Board Approves Transitional Kindergarten Class
The Mt. Pulaski CUSD 23 Board of Education called their regular meeting to order on
May 20, 2024 at 6:00 PM in the MPGS Learning Center, all school board members were in attendance.
The Board entered Executive Session to discuss the employment and evaluation of staff, compensation of staff and purchase of property. The Board returned to open session at 6:56 PM. The Board returned to Executive Session at the end of the general meeting to finish discussion items.
There were no visitors requesting to speak during the Recognition of Public.
The first action item was the approval of the Consent Agenda, which included minutes of the regular April 15th meeting, bills and sales tax revenues. This month's consent agenda also included the renewal of IESA and IHSA memberships for FY2025. The Board approved the Consent Agenda 7-0.
Under Reports, Superintendent Lamkey reported that sales tax revenues remained under $30,000 which was low for this time of year. Work on the high school multipurpose gym floor repair was completed and use of the gym can resume after Memorial Day. Mr. Schoth put together a bid for Sangamon Valley to transport students this summer while they are awaiting buses. A Mt. Pulaski bus driver will transport Sangamon Valley students to Decatur over the course of 18 days this summer. Mr. Lamkey also reported that three board members and Mr. Spang would be attending this week's IASB Region meeting in Sherman. Mr. Cowan, Mr. Wilham and Mr. Brown had registered to attend while Mrs. Mott and Mr. Olson are also considering participation.
Soon to be seated Superintendent, Jason Spang, reported about a new program called Safe ID. This program, being created by the state, requires vendors to participate in and register employees to vet and update employee records to determine their eligibility to work in schools. Contractors would have a badge that identifies that they can safely be on a school campus. The program would be at no cost to schools and would improve the vetting process. Next, Mr. Spang offered the Board dates for a future IASB training, but was unable to secure a good day. He will look to expand training options to later in the summer.
In Unfinished Business, the Board approved a contract with Bushue to offer human resource services to Mr. Spang and the district office. This collaboration will benefit Mr. Spang as he enters his first year of the superintendency. In addition it offers resources for staff training, legal advice and employee related support. The Board approved the contract 7-0.
Next, Ashley Burgard addressed the Board on the needs and merits of starting a Transitional Kindergarten program for next year. The program is designed to support students who are aged 4-5 who are not yet ready for kindergarten, but are ready to go on from early childhood classes. Oftentimes there are school age children who are not quite emotionally ready or have not developed the skills necessary to start kindergarten. At the same time, there are older early childhood students who are not of school age, but are ready for additional challenges. The Transitional Kindergarten class fills both needs. The Board asked a series of questions before offering their support to start the program. Mrs. Burgard expects there to be 12 students in the class, which will open up extra spots in early childhood classes for families who would otherwise be on the waiting list. Principal Lora will look to fill the position at the June board meeting.
Veterans Park was the next topic of discussion as the Board reviewed options of improving and adding resources to the newly acquired land. The early focus will be on building an all-weather track to replace the current cinder track that exists on the site. Cost of a new track and adjacent facilities is expected to cost close to $2 million.
In New Business, the Board voted 7-0 to approve Mr. Watterkotte’s FCCLA trip to Seattle while also approving professional development for district staff to attend the Fusion Conference to receive training on achievement testing.
The Board approved OPAA! as the food provider for the district for the upcoming school year with a 4-3 vote. The Board has some concerns over student preference for foods and the quantity of food that students receive. It was explained that any food provider must work within the federal & state guidelines when preparing meals for students. There are regulations on portion size and ingredients in food preparation. OPAA! has been providing meals for Mt. Pulaski Schools for the last three years.
The Policy Committee conducted the second reading of the proposed policy. This most recent policy update was pretty simple with very few changes. Mr. Wilham and Brown explained the only question posed to the district was the option to list specific training in the policy manual. The Policy Committee recommended going with the default option which would omit the extra language. The policy update was adopted in the next item of business, 7-0.
Each year the Board must set their meeting calendar for the following year. Traditionally, the Board meets on the third Monday of the month, but this creates a conflict for four separate dates on next year's calendar. The Board voted 7-0 to move meetings to the third Wednesday to avoid these conflicts. In addition, the Board will hold one meeting, March 12, 2025 at the high school.
Mr. Kavelman, the district activities director, presented changes to the District Sports Handbook that focused on fan behavior at events. Any individual who inappropriately communicates with school officials or acts in a derogatory manner toward coaches, players or the team will be subjected to a progression of disciplinary action that starts with a 5 game suspension and finishes with a lifetime ban. This new language is as result of experiences the district has had with inappropriate fan behavior following athletic events. The Board approved the changes 7-0.
In recent years, the school district has worked to upgrade offices and classrooms across the district, but the one office that has not had improvements is the district office. The Board voted 7-0 to upgrade the office and office setting.
Fitzpatrick Construction was the beneficiary of two 7-0 votes to approve bids to improve storage at the grade school. The first project will be to create climate controlled storage in the garage off the back of the grade school. This will improve district storage and allow items to be stored without concern of damage due to the elements. The second project is to redesign unused shower spaces in the locker rooms to better use the space for storage. Both projects are expected to be completed this summer.
The last item of New Business was a discussion about the Capital Project for FY2025. After completing renovations at the high school this summer, the Board's next project will be to build a track and adjacent storage/restroom facilities at Veterans Park. The costs are expected to be near $2 million. This project is expected to be completed prior to the start of school in August of 2025. The Board noted that the planning for the renovation and construction additions at the middle school were in the works, but a project of this complexity would take several years to come together. The Board will work this next school year to devise plans to pay for the elementary project without raising local taxes. Mr. Spang will explore funding options for the Board this fall. The Capital Projects Plan will be presented to the Board at the June meeting for final approval.
Personnel Report was approved 7-0 containing 6 hires and 4 resignations:
Hires
Brooke Charron as MPHS Golf Coach
Jan Bowers as MPHS Assistant Golf Coach
Tim Guy as MPGS Baseball Coach
Lyndon Jason as MPGS Boys Basketball Coach
Summer Eskew as Summer Worker
Hayden Morris as Summer Worker
Resignations
Mark Graue as MPHS Paraprofessional
Robert Meyerriecks as MPHS Paraprofessional
Regan Kirk as MPGS Paraprofessional
Mackenzy Payne as Junior High Softball Assistant Coach
Items of Information
Athletics - Mr. Kavelman
MPGS
Track finished their season. Although no athlete made it to state, many achieved PRs in their final events.
MPHS
Piper Tyson - Track State Meet this past Saturday - Placed 8th in discus with a PR of 34.79m.
Baseball - Regional Championship this past Saturday - Won 3-1.
Play this Wednesday in Arcola vs Armstrong @ 4:00.
TCSVMP Softball - Regional Championship this past Saturday - Fell to Quincy Notre Dame 3-1
The State Skeet Tournament is May 31st in Decatur. Officer Pharis invited all of you to attend!
As the athletic year nears the finish line, Mr. Kavelman shared how impressive it has been to watch these student-athletes in their respective sports as well as in the classroom. The hard work and dedication they have put into this year is nothing short of amazing and a direct reflection of the coaches, family members, and teachers that have provided them with a great environment to grow and improve. He has no doubt that the foundation of success is being established on a daily basis and that Mt. Pulaski’s student-athletes will continue to accomplish great things.
High School - Mrs. Fricke
Senior of the Month for May was Isabella Hunt.
Senior of the Year was Colt Selinger
The Senior class took in over $400,000 in scholarships and their recognition night was well attended by the community.
We celebrated 35 students at graduation yesterday.
We inducted 7 sophomores in the National Honor Society.
The freshmen won the community service contest and were rewarded with an ice cream party. This year, MPHS students recorded over 1500 hours of community service! The seniors served an average of 2.3 hours per student; the sophomores served an average of 9.21 hours per person; the juniors brought in 9.54 hours per student; the freshmen volunteered an average of 13.4 hours per person!
NHS will be offering content area tutoring sessions every day during study hall this week for any student interested in help studying for semester assessments.
Thursday, May 23, will be odd period finals.
Friday, May 24, will be even period finals, locker clean-out, & chromebook/hotspot collection day. It’s also a 2:02 p.m. dismissal day.
Grade School - Mrs. Lora
38 students went through promotion
Teacher appreciation week was awesome! (special thanks to the district, school board, Deron Powell, Longview Bank, PASE, and Community Association).
May 24 Field Day (PASE donated for students to have ice cream)
The meeting adjourned at 10:44 PM. The next regular meeting will be held at 6:00 PM on June 17, 2024 in the MPGS Learning Center.