Verndale School Board
Taking care of beginning of year business

by Marlo Benning
marlo@inhnews.com

The first meeting of the new year typically includes committee appointments, board meeting specifics and designating official depositories, newspaper and legal counsel among other annual business.
This year was no different as these agenda items were taken care of at the start of the meeting. Two changes to the board meeting schedule included that no meeting will be held in July and the December meeting will be held on the third Monday instead of the fourth Monday of that month.
Actions
• Approved hiring Joan Goeden as a long-term first grade substitute teacher. She will fill in for Gena Sperling while she fulfills a part-time literacy coordinator position.
• Accepted the resignation of Steve Techam as assistant wrestling coach. He has coached wrestling for the past 38 years.
• Approved a maternity leave request for Becky Ludovissie. She will continue with her coordinating duties from home.
• Approved a lane change for Katherine Ervasti who has been working towards her Master’s Degree.
• Received written requests for early retirements from Ardith Carr and Donna Waldahl.
• Approved to purchase the following custodial equipment: A new scrubber (with possibility of a trade-in for used one), $10,702, and a restroom cleaner and carpet tools, $1937.
Principal/Superintendent’s Reports
All teaching staff participated in a technology work session on January 20. The sessions were put on by the school staff who have implemented the technologies in their own classrooms. More staff training and meetings continued on January 23 to prepare for the second half of the year.
Students are required to pass GRAD testing to receive a diploma. As it stands now, when retested two more students passed the math assessment. There were six seniors who did not pass, but met the Diploma Requirement by retesting twice and passing the remediation course during the first semester. There were three who passed the reading portion retest. Additional retesting will be done in March, May and July.
A drop was noted in uncompleted assignments with the Guided Study Hall tracking, comparing the November 2 total of 586 to the January 18 total of 425. Of those 425 assignments, 276 of them were divided among eight students.
Principal Riitters will meet with the eight students with the bulk of the unfinished assignments to help keep them on track in the upcoming months.
Students are no longer able to wear the I “heart” Boobies and Balls bracelets at the school. They will be asked to remove them if they enter the building wearing them.
In Principal Riitters report, he noted, “As a K-12 school, we have a very wide range of what is deemed appropriate and does not cause a significant disruption to the learning environment”.
A plan for notification of the school’s bullying and hazing policies was given to the board.
Superintendent Brownlow’s report noted that the district is emphasizing that respect be expected at all times by students, staff, parents and the community.
An enrollment update showed numbers up from September, 480, to January, 485 students.
Upcoming dates of importance included parent-teacher conferences and Family Fun Night, February 16; President’s Day break/no school, February 17-20; school board meeting, February 27.

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