The Northeast Nodaway school board voted to approve a baseball cooperative agreement with Worth County if the Worth County School Board decides to go forward with it. However, the Worth County School Board is still studying the proposal. The two schools already have a coop agreement for football. One of the problems that was discovered was that Northeast Nodaway would have to compete as a Class 2 school since the combined enrollment of the two schools is higher than the Class 2 threshold for baseball. However, Superintendent Dr. Jeff Mehlenbacher said Friday that competing at a Class 2 level would not be a problem for the school. The Class 2 designation would only be for baseball and would not be for other sports.
There has been a lot of interest at Worth County in competing in baseball either alone or with Northeast Nodaway. Before Thursday night's board meeting, 18 students signed a petition asking the school board to offer baseball. However, there are some other considerations that must be addressed on Worth County's end. Board member Jeff Andrews said that he feared that it would hurt the track program since track is held at the same time as baseball and that it would hurt the school financially. Currently, the school is in the process of figuring out how to finance redoing the track, which is in need of repair. A reserve fund set up to pay for track repairs is now at $30,000 down from $41,000 following repairs made to the track. Another consideration noted by Board Member Richard Mullock was that due to the fact that Worth County is a small school, such a move would require students to choose between track, baseball, and FFA spring contests. Another consideration noted by Superintendent Mike Rennells was Title IX; however, he said that he had checked and that the school would still be in compliance with Title IX requirements requiring equal opportunities and participation for both male and female athletes.
Since the next MSHSAA district cycle is not for another two years, Worth County could not compete in baseball until the 2014-2015 season even if they were to decide to compete on their own without a cooperative agreement. The board voted to table the matter until the next board meeting.
Superintendent Mike Rennells was awarded Superintendent of the Year for the Northwest Missouri area by the Missouri Association of School Administrators.
Luke Andrews and Dallas Monticue of the Worth County FCCLA did a presentation on the dangers of chewing tobacco. They passed around a mouth showing the long-term health effects of chewing. They said that Worth County was double the state average in chewing tobacco. In the worst case, chewing tobacco requires graphic surgery involving the jaws. The students sang a song that they composed about the dangers of chewing tobacco. Andrews wrote the music to the song while Monticue wrote the lyrics. They have been in the elementary presenting the dangers of chewing tobacco to third through sixth graders and also plan to present at an area FCCLA meeting.
Art teacher Selenia O'Connor gave a presentation to the board about her students' art work. They have been doing mosaics, ceiling tiles, paintings, paper maches, and a dollhouse. They plan to put on an art show at the school later in the year. Around 170 students have done art portfolios for the class. She said that the biggest challenge for her was to get her students to become creative in their artwork.
The school board plans to make decisions on summer school following a report from Albany regarding feasibility.
Assistant Principal Chuck Borey reported that he was impressed with the level of involvement in the elementary basketball teams, which have been performing well this year. The school has gotten a $500 grant for substitute teachers so that the Kindergarten through 3rd grade teachers can meet together and come up with common reading goals and learning centers for the elementary.
Principal Jon Adwell reported that only 23% of 7th through 12th grade students had a D or an F during the second quarter. That was down from 36% last year. The seniors (5%), 7th graders (12%), and 8th graders (8%) were very exceptional. There were 64 students that never had a D or an F last semester.
Superintendent Mike Rennells reported that he will meet with State Representative Mike Thomson on January 29th in Jefferson City. He reported that the school will hold an active shooter training for the school involving the Worth County Sheriff's Department, Worth County Emergency Management, and the Worth County Fire Department. There will be steps on how to clear the building as well as steps that teachers can take in the event of an active shooter in the building.
Rennells reported that he is in the process of working with neighboring school districts to come up with common professional development days.
On the budget, the school is taking in $220,000 more in revenues and spending $82,000 less than last year. He said that the goal was to bring up the school reserves higher and then concentrate on major projects that are needed at the facilities. He estimated that the Obamacare mandates would cost the school about $25,000 annually in order to come into compliance. Concerns are possible sequestration at the federal level, which would affect federal funding for the school. Assessed valuation has gone up the last few years, keeping the school in the black. However, if it goes down due to the drought and farmers selling off cattle or equipment, it could create financial pressure on the school district. Rennells said that several schools were looking at possible levy increases to offset federal budget cuts.
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