By DEB BENTLY
Staff Writer
With a snowstorm brewing and all (other) NRHEG evening events postponed, the Feb. 21 school board meeting soldiered on, even though one school board member and three scheduled presenters were unable to attend.
Official business transacted was light, but included authorizing the superintendent to advertise for a “transportation site manager,” that is, for someone to supervise and manage buses, the bus garages, and related matters. Until now, any leadership in the transportation site has been site specific, rather than covering the full transportation program.
Also enacted was a “Resolution for reduction of programs and positions,” an authorization allowing the school administration to reduce staff, if necessary , based on anticipated enrollment and student needs for the 2023-24 school year.
The board learned that long-time teacher and coach Wendy Schultz will be retiring from her position with the school’s softball team at the end of this spring’s season.
Well over $3,000 worth of donations to school programs were acknowledged; $700 of that amount were given to support the high school DECA program and its initiatives; well over $2,000 was given by area companies and individuals to help fund the cheerleading team’s trip to national competition.
Among the reports and discussions shared during the meeting was one regarding current initiatives in the state legislature regarding school funding. Being considered at this time are more than a $1,000 per-pupil increase in funding from the state, but district business manager Karla Christopherson warned that the extra money would come with strings attached: “There are a lot of expectations and increases that would be imposed as well,” she said.
Christopherson and others observed that many possibilities are under discussion, but there is no way to know which ones will eventually be approved, and so, for the time being, vigilance and communication with legislators are the only “actions” to be taken.
Secondary school principal Dave Bunn mentioned two resources currently under consideration for use at the secondary site. One, an on-line information-sharing platform called “Major Clarity” will allow the district to follow through with some state-required student services in the field of “career and collge readiness.” The program offers surveys to help students evaluate the possible career fields which align with their personal strengths and interests, and also can provide career overviews and summaries, including required levels of post-secondary education and potential income levels. Superintendent Meihak referred to Major Clarity as “a pretty ipressive platform that can and will be used in classrooms,” probably beginning at the sixth-grade level.
Another on-line platform, titled “Modern Classroom” is being considered for use in training secondary teachers in a style of teaching often referred to as a “flipped” classroom. This teaching style has the teacher preparing online resources, videos, which present the “lecture” or “teaching” portion of instruction. Students then watch the video as individuals, quite possibly at home in the evening. If they choose, they may watch the video more than once, or may repeat a certain portion of it as often as necessary to firm up their understanding of the material.
While in class, students work on the “performance” part of learning while they have access to the teacher for explanations or enrichment.
The advantage to the “flipped” classroom structure is that students can work at their own pace, and can be grouped during class time for more intense, targeted instruction when useful. Thanks to the widespread access students have to the internet, “flipped” teaching is a growing phenomenon.
NRHEG teachers will see a demonstration of the “Modern Classroom” program during an upcoming staff in-service and will have a chance to indicate their level of interest in taking part.
Elementary principal Craig Kopetzki shared with the board that, thanks to a grant from a statewide health improvement program, the elementary site now owns 50 pairs of snowshoes. Students had recently taken part in an array of games and activities built on this new acquisition.
He notified board members that the March 3 “Green Eggs and Ham” breakfast is back–and that all available tickets, around 800 of them, had already been spoken for.
Also part of Friday’s “I love to read” celebration will be readers’ theater performances for all elementary students of “Horton Hears and Who” and “Yertle the Turtle.” A group of volunteer high school readers will also be at the elementary site for much of the day.
Kopetzi also mentioned the Feb. 10 celebration of having completed 100 days of school, for which many staff members wore special outfits. A standout was Brenda Dobberstein, who dressed as a 100-year-old.
As the school board meeting was completing its business at about 7:30 p.m., superintendent Meihak mentioned that all surrounding school districts had announced they would be closing for the following two days; he told members he would be following the needed steps to make the same arrangements for NRHEG within the next few minutes. The next school board meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 20, at the Ellendale media center.