Bowling added to list of extracurricular activities
The total property tax levy rate for the Greene County Community School District will be a little less next year than this year.
Greene County Schools superintendent Brett Abbotts presented the proposed budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024, at the regular school board meeting March 8. The total levy will be $14.31 (per $1,000 of taxable valuation), compared to $14.42 in the current year.
The levy rate for the general fund will increase from $9.70 to $10.00. The increase is offset by decreases in the management fund and debt retirement fund.
Business manager Brenda Muir explained the decrease in the management fund levy – from $.90 to $.84 – is possible because the district is not pre-funding an early retirement incentive for employees retiring at the end of the 23-24 school year.
The decrease in the debt service levy aligns with the amortization schedule for the 2019 bond issue for the new high school and renovations at the former high school. The debt service levy was $2.70 for FY19 and has decreased steadily since then. The levy will be $2.10 for FY24, a decrease of 6 cents.
Abbotts provided comparisons to the overall levy rates in other Heart of Iowa Activities Conference schools. Greene County falls in the middle, with West Marshall having the lowest overall levy rate at $11.62, and Perry having the highest at $19.45. Excluding Perry, the highest levy rate is Nevada’s at $14.71. The conference average is $14.54, including Perry. Without Perry, the average levy is $13.72.
The board will hold a public hearing on the 2023-24 budget at the April 19 regular meeting.
The board also ratified the negotiated agreement with the Greene County Education Association. The total package provides an increase of 3.49 percent for certified staff. Base salary will increase from $33,350 to $33,888, with an increase in the teacher salary supplement from $6,000 to $6,200.
With the increase, the salary crosses the $40,000 mark for a first-year teacher starting his/her career in Greene County Schools.
Total cost to the district is an increase of $291,310.
The GCEA had initially requested a 6 percent increase in base pay. The district offered no increase in the base salary but bonuses to teachers who returned their signed contracts for 2023-24 promptly.
Both the board and GCEA president Sean Thompson characterized the negotiations as cordial. “We are very appreciative that they (board negotiators) listened to and considered our perspectives,” Thompson said.
The board approved adding bowling as an extracurricular activity starting next school year. Bowling is sanctioned by both the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union and the Iowa High School Athletic Association. It’s a winter sport for girls and boys teams, with the season culminating with state qualifying meets and team and individual state tournaments.
In a presentation to the board, activities director David Wright said that in a survey of students in grades 9-11, 31 students (12 girls, 19 boys) said they would participate if bowling were offered, and another 36 (15 girls, 21 boys) responded with “maybe.” Most of the “yes” answers came from students who are not already participating in a sport.
According to Wright, bowling would provide another opportunity, and statistics show that being involved in activities leads to better attendance, better grades, and fewer discipline problems. The introduction of E-sports a year ago proves the point in Greene County.
Greene County would be the only HOIAC school with a bowling team, but Wright said there are several school teams in greater Des Moines and Atlantic with bowling programs. He is confident a schedule could be developed with travel times no longer than about 1-1/2 hours. He also said there might be interest from nearby schools’ students participating with the Ram teams.
His proposal included two coaches at a cost of $7,202, team polos at a cost of $1,600, tournament entry fees of $400-$500, alley time at Spare Time Lanes at $1.50 per line, and transportation.
Wright is planning for varsity and junior varsity bowling teams for both boys and girls.
Daniel Cunningham addressed the board during the open forum. He has served as a substitute teacher this school year. He said his prior work has included training and experience with children with behavioral issues, and he has observed behavioral reformation programs of adolescents in a psychiatric care environment.
Studies show that negative behavior patterns are most easily corrected at early ages, he said. “Comparatively, learned negative behavior becomes rigid as the behaviors are conceded and codified,” he said. “After six months of occasional substitute teaching in the Greene County School District, I’ve come to the conclusion I no longer wish to continue…. My experience suggests a need for further investigation.”
He said that during his last assignment in a seventh grade classroom he counted disruptive behaviors, and that 62 percent of students displayed behaviors interrupting the classroom atmosphere of learning. “The 38 percent of seventh grade students, whom I admire and thank for their displays of good character, deserve a learning environment that enhances their abilities and interests,” Cunningham said.
The Greene County district, like most districts, is challenged to find enough substitute teachers. Associates who have substitute teaching credentials are sometimes moved from their regular duties to fill in as substitute teachers, or teachers are asked to give up their prep periods to cover an absent teacher’s class.
While approving the consent agenda, the board commended retiring employees Linda Henning, who is retiring after 18 years with the district, 13 of them as a pre-K teacher, and Shawn Zanders, who has been with the district for 10 years as middle school principal.
