MORMON TRAIL COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

REGULAR MEETING

January 12, 2015

Board Minutes

President Lundahl called the regular meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. in the Humeston Elementary Library. Board members Peasley, Funk, Smiarowski, Evans and Lundahl were present. Also in attendance were Superintendent Miller, Principals Hunt and Snyder, and Secretary Rash.

Smiarowski made a motion to approve the consent agenda which included agenda approval, approval of the amended November minutes and approval of the December minutes. An open enrollment request out was also approved. Peasley seconded the motion to approve the consent agenda with all voting in favor.

Peasley made a motion to approve the month’s bills of accounting for payment. The motion was seconded by Funk with all voting aye.

Mark Smiarowski was approved as a volunteer to coordinate a new speed/agility program within the District. Smiarowski earned his coaching certificate last year. Evans made the motion to approve with Funk making the second. All voted aye with Smiarowski abstaining.

With no public comments concerning the DDSDP (District Developed Service Delivery Plan) for Special Education, Evans made a motion to approve the plan as written. Peasley seconded the motion with all voting aye.

The Board discussed the start date for the 2015-16 school calendar. Funk made the motion to apply for an early start waiver. Smiarowski made the second with all voting aye.

Funk made a motion to offer an early retirement package to those who qualify and would like to apply. Smiarowski seconded the motion. All voted aye. Secretary Rash will draw up the paperwork for approval at the next Board meeting.

Elementary Principal and Athletic Director, Snyder reported that the school has received and installed name/conference standing boards donated by the Booster Club. Together with other improvements to the Humeston gym this year and the American Flag donated by the South Central Iowa Community Foundation, he is hearing favorable comments on the gymnasium, both from the community and those visiting the school.

Secondary Principal Hunt reported we are now in the second semester of the school year. The high school will begin MAP testing the end of January. Renovations are progressing nicely at the Garden Grove facility. The new entrance is coming along as are the improvements being made to the Shop area. Hunt invited anyone who is interested to stop in and see the progress being made.

Alan Miller, District Superintendent, reported that Prom would be held at the Garden Grove School this spring with After Prom events taking place at the Elementary Building. Prom will be held on Saturday, April 25^th. He also reported that Amy Horton had asked to hold an auction and soup supper during a couple of basketball games for upcoming Senior events. Miller discussed the future of ICN classrooms saying they would eventually be closing and replaced with higher speed internet options. Also, the new walk-in freezer unit was installed over Winter break.

Funk made the motion to adjourn with Smiarowski seconding the motion. All voted aye and President Lundahl adjourned the meeting at 8:45pm.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Mormon Trail Board of Directors will be held February 9th @ 7:30 pm in the Elementary Library.

____________________________                    ___________________________

President, Board of Education                                       Secretary, Board of Education

_________

Date

These minutes are written as recorded by the board secretary and subject to approval at the next regular board meeting.   Peggy Rash, Board Secretary/Treasurer

MORMON TRAIL COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

REGULAR MEETING

December 8, 2014

Board Minutes

President Lundahl called the regular meeting to order at 7:38 p.m. in the Humeston Elementary Library. Board members Peasley, Funk, Smiarowski, Evans and Lundahl were present. Also in attendance were Superintendent Miller and Secretary Rash. Linda Grismore was also present. President Lundahl asked Secretary Rash to amend the November Board minutes to include the Superintendent’s goals. Superintendent goals were reviewed/approved at the November Board meeting. Superintendent Miller has chosen the following goals to focus on in FY2014-15

1. To improve Academic Achievement
2. To satisfactorily complete Affirmative Action Plan

Smiarowski made a motion to approve the agenda. Peasley seconded the motion with all voting aye. Minutes of the November meeting were not approved pending the addition of Superintendent Goals. Smiarowski made a motion to approve the bills of accounting for November. Funk made the second. All voted aye. The Board reviewed estimates received from McGee Concrete for concrete work at both the Humeston and Garden Grove Schools. Smiarowski made a motion for McGee Concrete to begin work as soon as possible on these projects. Evans seconded the motion with all voting aye. The Board voted unanimously to approve the low bid submitted by Agriland FS for Gasohol @ $2.025/gal. The motion to approve was made by Evans. Smiarowski seconded the motion. Diesel bids of $2.375/gal (#2) and $2.675/gal (#1) submitted by Agriland FS were accepted with Evans making the motion to approve. Peasley made the second with all voting in favor. Smiarowski made a motion to approve the SBRC (School Board Review Committee) Application for Open Enrollment Out of the district. The amount applied for is $62,434. Funk seconded. The motion carried with all voting aye. Alan Miller, District Superintendent, reported on the progress of several ongoing projects in the District. The Flag donated by The South Central Iowa Community Foundation has been installed in the Humeston Gymnasium. Miller also reported that work on the walk-in freezer is scheduled to begin during Christmas break. Smiarowski made the motion to adjourn with Peasley seconding the motion. All voted aye and President Lundahl adjourned the meeting at 8:15pm. The next meeting of the Mormon Trail Board of Directors will be held January 12^th @ 7:30 pm in the Elementary Library.

____________________________                    ___________________________

President, Board of Education                                       Secretary, Board of Education

_________

Date

These minutes are written as recorded by the board secretary and subject to approval at the next regular board meeting.   Peggy Rash, Board Secretary/Treasurer

MORMON TRAIL COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

REGULAR MEETING

November 10, 2014

Board Minutes

President Lundahl called the regular meeting to order at 7:31 p.m. in the Humeston Elementary Library. Board members Peasley, Funk, Smiarowski, Evans and Lundahl were present. Also in attendance were Superintendent Miller, Principals Hunt and Snyder and Secretary Rash. Linda Grismore, Stephanie Mendenhall, Kevin Rhine/Durham School Services and Shirley Flowers were guests. Flowers was present to express her concern about not having any bus stops in Garden Grove other than at the High School. Durham representative, Rhine said that due to problems at the pick-up location, the bus company will transport students to and from the High School only. While no formal action is required, the Board will back Durham’s decision. President Lundahl welcomed Stephanie Mendenhall, CPA. Mendenhall was present to go through the FY2013-14 audit report and to answer any questions the Board may have. Evans moved to approve the consent agenda which included approval of the agenda, approval of the previous meeting’s minutes, as well as, moving forward with making the front entrance at the Garden Grove facility handicap accessible. The second came from Peasley. All voted aye. Peasley moved to approve the FY2013-14 audit report. Smiarowski made the second with all voting aye. Evans made a motion to approve the bills of accounting for November. Funk made the second. All voted aye. Superintendent goals for 2014-15 were discussed. A motion to approve was made by Funk with Peasley making the second. All voted aye. The Board reviewed bids received for a new walk-in freezer for the Humeston location. After discussion, Funk moved to approve the bid submitted by Hockenbergs-Des Moines. Peasley seconded the motion with everyone voting aye. 5 bids were submitted in total. The Board voted unanimously to approve the purchase of an 8-passenger handicap accessible van. The motion to approve was made by Funk. Peasley seconded the motion. The van will be purchased from Suburban Chevrolet, Owasso, OK. After reviewing a bid submitted by Josh Bear/Kar Knuts for snow removal, Evans made a motion to accept the bid. Funk seconded the motion with all voting aye. Peasley made a motion to approve the Corrective Action Plan required by the School Board Review Committee. A Plan is required when the Certified Annual Report is not filed by the September 15^th deadline. Evans seconded the motion with all voting aye. The review and approval of a new Mission Statement for the District was tabled. The Board was supportive of Superintendent, Miller and School Business Official, Rash looking into replacing the accounting software currently being used by the District. Administrative reports were given by Steve Hunt, Secondary Principal; Mike Snyder, Elementary Principal and Alan Miller, District Superintendent. Funk made the motion to adjourn with Smiarowski seconding the motion. All voted aye and President Lundahl adjourned the meeting at 9:20pm. The next meeting of the Mormon Trail Board of Directors will be held December 8^th @ 7:30 pm in the Elementary Library.

____________________________                    ___________________________

President, Board of Education                                       Secretary, Board of Education

_________

Date

MORMON TRAIL COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

REGULAR MEETING

October 13, 2014

Board Minutes

President Lundahl called the regular meeting to order at 7:33 p.m. in the Humeston Elementary Library. Board members Peasley, Funk, Smiarowski, Evans and Lundahl were present. Also in attendance were Superintendent Miller, Principals Hunt and Snyder, Secretary Rash, and Linda Grismore. Julie Thompson/Durham School Services and Shirley Flowers were guests. President Lundahl welcomed Julie Thompson who spoke briefly about the bus service Durham provides to Mormon Trail CSD. Shirley Flowers arrived at 7:38 pm and expressed her concerns about not having any bus stops in the town of Garden Grove other than at the High School. The board agreed to put Flowers on the agenda for the November meeting. Smiarowski moved to approve the agenda. The second came from Peasley. All voted aye. Smiarowski moved to approve the consent agenda which included approval of the previous meeting’s minutes and one open enrollment request which met all required guidelines. Evans made the second with all voting aye. Smiarowski made a motion to approve the bills of accounting for October. Funk made the second. All voted aye. 2014-15 Goals were discussed. A motion to approve was made by Funk with Smiarowski making the second. All voted aye. It was thought that the district’s mission statement needs to be reviewed as well. It will be put on the Action agenda for the November meeting. The Board appointed Jan Lundahl to be the delegate representing Mormon Trail for IASB Legislation. The Board agreed unanimously with the policy as written. Evans moved to approve the Wellness Policy Code No. 507.9 as amended. Evans also made a motion to waive the second reading. Funk seconded both motions. All voted aye. Smiarowski volunteered to serve on the Wellness Committee. There was discussion concerning the installation and connection of Fibre Optics in both the Humeston and Garden Grove buildings but action to proceed was tabled until a later date. Evans made a motion to check into eligibility and apply to the SBRC for both Modified Allowable Growth and Supplemental Aid. The District’s Special Ed Program had a $39,255.64 deficit for the year ending 6/30/2014. Smiarowski seconded the motion with all voting in favor. The review and approval of bids to replace the walk-in freezer in Humeston was tabled until more information could be obtained on the cement work and to allow more time for bids to be received. Administrative reports were given by Steve Hunt, Secondary Principal, Mike Snyder, Elementary Principal and Alan Miller, District Superintendent. Hunt reported a good year so far. Homecoming was successful. Snyder also commented that he thought the Elementary students were having a good year as well. Discipline in school, as well as, on buses is down. Both Hunt and Snyder agreed school spirit is high with both Girls Volleyball and Boys Football being supported by the community and the student body. The Ag students attended district soil judging competition in Knoxville and came home with a 2^nd place finish. They also placed 2^nd in livestock judging in Osceola recently. For a listing of all conference activities, you may log into www.bluegrassconference.org and keep up with everything going on in the conference. Superintendent Miller reported there are many projects that continue to be a work in progress throughout the District. He noted the Garden Grove lunchroom and shop project still needed to work a couple of issues out concerning water runoff and we need to look at adding some rock at some point to the parking lot in Garden Grove, as well as, around the football field in Humeston. Miller expressed his excitement for the students participating in the music and band programs, reporting that the High School choir will be singing the National Anthem for the Iowa Wild Hockey Team Sunday, November 23^rd, 7 pm at Wells Fargo Arena. Tickets for students, family, and friends are offered at a discounted price. The Humeston property purchase is progressing, although not as fast as hoped. Miller also commented that the budget needs to be carefully watched as spending was up in 2013-14. Smiarowski made the motion to adjourn with Funk seconding. All voted aye and President Lundahl adjourned the meeting at 9:23pm. The next meeting of the Mormon Trail Board of Directors will be held November 10^th @ 7:30 pm in the Elementary Library

____________________________                    ___________________________

President, Board of Education                                       Secretary, Board of Education

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Date