CONRAD- The BCLUW school board voted 6-0 to repeal its mask mandate for students and staff and return to “highly recommended” by April 9 during Monday night’s regular meeting, citing an overall decrease in COVID-19 positivity rates and contradictory guidance between state and federal agencies.
“What we’re doing is checking boxes by wearing a mask,” board member LJ Kopsa said. “To me that doesn’t say science, it just says paperwork.”
In reviewing the mandate with school nurse Gayle Barkema, school board members said that they felt “backed into a corner” due to the rules easing the quarantine restrictions if individuals are wearing masks. Before making his motion to lift the mandate by April 9, board member Brian Feldpausch said he had heard feedback that parents and students would like to see it lifted by then because prom is scheduled for Saturday, April 10.
The motion carried 6-0, as board member Adam Probasco did not arrive at the meeting until after the vote was taken.
Later in the meeting, the board approved several equipment purchases and upgrade/repair quotes, including a new International Hoglund 265 horsepower PSI 8.8 Liter V8 engine bus at a cost of $101,399 with plans to take sealed bids for a 2000 Thomas Built Bus rather than trading it in; a bleacher quote from H2I Group of Cedar Falls at a cost of $71,771; an epoxy flooring quote from Accents in Concrete at a cost of $33,439 for all three buildings; a window quote from Iowa Falls Glass at $13,678; an installation of a new unit ventilator and condenser at the middle school from Kapaun and Brown at a cost of $15,300; the purchase of 80 Chromebooks at the Middle School at a total cost of $23,327.20; and insurance against equipment breakdown from Jester Insurance at a cost of $93,457. At a work session held on Wednesday evening, the board voted unanimously to purchase a total of $97,828 in weight equipment for the Jill Fiscus Center and sell or trade in the old equipment at an estimated cost of $13,075.
In personnel news, the board accepted the resignation of Dustin Grothoff as a teacher and coach after seven years with the district and offered a contract to Payton Shaw as the middle school art teacher for the 2021-2022 school year. Grothoff’s resignation led to a separate discussion on hiring a new driver’s education, as Grothoff had been teaching it in previous years. Ultimately, the board accepted a proposal from Tim Hungerford and Drive Right, LLC, at a cost of $295 per student to take over instruction.
After discussing the future of the conference situation during last Wednesday’s work session, Superintendent Ben Petty said he had reached out to administrators from the Iowa Star Conference to see if there was interest in BCLUW potentially joining.
IN OTHER BUSINESS, the board:
· Approved the 2021-2022 school calendar.
· Approved the tentative budget and set the budget hearing for Monday, April 12, at 7:15 a.m.
· Approved the 2021-2022 school fees and the budget guarantee resolution.
· Approved the review of several school policies.
