Superintendent Tim Truebenbach said that he received several complaints from parents that their students were not arriving at school early enough for the students to eat breakfast or stop at their lockers. Many times, the bus arrives right before class begins and students need to go directly to their classrooms. The solution the staff found was to change the middle school and high school start time by 10 minutes, starting at 8:30 rather than 8:20. Students will also be sent home 10 minutes later than before. Bus times will not change. Truebenbach said this plan would also work for the winter, when icy roads slow down the busses. The new start times went into effect Monday, Nov. 8. Information was mailed out to families that were impacted.
Open Forum
Christie Royce spoke about the school board election (note that this meeting took place before the November 2 election). She had listened to the school board candidate forum and was concerned about the candidates wanting to restrict bathroom use. She was concerned about the mental health of LGBTQ students and their ability to feel accepted and safe at school.
Derek Nelson updated the board on the progress of the varsity cheerleaders. At the meeting, the students were preparing to attend their regional competition. Nelson said his students have worked very hard this year, and the teams have seen a lot of growth over the last few years.
Amy Kavilhog (spelling uncertain) spoke up about a desire to change the dress code to allow her son to wear a baseball cap in school. She claimed that many students wear more distracting articles of clothing such as animal ears and tails, and she wanted her son to be able to express himself through his clothing as well without being sent to the office.
Haley Dobbel also spoke about the dress code. As a student, she claimed that most of the clothing available for girls and women was not school appropriate and she had issues finding outfits that fit the school dress code.
Financial Report
Angie Manuel, director of business services, noted that the school was still seeing an upward trend in enrollment. The 2021 audit is nearly complete and will be presented at the November meeting. Accounting for the COVID-19 relief funding has complicated the process, leading to delays. Manuel also stated that she will be applying for several grants on the school’s behalf in the near future.
Student Rep Report
Student representative to the board, Preity Persuad, noted that students were very happy to return to in-person classes after last year, and she hopes that the SEL policies adopted by the board will continue to help students transition. She also congratulated the boys cross county team on their win at state.
Election Information
A special meeting to canvas the votes of the election was held Wednesday, Nov. 10. If desired, the board can request a recount between the 10th and the 17th. The next regular meeting will be held Nov. 18, upon which time the winning candidate will be sworn into the board.
