Hoglan Elementary Principal Amy Wiliams, left, and teacher Lindsay Stanton present to the school board on Oct. 5.
Recognitions
Hoglan Elementary School Principal Amy Williams and teacher Lindsay Stanton talked about the Hoglan Garden. Every student in the school was part of the planting project last school year. Many students helped water and care for the garden over the summer and were able to take home some of the food.
“We will look to expand the garden next year,” Stanton said.
Art Institute of Chicago
Marshalltown High School Art Trip
Marshalltown High School art teacher Kirk Niehouse was given approval by the board for an art trip to Chicago planned for Oct. 24. The one-day bus trip will take students and chaperones to the National Museum of Mexican Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. The students will also visit “The Bean” at Millennium Park and have dinner at Navy Pier while in Chicago. All out-of-state school trips must be approved by the board.
Hoglan Elementary Attendance Center Plan
Hoglan Principal Amy Williams presented the annual report to the board along with Hoglan staff Deb Moore, Lacie Moore, Lindsay Stanton and Sara Nichols. Hoglan serves 369 students with 45 percent being English Language Learners. Hoglan has had an influx of Southeast Asian students in recent years and has a bilingual language assistant this year to help serve many of these students and families.
Hoglan staff talked about several initiatives at the school including Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol (SIOP), Language Literacy Framework and more. They also talked about several ideas used to increase parent involvement. The presentation also featured video clips from students and staff at Hoglan.
Student Certified Enrollment Count
Lisa Koester, Director of Human Resources, explained that the official student enrollment count has yet to be determined. The numbers are still in transition between districts as reconciling needs to be done between districts.
Insurance Dividends Report
Bobby Shomo from Shomo-Madsen Insurance (EMC) presented a dividend check to the Marshalltown Community School District for $52,281. “The school has done a really good job with our safety program,” Shomo said.
Special Education Deficit
Matt Cretsinger, Director of Special Services, talked about the current special education deficit of $1.37 million. He said schools have to recover over-expenditures due to lack of state and federal funding for special education students. This is typical of many school districts in the state.
The board approved to seek authority from the School Budget Review Committee for additional spending authority.
Budget Preparation Process
Brian Bartz, Director of Business Operations, talked to the board about this process. He described how the district is funded on a per student basis. He also gave the board a brief overview on how the budget is built. Superintendent Dr. Marvin Wade said building the budget is a year-long process and the board will receive updates on the process periodically.
Board Policies
603.4 – Education Program – Accept policy as amended and waived second reading
603.5 – Textbook/Resource Selection – Minor changes accepted and waived second reading
603.6 – Instructional Materials Selection – Deleted a line , approval dates moved. Approved as presented and waived second reading
603.7- Outside Resource People – No changes, marked as reviewed
603.8 – Academic Freedom- No changes, marked as reviewed
603.8- R – Academic Freedom – Changes recommended, Marked reviewed as amended
603.12 E1 – Internet Access/Permission Letter to Parents or Guardians- deleting this policy – No longer need this form as it is in handbooks and at registration.
603.12-R – Internet and Electronic Mail – Appropriate Use Regulation – Changes to be made, will be brought back for first reading.
700 – Statement of Guiding Principles – Marked as reviewed
701 – Financial Accounting System – Marked as reviewed.
Miscellaneous
Committees – Board members were asked to send Board President Bea Niblock the top 5-6 choices for committees to serve on. Board members should plan to be on at least 3 committees.
Niblock said at the end of the each meeting she would like board members to talk about the difference being made in the lives of kids at each meeting. Board Vice President Janelle Carter mentioned the Hoglan Garden and art trip as examples of those differences made.
For a list of personnel items, click here.
From Board President Bea Niblock
“September’s election has put a far different group of people around the board table. The October 5th meeting was the first meeting that all of these people gathered to blend their abilities. To this new board, let me say that I am excited to see how we can make a difference in the lives of teachers and students.
To those past board members who no longer occupy seats at the table, let me thank you for your many years of service to this school district. Those members gave many hours of time and effort and shared their abilities with all of us in their service.
Being a board member is a difficult job that you love. The tough decisions are balanced with the successes that we see throughout the district. So to those folks sitting around the board table now, I say lace up your shoes. It’s going to be the ride of your life. But, the rewards of watching a hardworking staff helping students succeed each day will be your blue ribbon.”
– Bea Niblock
The Board Report 