ACSD Board of Directors addresses variety of matters in regular session

by Brianne Eilers

The Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) Board of Directors met Monday evening, December 21 for its regular monthly board meeting. Board member Tom Baxter was absent.
During the Superintendent’s Report, ACSD Superintendent Dave Herold explained that the district has been asked to re-submit its TLC (Teacher Leadership and Compensation) Grant paperwork, in order to clarify some points. He also discussed some damage to the roof at the high school. There have been some issues with water problems, and it was discovered that some areas of the roof were not flashed properly. The problem has been fixed, with no cost to the district.
Waterville Elementary Principal Julie Askelson noted that the Waterville Holiday concert was held December 3 and was “very well attended.” Some of the Waterville Elementary students also took advantage of Project SEALED in December. Project SEALED is a grant through the University of Iowa through the College of Dentistry Preventative and Community Department to provide dental care to elementary students in Allamakee County. Askelson also noted that the Waterville students had a giving tree this year which provided items to the Allamakee County Relief Office and the Humane Society of Northeast Iowa.
East and West Elementary Principal Joe Griffith noted that the West Elementary concert was held during the school day. Over 50 students took advantage of Project Sealed. First grade students attended a performance of the Nutcracker Suite in La Crosse, WI December 11, and Griffith noted that students were asked to dress up to attend the ballet performance. Pre-school and Kindergarten round-up dates have been set. February 10 will be for four-year-olds at West, February 17 will be for four- and five-year-olds at Waterville and February 18 will be for five-year-olds at West.
Waukon Middle School Principal Jennifer Garin noted that the Middle School Holiday concert was successful and some of the students also went to area care centers to provide music for the residents there. Brian Hilsabeck, Activities Director and Waukon High School Assistant Principal, noted that between the wrestling, girls basketball, boys basketball and speech programs in the high school, there are 130 students participating in those activities. He also noted that the school calendars on the ACSD website are the best and most current, up-to-date way to keep track of activities and changes in activities.
Dr. Michael Hardy, Waukon High School Principal, noted that the late start that same Monday morning did affect the semester test schedule, as those tests started Monday as well, but students and staff were able to adapt.
During the Communications time of the meeting, Ann Deering and Sara Retallick, both third grade teachers at East Elementary, gave a presentation on a recent Skype session that happened between third grade students at East and the Gerst family, formerly from Waukon who now live in Dubai. The third grade students have been studying people in communities in their social studies unit, and have been looking at why people move from place to place and celebrations. The third grade students related this to their former classmate, who moved with his family to Dubai this year, and they were able to come up with questions to ask during the 40-minute Skype session.
Herold then spoke about the state of Iowa's school report card information on the ACSD buildings. While two of the buildings, West Elementary and Waterville Elementary, could not be rated because the data does not include pre-kindergarten or kindergarten and the schools were then considered “too small”, the East campus, Middle School and High School all received “commendable” ratings, and data showed they were mostly at the state level or above in certain criteria.
The areas looked at in the report cards included proficiency, closing the achievement gap, college and career ready growth, annual expected growth, college and career readiness, graduation rate, attendance and staff retention. The information can be viewed online at http://reports.educateiowa.gov/schoolreportcard.
Also during the Communications time, Ethan Adams, vocal music instructor, discussed the purchasing of new choir robes with the Board. Adams showed an example of how the currently used robes, the majority of which were purchased in 1991, are beginning to show significant wear and tear. He also noted that the current robes are black and purple, which do not reflect school colors, and he feels that if new ones are purchased, they should be in the school colors of black and orange to promote a feeling of solidarity across all school activities. Adams noted that the Music Boosters would pay half of the costs for the new robes, with a total price tag of approximately $18,000, and the music department would like to have a fundraiser to get the rest of the money, which would involve patrons sponsoring a robe, a stole, or an entire outfit. He proposed to rename and reallocate the “Feed the Tuba” fundraiser for the robes.
Under new business, the Board approved staff for the 21st Century Afterschool Program. The Board also accepted the resignations of Connie Kromer and Linda Schulte from their associate positions and approved hiring Jessica Phillips as a 5.75 hour per day associate. The Board accepted the resignation of Peyton Lapel from her head varsity volleyball coaching position, pending finding a suitable replacement, as well as Kerry Connor Wacker from her ninth grade volleyball coaching position, pending finding a suitable replacement. The Board also approved to authorize advertising for a Title I part-time teacher. The position would be paid using Title I funds.
In other matters, the Board approved joining Wood River Energy for natural gas re-pricing, which should lead to savings on expenditures for natural gas, as well as make the bills more predictable and consistent. The Board approved a bid from Blake Excavating to excavate and add rock to the bus barn area. Transportation Director Randy Nordheim noted that a house formerly stood on the proposed project area, and by leveling it out, his department could park more busses and cars in the south end. The Board approved the bid of $5,200 for the project.
The Board also approved a contract with Light Speed for five years for web filtering in the amount of $27,494.51. The district currently uses Light Speed.
Teacher John O’Neill gave a presentation on using Canvas as a Learning Management system. O’Neill noted that he has been using Moodle as a Learning Management system, but by trying Canvas, he has been able to do some things with more ease and the system has features that are at an advantage for him, his students and their parents to use. The district, which currently is using several Learning Management systems, depending on the instructor’s preference, would like to go to just one system, Canvas.
O’Neill demonstrated how assignments and quizzes could be presented to students and the way that communications could be set for students and their parents. If Iowa laws would change in the future, this is also possibly a way that students could still get school work assignments on snow days. The Board approved the proposal to use Canvas as a Learning Management system.
The Board also approved a change in high school attendance, unexcused absences and the detention policy for the second semester at the high school. The new policy will be designed to keep students in class and get them to school. It will also address detentions sooner, with students having to serve those within two days for one detention and within three days for two detentions. “We want to help students be more successful and get to those students quicker who have unexcused absences,” noted Dr. Hardy.
The Board also approved a college class study hall agreement for junior and senior students. Dr. Hardy noted that this privilege is already in place and he felt it helps students be more successful. Students must fill out a “College Class/Study Hall” form and maintain a “B” average, as well as observe the proper sign-in/sign-out procedures. The students also have to maintain good behavior and a consistent weekly schedule, with no unexcused absences or tardies, and parents may revoke the pass at any time. Mr. Hardy noted that there have been instances where the pass has been revoked to students, and it encourages the students to do whatever they need to in order to regain the pass.
The Board also approved the line item budget as a working document and approved the placement of a foreign exchange student from the country of Georgia. The final item before adjournment was to approve the first reading of a number of board policies.