EACSD Board of Directors holds regular March session

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

The Eastern Allamakee Community School District (EACSD) Board of Directors met in its regular monthly session at Kee High School in Lansing Monday, March 16. The meeting opened with a public hearing on the proposed budget for the 2015-2016 school year, and with no public comment being heard or read, the budget was passed.
Under New Business, the Board approved the 2015-2016 sharing agreements with Allamakee Community School District once again for the positions of Director of Transportation ($15,000/year) and Director of Building and Grounds ($15,000/year). The Board also approved the resignation of Chad Winters from his junior high girls basketball coaching position, pending finding a suitable replacement.
Additional personnel changes included an increase in contract hours for Angela Baumann from four hours per day to 7.5 hours per day to be paid out as the hours are worked for the remainder of the 2014-15 school year. New contracts for the 2015-2016 school year were also approved for Ray Rankin, industrial tech/agriculture teacher, and for Elizabeth Hill, math teacher.
Lansing Middle School and Kee High School Principal Mary Hogan reported to the Board on the 2013-2014 test results for reading and math. The test scores compared the district's elementary through high school scores against other school across the state and within the Area Education Association (AEA), and the district’s data ranked very high in both categories. Science testing was not included in this comparison. Hogan also reported that for the last two years Kee High School has had a 100% graduation rate and a 0% drop-out rate.
EACSD Superintendent Dr. Dale Crozier informed the Board that the Food Service Department has applied for a grant to purchase a new oven. The current oven is not working very well and needs to be replaced. If the grant is not approved, the district will have to use LOST or PPEL funds to purchase a new oven.