The Greene County Schools board of education at its June 16 meeting set a pair of public hearings for the July 21 regular meeting.
One of the public hearings is the first step in selling property needed for construction of a new Greene County Early Learning Center near its current location in the former south grade school. The wood frame building will be situated to the north of the current building, facing Vine St.
The initial proposal for a new center called for a larger building that would have required some of the space on which the current building stands. The new, downsized proposal allows the new building to be completed while the current building remains in use.
The school district plans to sell a parcel large enough for construction needs to the Early Learning Center for $1.
Decisions about the eventual disposal of the former south grade building and sale of that property have not been made.
The other public hearing is on the district’s use of $780,000 it will receive from the federal Elementary and Secondary Emergency Relief (ESSER) Covid-19 relief funds. The list includes replacing the HVAC systems in the middle school locker rooms; replacing the heat pump in the elementary gymnasium, in classrooms, and three heat pumps in elementary hallways; and updating the HVAC system near the main entrance to the middle school and in the middle school auditorium; and updating controls in the HVAC systems being replaced. Educational uses include updating student and teacher Chromebooks, adding Clevertouch screens in middle school and elementary classrooms, and updating sound systems in those classrooms, and more.
The board approved fees for 2021-22. Book fees and meal prices will not be changed. Book fees remain at $30 for kindergarten students, $40 for grades 1-3, and $45 for grades 4-12. Breakfast and lunch will remain free for all students with federal funding. Students will be charged for ala carte items and second portions.
The board accepted a recommendation from activities director Todd Gordon to eliminate family activity passes for 2021-22. Season passes for adults will be $100 each, with student passes $50 and senior (ages 55 and older) $25. Paton-Churdan fans can purchase passes at half-price; those passes will be honored only for activities the two districts share.
Individual ticket prices for adults and students (K-12) will be $5 for high school events. Students can attend middle school events at no charge; adults will pay $5.
Gordon reported there are 62 home events scheduled in the coming year.
The board approved adjustments to the district’s extra-curricular pay schedule. The board’s negotiating committee met with the Greene County Education Association’s negotiating team at the suggestion of superintendent Tim Christensen. The board had earlier approved adding E-Sports as a competitive activity, and Christensen asked that the new Ram Fanatic club advisor role be looked at for supplemental pay. (Students in Ram Fanatic manage the high school’s digital media.)
The committee recommended and the board approved deleting positions for drill team, Summer Safari, adult education director and vocational education director. The first two are no longer offered, and the adult and vocational education directors’ tasks have been shifted to the district business office.
E-Sports coaching will be added as a paid position similar to other coaches, and the teacher advisor of Ram Fanatics will be compensated at a per diem rate for 10 extra days per year.
The explosion at Landus Cooperative last month prompted the board to replace the analog bus transportation communication system with a digital system. The repeater for the outdated analog system was on the top of the damaged grain storage silo and was taken out by the blast. The board approved the purchase of a digital system from Motorola Solutions and Unplugged wireless at a cost of $52,817. The purchase is coming from the physical plant and equipment levy (PPEL) funds.
Other board actions included approving change orders at the middle school renovation and high school totaling $27,145; approval of a Return to Work program for employees with work compensation injuries who are unable to perform their regular duties; approving the second reading of a revised drug and alcohol testing program; and approving the first reading of new policy dealing with vendors and contractors and a new policy dealing with federal funds in procurement contracts.
