ACSD Board of Directors hears variety of updates in final regular meeting prior to the start of the new school year

by Brianne Grimstad

The Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) Board of Directors met Monday night, August 15 for its regular monthly meeting.

Under the consent agenda items, the following personnel items were approved for the upcoming school year: After School Program staff; Penny Barr as a part-time food service worker; Brooke Welsh as seventh grade girls track coach; increased paraprofessional hours for Mandee Dundee, Katie Martin, Jenna Shogren and Ashley Mitchell; 2022-2023 Mentors; Dillon Daniel as seventh/eighth grade football coach; and Erin Thornton as a paraprofessional.

Resignations were accepted from Samantha Larsen from her Middle School paraprofessional position and Wayne Fish and Sandra Fish from their position as a bus driver. Superintendent Jay Mathis thanked them for their time with ACSD. The board also approved the resignation of Tyler Wedeking from his paraprofessional position. The board then approved the transfer of Brody Baxter from seventh/eighth grade football coach to ninth grade football coach.

Other matters included under Consent Agenda approval included fifth/sixth grade volleyball Sunday practices; two open enrollments out and one open enrollment into the district; the 2022-2023 Chileda Agreement; the 2022-2023 NICC Concurrent Enrollment and Health Occupations Consortium Contracts; the Annual Treasurer’s Report; and the Athletic Trainer Agreement with Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH).

During the communications time of the meeting, Keystone Area Education Agency (AEA) board member Dr. Bill Withers and new Keystone AEA Administrator Stan Rheingans addressed the board members regarding Keystone AEA. Rheingans introduced himself to the board as the new administrator, taking the place of the now retired Pat Heiderscheit.

In his Superintendent report, Mathis touched on the school safety plan for the buildings in ACSD. He noted that the “ACSD Emergency Plan” can be viewed on the district website (https:// allamakee.k12.ia.us) under the “Home” tab. The district has made several upgrades to the facilities over the last few years, including entrance restrictions, security cameras and door locks that can easily be locked from the inside without a key. The district has also participated in trainings with Allamakee County Emergency Management. Mathis further noted that they will conducting a vulnerability assessment on facilities this year as well.

The additions of a social worker and a special education director will help address student issues and should help to prevent suicide or crisis situations. Completion of the specifications for the High School/Middle School HVAC project are nearly complete. Mathis was hopeful they will be letting bids in the next month or two. He also gave kudos to the custodial staff, saying that the buildings “look as good as I have ever seen - anywhere at any time!” Mathis and Buildings and Grounds Director Bill Hennessy will be looking into options to meet the new requirement for all school buildings to be radon tested by 2027. Mathis expressed hopes that there will be some grant money available for this in the future.

Waukon High School Principal Jennifer Garin reported that 2022-2023 allotments for Perkins V and RPP have been distributed and the CTE team is deciding on how to use those funds. At the time of her report, 60% of returning students had already registered online for the upcoming school year. A registration open house was available for parents August 9. August 18, 19 and 22 will be Professional Development days. School picture day will be held Thursday, August 25. Garin also thanked the custodians for their work during the summer, as well as the food service staff for work during the summer feeding program.

Waukon High School Activities Director/Assistant Principal Brian Hilsabeck updated the board on the fall activity participation numbers. There are currently 63 students out for football; 38 out for volleyball; 26 out for boys cross country; 24 out for girls cross country; and 13 out for cheerleading. The first home football game will be Friday, September 2 against Decorah at 5 p.m. The first home volleyball game will be against Riceville and Kee at 5 p.m. Monday, August 29. The first home cross country meet will be Tuesday, September 20 at 4 p.m.

The Allamakee Athletic Booster Club membership drive/meet the team night will be held Wednesday, August 17 at 5 p.m., with guest speaker Coach Jack Dahm. Hilsabeck thanked Dr. Dave Schwartz and the staff of the VMH Medical Clinic for offering free athletic physicals twice in July.

Waukon Middle School Principal Luke Steege reported that he is looking forward to his fourth year with ACSD. He and his staff are excited for the upcoming school year, and there will be several new faces in the Middle School. Steege noted in his report that he and his staff will continue focusing on improvement and will use homeroom time for professional learning groups to emphasize the best practices to help students reach excellence in their curriculum areas.

Homeroom time will also be used to hold intramurals for students, which was a change made last year. This allows students to have some fun while they are in school, as well as learn. By making homeroom a more inviting place for students, staff feels this has helped cut down on classroom disruptions.

Middle School volleyball, cross country and football practices will begin Tuesday, August 23, and student athletes have been attending camps to get ready for upcoming seasons. Steege also noted the goals for the Middle School this year, which are as follows: continue building positive relationships with students and parents to promote a culture of learning; make teamwork the foundation of a quality learning environment for all students; and helping all students learn. He also thanked the custodian crew for their work to get the facilities ready for this school year.

East and West Elementary Schools Principal Samantha Thornton reported Meet the Teacher Night will be held Thursday, August 18 from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Families can drop in and meet teachers, as well as drop off supplies for their students, if they feel it necessary. Parents may also sign students up for Kids Club. Kids Club coordinators will be available to meet with students and families, get registration forms out and answer any questions. PSST members will also be there to meet students and explain how that group supports the school. Thornton noted that she encourages parents to get involved with the PSST parent group.

Thornton also reported that several staff members attended a PLC at Work Institute in Minneapolis, MN August 8-11, learning how to work collaboratively as a team to promote and emphasize student learning. In August, staff will meet for a FAST for Success in Reading program. This group will lead and model how to use FAST testing data to guide instruction and reach students at any level of learning. She also reported that over the summer, more than 40 students were served in tutoring sessions for reading and math. Extended School Year is ending, with that program reaching 13 students through the summer months.

ACSD Curriculum Director Kelli Olson noted in her report that she is excited to share the professional learning plan with the school board. Staff will be looking at student engagement through two different avenues. They will be participating in a book study of “Teach Like a Pirate” by Dave Burgess, as well as going through the “Portrait of a Graduate” process. Olson noted that this will allow staff to think of the roles that both students and teachers play in increasing classroom engagement.

Staff will also be working in PLCs to meet and answer the “four big PLC questions.” Those questions are: What do they want students to learn?; How do staff know if students have mastered the content?; What will staff do if students have not mastered content?; and What will staff do if students have already mastered the content?.

There will also be a plan for teachers to get time for their own professional learning, using multiple resources including Keystone AEA, webinars and professional books. A fourth element will be building specific, with the High School and Middle School focusing on rigor, relevance and social-emotional learning and the elementary school focusing on a year long study of the science of reading through the FAST for Success Pilot.

Special Education Director Carissa Otto reported that she has been with working with Samantha Thornton, Andy Reichard, Keystone AEA and the Department of Education to be sure teachers have ACHIEVE, a web-based IEP system that will be used to transition out of the former IEP system. ACHIEVE went live for ACSD August 1 and is designed to mirror language of the Iowa SDI Framework, support practice and minimize paperwork, increase opportunities for staff and families to work together and ensure procedural compliance. All special education teachers and Otto attended one of two ACHIEVE training sessions in August.

In his report, Buildings and Grounds Director Bill Hennessy commended his staff on the work they have done to get facilities ready for the upcoming school year. Hennessy also reported that all checks for systems such as fire alarms and fire extinguishers have been completed and are ready for the school year. The Middle School gym floor has been waxed, and the staff is in the process of getting the football field ready for the season. They will also be starting preventative maintenance on heating systems, including roof top units and boilers.

Technology Director Andy Reichard reported that the projectors were delivered August 9, and they will get them installed as soon as they possibly can. He anticipated that the High School/Middle School installation would not be completed until after the school year has begun. He and his staff helped out with registration, and they have all but 10 laptops back from Sterling and are reimaging the units for the upcoming school year.

Foodservice Director Jess Keenan reported that the August Summer Feeding program ran from August 1-12. The numbers were down slightly from the June Summer Feeding, but she noted that this is normal. ACSD will receive $22,427.69 in Supply Chain Assistance Funding, which will be used for purchasing domestic food that is unprocessed or minimally processed. Though they have not said when ACSD can expect to receive the funds, Keenan explained that she feels the most efficient way to track the money is to spend it on a single product in that category and she has decided to spend it on milk. She also updated the board on Federal reimbursement rates for breakfast and lunch, noting that they continue to encourage families to apply for the free and reduced-rate meals, noting that with the higher income guidelines, more families may be able to qualify for free or reduced meal rates.

Transportation Director Andrew Eberling reported that he and his staff have been busy getting buses ready for the upcoming school year and putting routes together. They normally do a three-hour driver class prior to the beginning of the school year, but due to a scheduling issue, it will take place in September. The new school bus that was ordered is at School Bus Sales in Waterloo, and the company is hoping to deliver it to ACSD prior to the start of the school year, but it may end up being early September before they can get it here.

Under old business, the board approved the second reading of the following board policies: 203 - Board of Directors’ Conflict of Interest; 402.2 - Child Abuse Reporting; 501.14 - Open Enrollment Transfers - Procedures as a Sending District; 501.15 - Open Enrollment Transfers - Procedures as a Receiving District; 540.5 - Student Fund Raising; 504.5R1 - Student Fund Raising Regulations; 505.5 - Graduation Requirements; 507.2 - Administration of Medication to Students; 507.2E1 – Authorization for Asthma or other Airway Constricting Disease Medication or Epinephrine Auto-Injector Self-Administration Consent Form; 607.2 – Student Health Services; 704.6 – Online Fundraising Campaigns-Crowdfunding; 804.5 - Stock Prescription Medication Supply; 804.7 - Radon Mitigation; 804.7R1 - Radon Mitigation Regulation; 901 - Public Examination of School District Records.

Under new business, the board approved a Memorandum of Agreement between the Allamakee Community School District and the Allamakee Community Education Association regarding pay for head softball coach Melissa Ward. Due to the fact that the assistant softball coach position went unfilled for part of the 2021-2022 season, Ward also assumed the duties of the assistant softball coach. To compensate her for those additional duties, the board approved to pay Ward 25% of the assistant softball coach’s salary, or $812.25. The board also approved a resolution to transfer $5,610 from the General Fund to the SAVE Capital Project Fund for ESSER expenditures made on an HVAC upgrade. The board also approved a revised concrete cost to Kelly Concrete in the amount of $5,885.