The Worth County School Board at their regular school board meeting Thursday voted to renew the contracts of their principals, Chuck Borey and Jon Adwell.
The school is accepting bids for mowing services for the next three years.
The board approved the school calendar for the 2022-2023 school year. School will start on August 23rd for 2022 and end on May 16th.
The board reviewed the district programs on governance and professional development. The board was presented with a document that has outlined the district’s professional development initiatives over the last 10 years. These initiatives are highlighted by the work to develop assessment capable learners with a focus on students taking ownership of their learning.
Elementary Principal Chuck Borey discussed the Heart Hero challenge that the elementary students are participating in. He also showed some of the activities from Random Act of Kindness Week and talked about a Parent Cafe program on March 3rd that is designed to share positive parenting techniques and strategies to promote childrens’ brain development. High School Principal Jon Adwell shared with the board about three students being inducted into the National Technical Honor Society.
Superintendent Chris Healy gave an update on bond issue information. Two information sessions have been planned to help inform the voters on the bond issue. A town hall will be held in Sheridan on March 8th at the Community Center at 6 pm and on March 15th at the Grant City Senior Center at 6 pm.
The next Board of Education Meeting will be on March 17th at 7:30 pm.
More information was released about Proposition Tigers, the bond issue that is being put on the April ballot this year. Passage requires a four sevenths majority. It would increase the school levy by 25 cents per $100 in assessed valuation, or an average of $15 per year to the average Worth County taxpayer’s personal and property tax. Worth County would remain the lowest taxed school in the area with a rate of $4.02 per $100 assessed valuation should the measure be approved.
Schools have a variety of funds that are designated to be spent for specific purposes. The district has funds that are allocated for the general operating budget and those that are allocated for capital improvements. Bond funds like the measure being proposed are not part of the operating budget and cannot be spent on any initiative or program that is not identified in the bond proposition.
The school is in a unique situation because it is slated to receive a final round of COVID funds that are expected to be around $620,000. These are funds that are available to the district and put it in a position that it will never be again.
There are some financial pressures affecting the school district. Currently, the district has one elementary teacher for each grade level and the high school staff is operating with minimum teacher staffing.
The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has prioritized increasing teacher salaries, which will have a financial impact on school districts. Governor Mike Parson has proposed raising teacher salaries from a minimum of $33,000 to $38,000 a year.
If passed, the school will renovate the agriculture center, build a new gym and community fitness center, make improvements to the elementary, high school, and transportation facilities, purchase two new buses, make parking lot improvements, and improve kitchen equipment and space. The school would be able to raise teacher salaries to a more competitive level and improve technology and classroom resources.
The school says that if the proposition fails, the district will reevaluate its goals and priorities, but that few renovations will be possible. The federal funds will be needed to be used for the care and upkeep of the facility. Figures released by the school project that the reserve to operating budget ratio will be under 20% by the 2026-2027 school year.
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