their floats, hallways, and downtown windows. Monday students will dress up as a character from their movie category, Tuesday will be twin day where students will dress up like someone else, Wednesday will be color day (Seniors – Red, Juniors-Orange, Sophmores – Blue, Freshmen – Green, Staff – Purple), Thursday will be western day, and Friday will be maroon and gold day. Homecoming week will include volleyball games on Tuesday and Thursday, a bon fire Thursday evening, as well as the usual pep assembly, parade, and football game on Friday.
D) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that new scoreboards are needed for the high school gymnasium. High School Principal Achenbach reminded the Board that Pepsi has changed their program and no longer directly pays for scoreboards. They have initiated a $5.00 per case sold rebate program and the District can use these funds however they see fit. The District still has a year left on the old Pepsi contract and did not enter into a new contract as the per case cost has risen dramatically so the $5.00 rebate wouldn’t even cover this increase in cost. High School Principal Achenbach noted that Coke has not responded to requests for a proposal. High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that new scoreboards will cost anywhere from $12,000-$14,000 and other area schools have purchased new scoreboards through donations, with the name of the donors unobtrusively printed on a panel on the scoreboard. High School Principal Achenbach has made initial contact with corporate sponsors such as Citizens State Bank, 3 Rivers Communications, and Sun River Electric and believes there would be enough support to purchase new scoreboards in this manner. High School Principal Achenbach noted that district policy allows this but in light of the Board’s position regarding advertising in the past, he wants the Board to tell him how to proceed with obtaining new scoreboards. The Board discussed this matter briefly with Trustee Sharon Rice asking for the past history on the Board’s position regarding advertising. Trustee Perri Lindgren noted the past position against advertising was never unanimous, but generally those Trustees that opposed such advertising were concerned with the gym and/or hallways becoming billboards for any and all forms of advertising. Trustee Lindgren further noted that as the makeup of the Board changes so will the position taken on any given issue and the Board has never been approached about accepting donations for the purchase of scoreboards.
E) High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that this fall the enrollment for Grades 7-8 is 64 compared to 78 last year and for Grades 9-12 is 153 compared to 126 last year due to the large incoming Freshman class. High School Principal Achenbach informed the Board that 3 new students have enrolled in Junior High and 11 new students have enrolled in High School, with 7 of these students being in the Freshman class so that group is now a class of 50. High School Principal Achenbach noted that one of the new students is a senior exchange student staying with the Stoltz family and she wants to graduate with a diploma from Choteau High School so this request will be coming before the Board at a later date.
Elementary Principal Chuck Gameon reported to the Board on the following matters:
A) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that they would be considering the employment of a long term substitute for 1st Grade Teacher Jaime Stubblefield at the October Board Meeting. Mrs. Stubblefield is pregnant and has requested to take maternity leave from October 12th through December 14th and would like Lorraine DeBruycker to take over her classroom during this period.
B) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that this fall the enrollment for Grades K-6 is 180 compared to 186 last year. Elementary Principal Gameon noted that several families have moved away but new families and students have moved in too. The Kindergarten is larger than expected with 30 students and the District’s smallest class has grown from 11 to 13.
C) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the elementary school was very successful in the WalMart Plastic Bag Recycle Program again last year, receiving $1,390 for the 278 large bags collected and an additional $2,000 for taking 2nd place in the state for the amount collected. Elementary Principal Gameon noted that these funds will continue to be used for playground improvements, hopefully for the purchase of a new piece of playground equipment.
D) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that there was 82% participation at the Back to School Night last week but the teachers will send all pertinent information discussed that evening to those parents that were unable to attend.
E) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the elementary school has been selected again to be a part of the RTI Pilot Program through OPI and that this year the RTI program will be expanded and include all grade levels from K-6.
F) Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that the AIMSWEB probes will be administered next week to determine the fall benchmark and once these are done he will be able to assess the success of the new summer school format.
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT A copy of the Superintendent’s Report provided to the Board by Supt. St. John is attached to the minutes of the meeting.
A) Supt. St. John reviewed his report with the Board at this time.
B) Supt. St. John had provided a theoretical list of possible staff reductions that may be necessary over the next decade if the District’s enrollment continues to decline sharply. Supt. St. John stressed that the District is not anticipating a forced reduction of staff, but it is necessary to look ahead and plan for necessary reductions and hopefully they will be through natural attrition.
C) Supt. St. John encouraged all Trustees to attend the Montana Conference of Educational Leadership in Missoula October 15th and 16th and take part in the professional development opportunities provided by MTSBA. Trustees are to inform Supt. St. John by October 1st if they plan to attend or not so he can confirm registrations and room reservations by that date.
D) Supt. St. John informed the Board that the Quality School Facilities Grant through the ARRA federal stimulus program must be expended by September 30, 2010. The administration is planning on using the elementary grant of approximately $40,000 to remove the old asbestos floor tiles and install new vinyl tiles in 15 classrooms. The administration is still prioritizing various projects for the high school grant of approximately $23,000 but is looking at such projects as replacing desks in the high school classrooms with tables and chairs, improving the parking lots in some manner, and/or upgrading the telephone system. Supt. St. John provided the Board with a new maintenance report based on a walk about conducted on September 8th, a copy of which is attached to the minutes of this meeting. It was noted that the painting of the exterior of the high school gymnasium has been completed and it looks good. The administration is happy with the project as they feel the surface was prepared properly and the paint applied properly. Goodspeed Construction has not completed the facia work as they had another job to finish up and an injured worker that put them behind schedule, but they have started the project. Supt. St. John also noted that about 50 chairs in the auditorium were recovered with the discovered matching seat covers that had been stored for a number of years. This repair work should hold for a number of years so recovering all 500 seats is not necessary at this time.
E) Supt. St. John informed the Board that some of the teachers feel the 10 day absence policy per semester is too much and would like it lessened, citing that attendance is important to academic achievement. Supt. St. John noted that the majority of area schools also have this 10 day absence policy but asked the Board to reflect on this matter and determine if they would like to change this policy. The Board questioned High School Principal Achenbach about this policy and the role of the attendance committee. High School Principal Achenbach noted that the majority of over 10 day absences are legitimate for such matters as doctor appointments, sickness, family vacations, etc. and credit is reinstated for these. High School Principal Achenbach agreed that there will always be abusers of any absence policy but the attendance committee reviews these and if the absences are not legitimate, credit is taken away as a consequence. Mr. Achenbach feels the attendance committee has worked hard to curtail abusers by taking credit away and does not believe there needs to be a change in this policy. This discussion led to how the District was preparing for a possible flu pandemic and Supt. St. John informed the Board that letters have been sent to all parents regarding how to stay health and preventing the spread of the flu, this information has also gone out in the newsletter as well as being posted on the District’s web site, and the District is also working closely and coordinating with the Teton County Health Department on this matter.
F) Trustee Sharon Rice questioned Supt. St. John regarding providing the Board with training on what is available and what direction the District is going regarding the matter of virtual learning. Supt. St. John noted that legislation was enacted in the last session that established the Virtual Learning Academy that will offer credit recovery courses as well as classes that some smaller District’s may not be able to offer, but it is still not known exactly what this program will look like at this time. Supt. St. John informed the Board that the state of Montana does not allow some of the virtual learning programs that were being promoted by several national speakers at MCEL last year.
POLICY
First Reading of New Policy #3235 The Board held the first reading of new policy #3235 on video surveillance that Supt. St. John proposed. Supt. St. John informed the Board that the proposed policy is a model policy from MTSBA with a few minor changes that would allow for the legal use of video cameras in situations where it is considered feasible and beneficial. Supt. St. John noted that he would like such a policy implemented because of the open access to the multi-purpose building. The Board, administration, and public discussed the proposed policy. District Patron Randy Williams stated that he feels there are several major issues regarding privacy rights not addressed that need to be considered before implementation of such a policy, such as who has access to and will view the tapes as well as where they will be stored and for how long. Supt. St. John noted that these are good points that will be looked into before the second and third reading of this proposed policy.
APPROVE BIG SKY SPECIAL NEEDS COOPERATIVE ADVISORY BOARD POSITION Supt. St. John informed the Board that the superintendent of each school district belonging to the Big Sky Special Needs Cooperative is required to be appointed annually by the District School Board to serve as a member of the Board for the cooperative.
A motion was made by Sharon Rice, seconded by Mark Henderson and unanimously carried to appoint Supt. St. John as the authorized representative for Choteau School District No. 1 to serve on the Board for the Big Sky Special Needs Cooperative for the 2009-10 school year and for the district to sign the cooperative’s program assurance form.
APPROVE BOOST PROGRAM Elementary Principal Gameon is requesting the Board to once again consider continuing the District’s operation of Boost, a preschool program designed to enhance the success of future elementary students with their reading proficiency. The Boost program will operate in the same format as last year, inclusive within the Head Start and Trinity Lutheran Preschool programs. The students targeted for Boost will be identified through screening results that will take place within the next month. The Boost tutor will then work to build as unobtrusive schedule as possible for the identified children and will start providing services sometime after mid-October. Language for Learning is the curriculum utilized to help the targeted children. The Boost tutor will work a maximum of 100 hours during the course of the 2009-2010 school year and will be paid an hourly rate of $10.00 to $12.00. Elementary Principal Gameon informed the Board that unfortunately Julienne Gramm has indicated she will not return to serve as the tutor for the Boost program, so this position is being advertised at this time and he hopes to have a recommendation for employment for the Board at the October meeting.
A motion was made by Perri Lindgren, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to once again offer the Boost program for the 2009-10 school year as outlined above.
OBSOLETE PROPERTY RESOLUTION Supt. St. John informed the Board of an additional list of surplus property that needs to be disposed of, a copy of which is attached to the minutes of this meeting. Supt. St. John would like the Board to pass a resolution that will allow the administration to accept bids made on the listed surplus property and then dispose of any remaining surplus property in the most appropriate manner. Supt. St. John noted that the list of surplus property, along with the closing date for bids will be published in the Choteau Acantha for the correct amount of time in accordance with 20-6-604, MCA.
A motion was made by Jonathan Stoltz, seconded by Perri Lindgren and unanimously carried to pass a resolution to sell or dispose of personal property of the district because it is obsolete and unsuitable for the school purposes of the district by calling for bids and authorizing the Superintendent to accept the high bid and to appropriately dispose of any remaining surplus property that is not bid on.
ACCEPT RESIGNATIONS Supt. St. John informed the Board that he has received letters of resignation for the 2009-10 school year from Christy Clark and Dorothy Weist for the Junior High Title I Tutor position that they job shared, and also from Connie Wearley as the activity ticket taker. A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to acknowledge receipt of and accept the above listed letters of resignation, copies of which are attached to the minutes of this meeting.
EMPLOY TITLE I TUTOR Supt. St. John informed the Board that all applicants for the Title I Tutor position open due to the recent resignation of Christy Clark and Dorothy Weist were interviewed. The administration would recommend that Mikaila Johnson be employed in this position. Supt. St. John noted that Mrs. Johnson is a certified language arts teacher who did her student teaching here last year and the main purpose of this position is to help students with their reading skills.
A motion was made by Perri Lindgren, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to accept the administrations’ recommendation and employ Mikaila Johnson for the 2009-10 school year and place her on a specific non-certified contract for the position of Title I Tutor at the wage rate of $8.25 per hour in accordance with the current non-certified salary schedule, with a wage increase to $8.60 per hour upon the satisfactory completion of a six month probationary period as of February 26, 2010.
ASSIGN ALL SCHOOL MUSICAL DIRECTOR POSITIONS FOR 2009-2010 Supt. St. John reminded the Board that the All School Musical Play Director position is open due to the resignation of Alison Kreiss. Supt. St. John informed the Board that the two applicants for the position, Cody Marney and Stewart Merja, were interviewed. Supt. St. John reminded the Board that Cody Marney is currently assigned as the All School Musical Pit Director so the administration would recommend he be assigned as the All School Musical Play Director and Stewart Merja as the All School Musical Pit Director. Supt. St. John informed the Board that these titles are no longer accurate and the musical play director is essentially the head director with the musical pit director acting as the assistant director, and this change is being discussed in negotiations at this time. Supt. St. John noted that even though these positions receive the same stipend, someone needs to be considered and take on the responsibilities of a head director.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to accept the administrations’ recommendation and assign Cody Marney as the All School Musical Play Director and Stewart Merja as the All School Musical Pit Director for the 2009-10 school year.
District Patron Sally Heuscher questioned if there are job descriptions outlying the responsibilities for these two positions and why volunteers are always needed to work with the cast on voice and dance numbers. The administration informed Mrs. Heuscher and the Board that job descriptions and responsibilities for these two positions are being developed and like any coaching position, the expertise of volunteers is used to benefit the program.
ASSIGN ELEMENTARY ASSISTANT BOYS BASKETBALL COACH FOR 2009-2010 Supt. St. John reminded the Board that the administration had held off on making a recommendation for the employment of the elementary assistant boys basketball coach at the September Board meeting and was prepared to do so at this time.
A motion was made by Brodie Gollehon, seconded by Perri Lindgren and unanimously carried to accept the administrations’ recommendation and assign Dan Yeager as the Elementary Assistant Boys Basketball Coach for the 2009-10 school year, contingent upon an acceptable background check.
EMPLOY ACTIVITY TICKET TAKER Supt. St. John informed the Board that the activity ticket taker position had been advertised due to the recent resignation of Connie Wearley and the administration would recommend the employment of staff member Della Yeager for this position.
A motion was made by Sharon Rice, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried to accept the administrations’ recommendation and employ Della Yeager as the activity ticket taker at the wage rate of $7.75 per hour.
RATIFY NEGOTIATIONS
Teacher Negotiations Board Negotiations Committee Spokesman Kirk Moore outlined the progress of negotiations to date. Spokesman Moore indicated that he, Trustee Perri Lindgren, and Trustee Mark Henderson had worked hard the past two weeks to settle negotiations with the teachers, administrative, and support staff. Spokesman Moore informed the Board that negotiations with the teachers had broken off at the end of last school year with the Board Committee offering $250 on the base and the CEA Committee rejecting that offer and countering with a verbal request of $300 on the base. Negotiations began at the start of this school year with the Board Committee rejecting this last offer to the dismay of the CEA Committee so that they could make the offer of $350 on the base to the delight of the CEA Committee. Spokesman Moore indicated that once the budgets were calculated and the extent of the stimulus funding was known, they felt more could and should be offered to the teachers. It was noted that the teachers have a 187 day contract and that $350 on the base is a 1.5% increase but this will cost 3.2% overall with step and lane movement. Chairman Moore outlined additional terms and language changes agreed upon through negotiations and noted that the CEA has ratified this proposal. The details of the negotiated proposal and process were discussed between the entire Board, the committee members and the administration
A motion was made by Perri Lindgren, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz and unanimously carried to ratify negotiations with the Choteau Education Association for the 2009-2010 school year as outlined below.
A) $350.00 on the base to a base of $23,854.
B) Article 15.2: The Board agrees to pay 2009-2010 insurance premiums not to exceed the following monthly amounts:
Family Plan - $579.00
Two party Plan - $464.00
Parent/Child Plan - $441.00
Single Plan - $234.00
C) Appendix C – Extra Duty Salary Schedule Part B High School Non-Athletic Activities:
1. Change the title of All School Musical Pit Director to All School Musical Assistant Director.
2. Strike GBB Cheerleader Advisor and BBB Cheerleader Advisor and add All-Season Cheerleader Advisor at an index of .100.
3. Increase Yearbook Advisor index to .04782.
4. Change 9th and 10th Grade Class Sponsors stipend to $100.
5. Change 11th and 12th Grade Class Sponsors stipend to $150.
D) Appendix C #7 – Reword to say:
When the number of participants justifies it and a full season of third team games is scheduled, a third team or “C” coach may be employed for boys and girls basketball and volleyball at the head coach’s request, with administrative approval and board consent. This third team or “C” coach will be paid a stipend of 1,000. If a third or “C” coach is not employed when the above conditions are met, the administration may approve paying an additional stipend of $600 to the head or assistant coach or the stipend may be split between the head and assistant coach at their direction.
If the number of track participants exceeds 30 a second assistant track coach may be employed at the head coach’s request and with administrative approval. This second assistant track coach would be paid a stipend of $1,000.
Clerk/Business Manager’s Negotiations Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee had arrived at a wage increase of $1,500 or 3.7% to an annual salary of $42,200 for Clerk/Business Manager Davis. Spokesman Moore noted that there is a wide range of salaries for business managers in this area, but this salary amount still only places Clerk Davis at or below average and she has 28 years of experience and works 260 days. It was noted that Clerk Davis receives the same insurance benefits as other non-certified personnel.
A motion was made by Perri Lindgren and seconded by Brodie Gollehon to ratify negotiations with Clerk/Business Manager Gloria Davis for the 2009-2010 school year as outlined above. Trustees voting for this motion were: Perri Lindgren, Brodie Gollehon, Mark Henderson, Kirk Moore, Mark Salmond, and Sharon Rice. Trustees voting against this motion were: Jonathan Stoltz. The motion carried with a 6-1 vote.
Computer Technician Negotiations Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee had arrived at a wage increase of $1,350 or 3.7% to an annual salary of $37,580 for Computer Technician Robb Wearley. Spokesman Moore noted that there is also a wide range of salaries for computer technicians depending upon if they are certified or classified staff members, but this salary amount places Computer Technician Wearley at or below average and he also works 260 days. It was noted that Computer Technician Wearley receives the same insurance benefits as other non-certified personnel.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Mark Salmond and unanimously carried to ratify negotiations with Computer Technician Robb Wearley for the 2009-2010 school year as outlined above.
Elementary Principal Negotiations Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee had arrived at a wage increase of $1,000 or 1.7% to an annual salary of $61,100 for Elementary Principal Chuck Gameon. Spokesman Moore noted that this salary places Elementary Principal Gameon at the state wide average for elementary principals and he works a 212 day contract. It was noted that as an administrator, Elementary Principal Gameon receives full insurance benefits as was negotiated several years ago.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to ratify negotiations with K-6 Elementary Principal Chuck Gameon for the 2009-2010 school year as outlined above.
High School Principal Negotiations Spokesman Moore informed the Board that High School Principal Nate Achenbach’s salary is the one salary that has been way below the state wide average so the negotiating committee really researched the salaries for high school principals with athletic director duties in this area. The committee discovered that very few schools have the athletic director duties attached to the high school principal contract. These additional athletic director duties are usually paid a stipend of $4,000-$6,000 and the high school principal contract alone is paid in the range of $63,000-$65,000, whereas Mr. Achenbach is only being paid $54,500 for the duties of both positions and he is the principal for grades 7-12, not just 9-12. Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee looked at this discrepancy long and hard and determined the best way to rectify this matter would be to offer a two year package that would get Mr. Achenbach to the current average. Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee finally arrived at a wage increase of $4,600 or 8.5% to an annual salary of $60,000 for the 2009-2010 school year and another wage increase of $5,000 or 8.3% to an annual salary of $65,000 for the 2010-2011 school year. It was noted that Mr. Achenbach works a 212 day contract and as an administrator, he receives full insurance benefits as was negotiated several years ago.
A motion was made by Perri Lindgren and seconded by Mark Salmond to ratify negotiations with
7-12 High School Principal/Athletic Director Nate Achenbach for a two year period as outlined above with his salary for the 2009-2010 school year being set at $60,000 and his salary for the 2010-2011 school year being set at $65,000. Discussion of the motion on the floor was called for.
Trustee Jonathan Stoltz really questioned such a large increase in comparison with the teachers and the state of the economy, and wondered how the District would sustain such a large increase when the enrollment dramatically declines in four years. Spokesman Moore stressed that the members of the negotiating committee discussed all sides of this issue at length. They determined that Mr. Achenbach has been doing the job of an administrator at teacher wages and felt that if they did not remedy this matter at this time his salary would always be way below average. The negotiating committee felt they had settled at a middle ground, with Mr. Achenbach no longer being the lowest salary paid and definitely not the highest by any means. It was noted that if Mr. Achenbach chose to leave the District for whatever reason, he would have to be replaced and more than likely the District would have to offer an even higher salary to recruit any quality candidates.
Trustee Sharon Rice questioned if the negotiating committee had thought about splitting out the athletic director duties with a corresponding stipend and stated she does not believe the state wide average should be given consideration, only averages of other schools in the area of like size and tax base. Again Spokesman Moore stressed that the members of the negotiating committee had discussed all sides of this issue at length and had arrived at the proposal as the best solution regarding the salary of the District’s high school principal. The negotiating committee felt it was in the best interests of the District to retain Mr. Achenbach in the 1 FTE position of the combined 7-12 High School Principal and Athletic Director with an annual salary for this position. Spokesman Moore stated that the District is really “getting a bang for its buck” by covering both of these positions at a salary amount that is lower than any other in the area, noting that Fairfield currently pays their high school principal an annual salary of $62,000 and the athletic director receives a stipend of $6,000.
Trustee Mark Henderson called for a vote on the motion on the floor. Trustees voting for the motion made by Perri Lindgren and seconded by Mark Salmond to ratify negotiations with 7-12 High School Principal/Athletic Director Nate Achenbach for a two year period as outlined above with his salary for the 2009-2010 school year being set at $60,000 and his salary for the 2010-2011 school year being set at $65,000 were: Perri Lindgren, Mark Salmond, Mark Henderson, Kirk Moore, Brodie Gollehon, and Sharon Rice. Trustees voting against the motion were: Jonathan Stoltz. The motion carried with a 6 to 1 vote.
Superintendent Negotiations Spokesman Moore informed the Board that the negotiating committee had arrived at a wage increase of $1,100 or 1.5% to an annual salary of $72,500 for Superintendent Kevin St. John. Spokesman Moore noted that this salary places Supt. St. John below the state wide average but around average for this area and he works a 260 day contract. It was noted that as an administrator, Supt. St. John receives full insurance benefits as was negotiated several years ago.
A motion was made by Mark Henderson and seconded by Jonathan Stoltz to ratify negotiations with Supt. St. John as outlined above for the 2009-2010 school year. Discussion of the motion on the floor was called for.
Trustee Sharon Rice questioned when the Board would conduct the six month evaluation of Supt. St. John. It was noted that the past superintendent had initiated a change so that the formal evaluation was held in August and another informal evaluation was held in January, but Supt. St. John has returned to the usual practice of one formal evaluation conducted in December or January. Trustee Rice stated she feels the one year contract with a specific plan of improvement offered to Supt. St. John in January dictates a freeze in salary. Members of the negotiating committee noted that salary freezes have never been a part of past plans of improvements for teachers and the evaluation process is not a means of determining salary levels but whether the employee should be retained or not.
There was further discussion of this matter with Trustee Rice stating she did not feel that Supt. St. John should be rewarded with a pay raise while on a plan of improvement. Members of the negotiating committee countered by stating they felt that Supt. St. John was doing a good job and should be given a raise and as a committee they felt that by not giving an incentive or raise, they would not be bettering or doing what is best for the District. Trustee Sharon Rice took this opportunity to thank the negotiating committee for the work they have done, noting that it is a tough job to be on the negotiating committee, but felt the Board should table taking action on this matter so that an evaluation could be done that would document that Supt. St. John has improved and addressed the issues on his plan of improvement and indeed is deserving of a raise.
A motion was made by Sharon Rice to table taking action to ratify negotiations with Supt. St. John for the 2009-2010 school year until the October Board Meeting. Chairman Kirk Moore called once for a second for this motion. Jonathan Stoltz seconded the motion so that it could be discussed. Choteau Acantha Editor Melody Martinsen questioned how the Board could go back to a salary freeze at this time when the contract subject to negotiations at a later date with a specific plan of improvement that was offered in January did not mention such a salary freeze. Trustee Rice noted that subject to negotiations could be a zero increase or salary freeze.
Trustee Mark Henderson called for a vote on the motion on the floor to table ratifying negotiations with Supt. St. John for the 2009-2010 school year until the October Board Meeting. Trustees voting for this motion were: Sharon Rice. Trustees voting against this motion were: Jonathan Stoltz, Kirk Moore, Perri Lindgren, Mark Henderson, Mark Salmond, and Brodie Gollehon. The motion failed with a 1 to 6 vote.
Chairman Kirk Moore called for a vote on the original motion on the floor made by Mark Henderson and seconded by Jonathan Stoltz to ratify negotiations with Supt. St. John as outlined and increasing his salary by $1,100 to an annual salary of $72,500 for the 2009-2010 school year. Trustees voting for this motion were: Mark Henderson, Jonathan Stoltz, Kirk Moore, Perri Lindgren, Mark Salmond, and Brodie Gollehon. Trustees voting against this motion were: Sharon Rice. The motion carried with a 6 to 1 vote.
APPROVE ATTENDANCE AGREEMENTS AND INDIVIDUAL TRANSPORTATION CONTRACTS A motion was made by Perri Lindgren, seconded by Brodie Gollehon and unanimously carried to approve the following attendance agreements and contingency transportation contracts as designated for the 2009-2010 school year.
Attendance Agreements: Elementary – Jill Brubaker (sending district – tuition waived), Carrie Otness (sending district – tuition waived), Brenda Willekes (sending district – tuition waived), and Sarah Moon (receiving district – tuition waived); High School – Kevin Lytle (receiving district – tuition waived).
Ind. Trans. Contracts: High School - Kevin Lytle and Darryl Lane.
ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT OF AND APPROVE DEPOSIT OF CHECKS A motion was made by Perri Lindgren, seconded by Jonathan Stoltz to acknowledge receipt of and approve depositing the following checks in the appropriate funds.
1) Fit For You check #1102 in the amount of $75.00 and #1103 in the amount of $75.00 for multipurpose room rent for August and September respectively, to be deposited in the High School Building Fund. The Board approved depositing all future rent payments from Fit For You into the High School Building Fund at this time.
2) Cascade County Treasurer check #0182922 in the amount of $571.10 for computer rental fees for the State Fair, to be deposited in the High School Building Fund.
3) ESD 101 check #310981 in the amount of $1,390.00 for refund of cancelled workshop registration fees, to be deposited in the 2008-09 Title II, A Grant funds.
4) Northwest Educational Service District 189 check #463262 in the amount of $350.00 for Robert McKay history training travel stipend, to be deposited in the Elementary Miscellaneous Federal Fund.
FALL ENROLLMENT Supt. St. John provided the Board with the following enrollment figures from the first week of school, noting that the overall numbers are actually up 10 when projections had indicated there would be a decline.
Grade Level 2009-10 2008-09
K-6 180 183
7-8 64 78
9-12 153 126
Total 397 387
CLERK/BUSINESS MANAGER’S REPORT Clerk Davis reported to the Board on the following matters:
A) Clerk Davis informed the Board that there were no investments made by the Teton County Treasurer on behalf of the Teton County Investment Committee for August due to the lack of cash flow.
B) Clerk Davis informed the Board that the District valuations have been certified by the Montana Department of Revenue and she has calculated the mills necessary to support the adopted budgets and reported these to the Teton County Superintendent of Schools as directed by the Board at the Final Budget Meeting in August. Clerk Davis provided the Board with a budget summary for both the elementary and high schools. One mill in the elementary district will now raise $5,356.35 compared to $4,953.85 last year, so the overall mills needed for all the elementary budgets is 124.09 compared to 129.26 last year for a decrease of 5.17 mills. One mill in the high school district will now raise $6,699.46 compared to $6,150.78 last year, so the overall mills needed for all the high school budgets is 71.47 compared to 77.68 last year for a decrease of 6.21 mills.
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT Supt. St. John took this opportunity to wrap up the meeting by thanking the negotiations committee for the time and effort they extended in reaching a favorable settlement for negotiations, noting that paying for experience is important.
SCHEDULE NEXT REGULAR SCHOOL BOARD MEETING Clerk Davis informed the Board that the next regular school board meeting should be held on Thursday, October 8th but she does have a conflict with an away volleyball game that evening. Clerk Davis informed the Board that as her daughter is only a junior varsity player at this time she can miss watching one game, but wanted the Board to realize she will have more such conflicts in the next few years and will want meeting dates changed so that she can watch all of her daughter’s activities. Jonathan Stoltz moved to hold the next regular school board meeting on October 7th but withdrew this motion when further discussion indicated that several Board members would have a conflict with that date.
The Board discussed this issue further and it was suggested that Clerk Davis need not be present at the meetings, but both Chairman Moore and Clerk Davis did not feel that would be a good practice. Clerk Davis again stated that she does not have a problem missing a game at this time but will expect and want to attend all games in the upcoming years and wanted the Board to be prepared for such requests. Clerk Davis further informed the Board that they may wish to start considering the November meeting date as November 12th is the first night of the state volleyball tournament and they have usually always changed meeting dates because of tournaments.
The next regular school board meeting will be held on Thursday, October 8, 2009 in the Choteau High School Library at 7:30 p.m. There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 10:25 p.m.
ATTEST: ______________________ CLERK ______________________ CHAIRMAN