September 16, 2026 at 8:00 AM - ESUCC Regular Board Meeting

Discussion:  The Board Meeting was called to order at 8:00am.

Discussion:  No visitors present.

Discussion:  No public comments provided.

Discussion:  Andrew Easton, ESUCC Chief Learning Officer (CLO), and Erin Bussen, Project Secretary, reviewed the attached ESUCC Textbook Loan Program Project Spotlight for Sept 2026.

Questions:

• What percentage of high quality instructional materials are ordered by non-public schools? The percentage of high quality instructional materials ordered has not been tracked up to this point.
• How much does the ESUCC get for administrative costs for the facilitation of the program? Per statute, we can ask for up to 5% of the allocation. 
• Do materials get shipped to ESU 3 or are they shipped directly to the schools? Materials get shipped directly to the school.

Discussion:  Gerald Kuhn, Learning Community, was not present to provide an update.

Discussion:  No one from NDE present to provide an update.

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO, Dr. Larianne Polk, and ESU 3 Administrator, Dr. Dan Schnoes, reviewed the upcoming meeting and conference dates listed below.

CEO Dr. Polk will also be attending the State Association Executive Directors In-Person Symposium, October 22-23, 2026, in Bloomington, MN.

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the attached ESUCC Board 2026-2027 document. 

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the attached CEO Report to the Board - September 2026 document. CEO Dr. Polk asked the Board to fill out the ESU Financial and Staffing Information Spreadsheet by October 31, 2026. The spreadsheet is linked in the Admins At-a-Glance document.

Questions:

• How does ESUCC take SMART from NE only to other states? The board approved for us to venture out of the state of Nebraska. ESUCC CEO Dr. Polk went through the business strategy framework with the out-of-state SMART idea. It does take additional time and ESUCC is seeking assistance with SMART training. 

Discussion:  ESU 15 Administrator, Phillip Picquet, provided the SMART Committee update. The SMART Admin Workgroup met on Monday, September 14, 2026. 

Discussion:  ESUCC Board President, Dr. Bill Heimann, provided the update from the Executive Committee meeting held on September 15, 2026. ESUCC CEO, Dr. Larianne Polk, reviewed the attached Cash Reserve 2026-2027 document.

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the attached Budget Summary August 2026 Updated document. 

Discussion:  ESUCC Board President, Dr. Bill Heimann, reviewed the attached ESUCC Board Retreat Notes. President Heimann encouraged the board to review the notes and reach out to Greta Leach if there is any feedback. The deadline to provide feedback to Greta Leach to be included in the strategic plan work is September 23, 2026.

Discussion: 

ESU 5 Administrator Dr. Brenda McNiff provided an update from the Education Resources Committee meeting held September 15, 2026. The Committee discussed attendance at Distance Learning (DL) meetings and encouraged more consistent participation.

ESU 17 Administrator Geraldine Erickson provided an update regarding Special Education and noted that, for the current year, Part C costs cannot be paid using IDEA funds.

ESUCC CLO Andrew Easton noted that affiliate reports will be shared during different months rather than monthly as in previous years.

The Board discussed accessibility and compliance efforts. ESU 10 has an accessibility compliance committee, provides templates for staff use, and utilizes Grackle for staff working in Google. ESU 3 also uses scanning software to review their website for accessibility compliance. ESU 11 utilizes Grackle and has held three meetings with schools to review accessibility requirements related to Sparq agendas and minutes.

Discussion:  ESU 15 Administrator, Phillip Picquet, provided the Legal Committee meeting update which was held on September 15, 2026.

Discussion:  ESUCC Cooperative Purchasing Director, Craig Peterson, noted that the majority of the changes in the attached 2027-AB-Terms Conditions document include date changes. 

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the requested changes to Policy 1014 - Meetings. Based on changes made during the 2026 legislative session, Perry Law Firm recommended updating the policy to reflect LB 596, which amended the notice requirements under the Open Meetings Act. The updated requirements reduce the frequency with which notices of regular ESUCC Board meetings must be published in a newspaper from monthly to four times per year. ESUCC may continue to publish monthly newspaper notices but is no longer required to do so.

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the requested changes to Policy 3030 - Records Management and Disposition. Based on the 2026 legislative session, Perry Law Firm recommends the following update to Policy 3030. Records Management and Disposition: LB 596 updated references in the record retention laws to better reflect current technology and electronic storage capabilities. Policy 3030 has been updated and streamlined to reflect these changes.

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the attached ESUCC Legislative Priorities 2027-2029, 110th Session document. CEO Dr. Polk will create a fact sheet for each of the priorities listed on this document. There was a suggestion to change the numbers to bullet points on the document. 

Discussion:  ESUCC CEO Dr. Larianne Polk reviewed the attached Travel and Expense Reimbursement (Per Diem) Policy Draft. During discussion, the Board considered whether the policy should provide additional guidance regarding lodging expenses, as the current draft focuses primarily on per diem reimbursement for meals. The Board also discussed whether the policy should establish a minimum travel distance or other criteria for determining when an overnight stay is appropriate.

Discussion:  ESU 4 Administrator, Gregg Robke, provided the Information Services Committee meeting update which was held on September 15, 2026.

Discussion:  Scott Isaacson, ESUCC CIO, reviewed the attached Statewide Services Decision Tree, SMART Partner Roadmap, and SMART NEDC TwoPart documents. Chris Wlaschin, Information Systems Officer at the Nebraska Department of Education, also provided input on the potential partnership. 

Discussion:  ESU 9 Administrator, Drew Harris, provided the board with a document to review. 

Discussion:  The Board Meeting adjourned at 11:01am.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Mindy Reed, Executive Secretary to the ESUCC CEO.