The Eagle Grove school board held their regular meeting Monday night at 6:00 PM in the Emerson Building with all members present except Dr. Aaron Parrot, who could not attend. As usual, the meeting started with celebrations, showcasing notable events to have taken place recently in each of the three schools.
Elementary School Principal Jared Carder got things underway talking about several end of the year activities, including the first grade Hollywood party, Track and Field day, English Language Learners (ELL) graduates, the fourth grade field trip to Lake Cornelia, preschool graduation, and State Special Olympics. Carder noted that Track & Field day was done on the same day for all grades for the first time, which worked out well, and took advantage of the nice weather. He also noted that the number of students graduating out of ELL this year was greater than usual.
Middle School Principal Josh Schild celebrated the winners of the Robert Blue Middle School Aaron Eilerts and Eagle Spirit awards, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) rewards trips, fifth grade Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) graduation, sixth grade careers on wheels at the Iowa Central Career Academy, eighth grade showcase, and the end of the year assembly.
"At the High School, we don't have field trips at the end of the year, we have finals – which are way less fun," joked High School Principal Heidi Vasquez. She then shared the year ending Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) results, which showed no statistical improvement in proficiency for students in grades nine through eleven in English Language, a one percent improvement in math proficiency compared to the prior year, and a three percent decline in science proficiency compared to 2022. Despite the unimpressive overall ISASP results, when drilling down to the percentage of students who showed personal growth, a majority of students were showing growth, Vasquez said.
From there the board got down to business. After approving the Graduation list with the caveat that minor adjustments might be necessary, the board moved on to matters of dollars and cents.
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Bread and milk bids were considered, with Anderson Erickson Dairy and the Bimble Bakery company being chosen as suppliers.
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Three purchases over $25,000 were approved. The purchase of new Chromebooks, resetting the WiFi district wide, and firewall support. Chromebooks, it was noted, are turned over every three years, and both the WiFi reset and Firewall Support services would qualify for an approximately 80% federal refund due to the district's free and reduced price lunch enrollment levels.
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A resolution was passed to transfer funds from the Activity Fund to the General Fund.
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Substitute teacher rates were held at $150 per day, while substitute nurse rates were increased from $120 per day, to $150 per day. It was noted that $150 is competitive enough, even though Clarion pays $5 per day more for substitute teachers, and $150 for substitute nurses is more reasonable due to the liabilities involved in dispensing medications.
Additionally, a special meeting was set for discussion of year end business, to take place in the Emerson Building in the usual meeting room, at noon on Thursday, June 29th.
Other discussions included:
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The November Election and potential levy rates.
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A reminder that the July meeting had been moved from Monday the 10th of July to Thursday the 13th, at the usual time and place.
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Board Member Darren Robinson announced that his term as President of the Sports Boosters had ended.
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A discussion of the approach to next year's soccer season, with all parties agreeing that taking the same successful approach as this year would likely be ideal
