Board Minutes

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REGULAR BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

6 JUNE 2017

MINUTES

Chairman Matt Hartle called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:32 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Austin Hughes, Nancy Keeton, Julie Tikka and Jeff Sullivan. Also in attendance were: Tami Ward – Principal and Tammy Bartos – District Clerk.

Minutes: Jeff Sullivan moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the minutes of the 2 May reorganization and regular meetings. Motion passed unanimously.

Public Participation/Correspondence: The Flathead County Planning and Zoning Department sent a letter regarding a preliminary plat approval of a Subdivision on Riverside Road – a proposal to create 3 lots for residential use.

Reports:

Clerk – Tammy Bartos presented report. Statement of Expenditure shows General Fund at 100% committed through the beginning of June, we will be receiving the budget amendment monies, which will offset end of year expenses not yet paid for; Fund 115 Title monies have been fully used for the year; Post-Session Preliminary Budget Data Sheets are out and our numbers remained stable with a slight increase of $500.00 to our BASE Budget.

Principal – Tami Ward presented report. Math EasyCBM testing results at year end show 84% of all students at/above benchmark, 11% nearing benchmark, and 5% needing intervention; the teachers and Mrs. Ward will be reviewing and selecting a whole school discipline program this summer to implement next school year; Classroom assignments for next school year are: Kindergarten: Mrs. Milne, First: Ms. Potts, Second: Mrs. Johnson, Third: Mrs. Davidson, Fourth: Mrs. Shanks, Fifth/Sixth: Ms. Hess, Title Reading: Mrs. Christiansen; Flathead Crossroads – all vacant positions have been filled, they will have a three-week summer program this year.

Staff – nil.

Special Education Coop – nil.

Educational Coop – Tami Ward reported. The Co-op hired Karla Miller to be the new director; teacher professional development this summer will be Math in the Mountains and Northwest Montana Reading Conference.

Playground – Tami Ward reported. The slide will be replaced this summer and woodchips will be ordered in August before school starts.

Policy: nil.

Information Items:

• The Bus Driver/Maintenance position has been offered and accepted by Jeff Hagen, he’s ready to start immediately.
• OPI sent a letter acknowledging receipt of the General Fund Budget Amendment Resolution and stating we are eligible to receive an additional $26,680 in direct state aid which will be paid in the June 2017 DSA payment.

Action Items:

• Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the Interlocal Agreement for Communication Disorders with the Flathead Special Education Cooperative. Motion passed unanimously.
• Austin Hughes moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the property and liability insurance proposal by Payne West (Montana Schools Property & Liability Insurance Plan). Motion passed unanimously.
• Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the renewal of the Principal Teacher employment contract for 2017-2018 as presented for Tami Ward. Motion passed unanimously.
• Nancy Keeton moved and Jeff Sullivan seconded to approve the Title 1 2017 summer tutoring employment agreement as presented for Melissa Potts. Motion passed unanimously.
• Julie Tikka moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to approve the Custodian employment agreement for 2017-2018 as presented for Susan Peters. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to approve the mentor/coaching stipend for 2017-2018 as presented for Deborah Christiansen. Motion passed unanimously.
• Austin Hughes moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to approve the Bus Driver/Maintenance 2017-2018 employment agreement as presented for Jeff Hagen. Motion passed unanimously.
• Nancy Keeton moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the new Teacher 2017-2018 employment contract as presented for James Christiansen. (He will be .5 counselor, .2 PE, and .3 Title 1.) Motion passed unanimously.
• Austin Hughes moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to give authority to Tammy Bartos, District Clerk, to process claims the remainder of June through the beginning of August without convening a board meeting. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to approve the 2017-2018 bus route as presented. Motion passed unanimously.
• Transportation Contract(s) – nil.
• Out of District request(s): – Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to acknowledge the two out of district requests from Evergreen, as the district of choice, and with Creston as the district of residence.
• Gym & School Grounds Use request – nil.

Board Comments: Matt Hartle brought up the subject of the crosswalk on Highway 35 and safety issues; he would like to pursue signage, and the like, further.

Payroll/Substitutes/Claims: The Board approved all claims for June 6, 2017.

Miscellaneous Items of Business: An update on the AED situation was asked for. The refund has been requested and the company (AEDGrant.com a division of Express Companies, Inc.) says it will issue the refund by check in 30 days. The 30 days is up later this week. If we do not receive it we may need to pursue it further through the State Auditors office.

Next Meeting(s) Date:

• Final Budget and Regular Meeting: 10 August 2017 at 7:30 am.

Meeting adjourned at 8:23 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                                 Matt Hartle

District Clerk                                                    Chairman

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REGULAR BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

2 MAY 2017

MINUTES

Chairman Matt Hartle called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:38 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Austin Hughes, Nancy Keeton, Julie Tikka and Jeff Sullivan. Also in attendance were: Tami Ward – Principal, Tammy Bartos – District Clerk and Jack Eggensperger – County Superintendent.

Minutes: Jeff Sullivan moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the minutes of the 13 April 2017 regular meeting. Motion passed unanimously.

Public Participation/Correspondence: nil.

Reports:

Clerk – Tammy Bartos presented report. Statement of Expenditure shows General Fund at 78% committed. Reconciliations to the County Treasurer are completed through March. Fund 115 Projects are in good shape.

Principal – Tami Ward presented report. Social Skill Theme this month is Respect. The full-time teacher position for .5 counseling, .2 PE and .3 Title 1 has been posted, applications have been received and she is looking for volunteers to review applications on May 4^th. Smarter Balanced, Math EasyCBM and Fountas and Pinnell Reading Assessments have started and will continue through the month of May. Also, reported on Kindergarten Roundup, End-of-Year Activities, status of AED and IEFA Day.

Staff – nil.

Special Education Coop – Tami Ward reported that they hired another school psychologist and have offered a job to a speech therapist. Also, unfortunately, the cooperative decided not to move forward with a special education preschool building at this time. Crossroads is still on track to open the K-2 program next fall.

Educational Coop – Tami Ward reported that the cooperative has offered the director job to a teacher leader and hope to have an answer this week. Also, the science curriculum committee met and teachers will be coming together to share teacher created resources.

Playground – Tami Ward reported – the slide is in need of repair and depending on the cost of the replacement parts we may possibly replace the entire slide. After raking woodchips around the footings Tami has decided to wait until the fall to bring in more woodchips.

Policy:

• Julie Tikka moved and Jeff Sullivan seconded to accept Policy #2105 Grade Organization. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Austin Hughes seconded to accept Policy #5222 Evaluation of Non-Administrative Staff. Motion passed unanimously.

Information Items:

• Liability Insurance Proposals – Two proposals have been received – one from our existing insurer MSPLIP and another from MSGIA. A representative from MSGIA will be visiting with us (Tami Ward and Tammy Bartos) later today. The proposals are in the office and anyone interested in reviewing them is welcome to do so. We will bring our recommendation to the next board meeting.
• The Bus Driver/Maintenance position has been offered to an applicant and we hope to get a response later this week.

 1^st Grade Presentation: at 8:00 a.m. Ms. Potts along with some of her 1^st grade students gave book report presentations from the Mary Pope Ausborne Magic Tree House series they have read this year, to demonstrate their social studies, science and writing learning.

 Action Items:

• Jeff Sullivan moved and Julie Tikka seconded to accept the resignation of the paraprofessional. Motion passed unanimously.
• Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the Budget Amendment Resolution due to an unanticipated enrollment increase. Motion passed unanimously.
• Austin Hughes moved and Jeff Sullivan seconded to approve the renewal of certified teacher employment contracts for 2017-2018 as presented for Jamie Shanks, Melissa Potts, Paula Rich, Deb Christensen, Ariann Hess, Shanta Bisch Milne, Jennifer Johnson, Cindi Siler and Pauline Davidson. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the District Clerk Employment Contract for Tammy Bartos for 2017-2018. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Nancy Keeton seconded to approve the Pasture Lease Agreement. Motion passed unanimously.
• Jeff Sullivan moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the Northwest Montana Educational Cooperative Agreement. Motion passed unanimously.
• Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the Montana Small School Alliance Agreement. Motion passed unanimously.
• Transportation Contract(s) – nil.
• Out of District request(s): – Nancy Keeton moved and Jeff Sullivan seconded to acknowledge the out of district request from Evergreen, as the district of choice and, with Creston as the district of residence.
• Gym & School Grounds Use request – nil.

 Board Comments: nil.

Payroll/Substitutes/Claims: The Board approved all claims for May 2017.

 Miscellaneous Items of Business: Tami Ward extended a welcome to Nancy Keeton as a new trustee and a thank you to Jeff Sullivan for his Board Chair service last year; also a thank you to Jack Eggensperger for his attendance today.

 Next Meeting(s) Date:

• Regular Meeting 6 June 2017 at 7:30 am.

Meeting adjourned at 8:15 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                                 Matt Hartle

District Clerk                                                                Chairman

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REORGANIZATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

2 May 2017

MINUTES

Chairman Jeff Sullivan called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:32 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Matt Hartle, Austin Hughes, Nancy Keeton and Julie Tikka. Also in attendance were:, Tami Ward – Principal,; Jack Eggensperger – County Superintendent of Schools and Tammy Bartos – District Clerk.

 Public Participation/Correspondence: nil

• Nancy Keeton and Julie Tikka were elected by acclamation.

• Nancy Keeton and Julie Tikka were sworn in as Trustees by Jack Eggensperger.

• Jeff Sullivan moved and Julie Tikka seconded to nominate Matt Hartle as Board Chair. Motion passed unanimously, none opposed.

• Matt Hartle moved and Jeff Sullivan seconded to nominate Julie Tikka as Vice-chair. Motion passed unanimously, none opposed.

• Jeff Sullivan moved and Austin Hughes seconded to appoint Tammy Bartos as District Clerk. Motion passed unanimously, none opposed.

Meeting adjourned at 7:37 a.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                     Matt Hartle

District Clerk                                        Chairman

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REGULAR BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

13 APRIL 2017

MINUTES

Chairman Jeff Sullivan called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:30 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Linda Addington, Matt Hartle, Austin Hughes and Julie Tikka. Also in attendance were: Tami Ward – Principal, Tammy Bartos – District Clerk, Jack Eggensperger – County Superintendent and Nancy Keeton – Trustee Candidate.

Minutes: Linda Addington moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve the minutes of the 7 March 2017 regular meeting. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.

Public Participation/Correspondence: nil.

Reports:

Clerk – Tammy Bartos presented report. Statement of Expenditure shows General Fund at 70% committed. Reconciliations to the County Treasurer are completed through February. PERS Step Two documents have been received. Gutters and Siding still need to be done to complete the Water/Ice Damage Claim. A Preliminary General Fund Line Item Budget for next year has been put together.

Principal – Tami Ward presented report. Social Skill Theme this month is Acceptance. There have been no applicants for the Counselor position so she will repost the position for a full-time teacher to do counseling, PE and Title 1 and we will get the variance. All third through sixth graders will take Smarter Balanced Assessments in May. We will have an IEFA Day at then end of the month. Kindergarten Roundup is May 8^th. School repairs in the works are some doors to be replaced and repaired and insulation in the basement to prevent pipes from freezing.

Staff – nil.

Special Education Coop – Tami Ward reported that they are continuing to move forward with adding K-2 to the Crossroads program.

Educational Coop – Tami Ward reported that the hiring process for a new director is progressing. Jen Johnson is our representative for IEFA (Indian Education For All). Pauline Davidson received Rookie of the Year Award Wednesday night at the NW Co-Op Teacher Appreciation Night.

Playground – Tami Ward reported – woodchips will need to be brought in soon.

Policy:

• Julie Tikka moved and Austin Hughes seconded to accept Policy #8110 NONINSTRUCTIONAL OPERATIONS – Bus Routes and Schedules. Motion passed unanimously.

Information Items:

• The 2016-2017 Accreditation Status Report from OPI has been received and our final status is Regular (we are fully accredited).
• There is a MTSBA Workshop in Kalispell May 18^th. Trustees encouraged to attend.
• The trustee election has been cancelled by acclamation.
• A Hiring Committee for the Bus Driver/Maintenance position is being assembled. Matt Hartle and Nancy Keeton both volunteered to be part of the committee.
• We had only one applicant for the Scholarship Award. Tami will present it at the Flathead High School Scholarship Banquet.

3^rd Grade Presentation: at 8:00 a.m. Mrs. Davidson along with some of her 3^rd grade students gave presentations using Chatter Pix, Scratch Jr., Device Gears, Tellagami and stop motion videos to demonstrate their math, social studies and technology learning.

Action Items:

• Tammy reported that the approval of the petition for a Budget Amendment Proclamation due to an unanticipated enrollment was received; however, the deadline to post the notice in the newspaper was missed. After speaking with an OPI representative the next step will be to go ahead with the posting with a May meeting date for the resolution. No action needed.
• Matt Hartle moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve a One-Time Retention Stipend for Returning Teachers at $1500 each. Motion passed unanimously.
• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the Audit Engagement Letter from Nicole Noonan, CPA, for the FY 2015/16 audit. Motion passed unanimously.
• Transportation Contract(s) – Matt Hartle moved and Linda Addington seconded to approve the transportation contract for two more bus riders. Motion passed unanimously.
• Out of District request(s): – nil.
• Gym & School Grounds Use request – nil.

Board Comments: Discussion and Instruction about how to address after hours phone calls from the security company.

Payroll/Substitutes/Claims –

• The Board approved all claims for April 2017.

Miscellaneous Items of Business: Thanks was given to Jack Eggensperger for his attendance and input today.

Next Meeting(s) Date:

• Reorganization Meeting 2 May 2017 at 7:30 am.
• Regular Meeting 2 May 2017 immediately following the Reorganization meeting.

Meeting adjourned at 8:30 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                                 Matt Hartle

District Clerk                                                    Chairman

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REGULAR BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

7 MARCH 2017

MINUTES

 Chairman Jeff Sullivan called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:32 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Linda Addington, Matt Hartle, Austin Hughes and Julie Tikka. Also in attendance were: Tami Ward – Principal and Tammy Bartos – District Clerk.

Minutes: Linda Addington moved and Matt Hartle seconded to approve the minutes of the 9 February 2017 regular meeting. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.

Public Participation/Correspondence: nil.

Reports:

Clerk – Tammy Bartos reported. See attached.

Principal – Tami Ward reported. See attached.

Staff – nil.

Special Education Coop – Tami Ward reported that they are moving forward with adding K-2 to the Crossroads program. It should be up and running in the Fall.

Educational Coop – Tami Ward reported that Eliza Sorte, the current director, has accepted a new job and will be leaving the Coop. Tami is on the hiring committee to seek a new program director.

Playground – Tami Ward reported the playground is covered in snow and water. Swing seats and tetherball are on order.

Policy:

• Linda Addington moved and Austin Hughes seconded to accept Policy #2166 INSTRUCTION – Gifted & Talented Program. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.

Information Items: Trustee Candidates Updates – Julie Tikka and Nancy Keeton have filed their Declaration of Intent and Oath of Candidacy for Trustee Candidates.

Action Items:

• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve a Resolution not requiring the school to reschedule because of an unforeseen emergency closure on February 6, 2017 as allowed per MCA 20-9-806. Motion passed unanimously.
• Austin Hughes moved and Matt Hartle seconded to approve the Budget Amendment Proclamation due to an unanticipated enrollment increase. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Trustees signed the Petition for Permission to Adopt a Resolution for A Budget Amendment. See attached.
• Matt Hartle moved and Austin Hughes seconded to approve an additional Teacher’s Aide position for the remainder of the school year. Motion passed unanimously.
• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve adding a part time Counselor position for the next school year. Motion passed unanimously.
• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the Gifted & Talented Program as presented by Tami Ward. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded the adoption of a resolution estimating changes in revenues/mills from tuition, building reserve, transportation and bus depreciation levies for school fiscal year 2017-18. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Transport Contract(s) – nil.
• Out of District request(s): – nil.
• Linda Addington moved and Matt Hartle seconded to approve the Gym use request by the Many Lakes HOA for a meeting on Saturday, April 22^nd from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. See Attached.

Board Comments: nil.

6^th Grade Presentation: at 8:00 a.m., in the 6^th grade room, Ms. Hess along with some of her students gave presentations using Ed puzzle, I-movie, and Chatter Pix apps and stop motion videos to demonstrate their social studies and technology learning.

Payroll/Substitutes/Claims –

• The Board approved all claims for March 2017. See attached.

Miscellaneous Items of Business:

Next Meeting(s) Dates:

• Regular Meeting Thursday 13 April 2017 at 7:30 a.m.

Meeting adjourned at 8:12 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                                 Jeff Sullivan

District Clerk                                                    Chairman

CRESTON SCHOOL DISTRICT #9

REGULAR BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEETING

9 FEBRUARY 2017

MINUTES

Vice Chairman Matt Hartle called the Board of Trustees Meeting to order at 7:35 a.m. in the Creston School Library with the following members present: Linda Addington and Julie Tikka. Also in attendance were: Tami Ward – Principal, Tammy Bartos – District Clerk, and Gloria Graves, Creston Fire. Jeff Sullivan, Chairman, arrived at 7:40 a.m. and presided over the meeting from then on. Austin Hughes was absent.

Minutes: Linda Addington moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the minutes of the 10 January 2017 regular meeting. Motion passed unanimously.

Public Participation/Correspondence: 1) Gloria Graves, Creston Fire Auction representative, present some auction details. The auction is April 1^st and 2^nd; 2) Tammy Bartos read a letter from the Montana Department of Administration, Local Government Services Bureau regarding their receipt of our audit – see attached.

Reports:

Clerk – Tammy Bartos reported. See attached.

Principal – Tami Ward reported. See attached.

Staff – nil.

Special Education Coop – Tami Ward reported that she attended 504 training.

Educational Coop – January meeting was cancelled.

Playground – Tammy Bartos reported. See attached.

Policy:

• Linda Addington moved and Matt Hartle seconded to accept Policy #1520 BOARD OF TRUSTEES – Board/Staff Communications. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Matt Hartle moved and Linda Addington seconded to accept Policy #5325 PERSONNEL – Breastfeeding Workplace. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Julie Tikka moved and Matt Hartle seconded to accept Policy #5336 PERSONNEL – Compensatory Time and Overtime/Classified Employees. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.

Information Items: nil.

Action Items:

• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the Trustee Resolution Calling For An Election. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• Matt Hartle moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the 2017/2018 School Year Calendar as presented. Motion passed unanimously. See attached.
• The 2018/2019 Tentative School Year Calendar was presented. Item was tabled until next year after Flathead High School has a more definitive calendar in place.
• Transport Contract(s) – nil.
• Out of District request(s): 1) Linda Addington moved and Matt Hartle seconded to approve two requests as district of placement. Motion passed unanimously; 2) Matt Hartle moved and Linda Addington seconded to acknowledge one request as district of residence. Motion passed unanimously.
• Linda Addington moved and Julie Tikka seconded to approve the Gym use request by Jared Wink for basketball practice on Tuesday’s and Friday’s from 5:30 – 7:30 pm. Motion passed unanimously. See Attached.

Board Comments: nil.

4^th/5^th Grade Presentation: at 8:00 a.m. Mrs. Shanks along with some of her students gave presentations on app smashing, green screen and stop motion videos to demonstrate their social studies and technology learning.

Payroll/Substitutes/Claims –

• The Board approved all claims for February 2017. See attached.

Miscellaneous Items of Business:

Next Meeting(s) Dates:

• Regular Meeting Tuesday 7 March 2017 at 7:30 a.m.

Meeting adjourned at 8:15 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Tammy Bartos                                                 Jeff Sullivan

District Clerk                                                    Chairman