October 21, 2024 at 6:30 PM - Bloomfield Community Schools - Regular - Board of Education

Rationale:  A call to order indicates the beginning of the meeting. 

Rationale:  Roll call, a fundamental process in meetings, holds crucial importance when it comes to determining the presence of a quorum. A quorum refers to the minimum number of participants required for a meeting to be considered valid and for the decisions made within it to hold weight.

Rationale: 

Rationale:  The Nebraska Open Meetings Act guarantees that every public body meeting shall be open to the public so that citizens may exercise their democratic privilege of attending and speaking at meetings of public bodies. A copy of the Open Meetings Act poster is next to the Promethean Board near the file cabinets. Board members and visitors are welcome to review it at any time. They may also access the poster by opening the link noted in the SPARQ agenda.

Rationale:  As identified by the NE Open Meetings Act, a public notice announces the time, date, and place of a public meeting. The public has the right to attend meetings of public bodies, listen to debate(s), and watch the decision-making process. The publication of this Bloomfield Board of Education meeting met all these requirements.

Rationale:  A meeting agenda helps the BOE prepare for the meeting and guides them through the items they need to discuss. Time spent on planning an agenda will likely save time for all meeting participants by providing a clear set of topics, objectives, and timeframes.

Rationale: 
The Celebration of Excellence recognizes students, teachers, staff, and others at Bloomfield Community Schools who bring the District's Mission Statement to life through action, notoriety, greatness, accomplishment, and a host of other descriptors of their contribution to the district's culture and well-being.  

Rationale:  Substitute Teacher - An unsung hero who steps in with grace and resilience, bridging the gap in the classroom when regular teachers are absent. A valued school community member whose dedication and passion for teaching has a lasting impact on students and colleagues. These are individuals who serve our district as substitute teachers for the 2024-25 school year: Melanie French, Rachel Kleinschmidt, Pat Weborg, Mary Sterkel, Lee Ann Runyon, Kris Schmeckpepper, Doug Ptacnik, Ashley Liable, Lizabeth Garwood, Tami Kuhlman, Alex Wiebelhaus, Bryan Young, Tom Mastalir, Anna Walling, and Rose Kauth.

Rationale:  A consent agenda groups routine meeting discussion points into a single agenda item. Thus, the grouped items can be approved in one action rather than through the filing of multiple motions. The Consent Agenda includes the recent minutes of all BOE meetings and the current Financial/Business Reports.

Rationale:  An action item is a single, clearly defined task that must be done.

Rationale:  Perry Law Firm has reviewed and updated all Bloomfield Community Schools policies to reflect current practice, state and federal law. 

Rationale:  We aim to provide the board with current, clear, and transparent knowledge of our budget situation on a monthly basis so that we can convey our current financial status to our stakeholders and for the Board to make sound financial decisions. Mrs. Thiele, Mr. Strom and Carl Dietz worked together to create a report that meets that goal.

Rationale:  The Bloomfield Education Association (BEA) requests to be recognized by the Bloomfield Board of Education (BOE) as the bargaining agent for the certified teaching staff for the 2025-26 District Contract year.

Rationale:  Our strategic planning feedback indicated that BCS staff were not clear on our current instructional model.  Our current evaluation instruments were last revised in 2012. Since that time, NDE and the State Board of Education have made at least three major revisions to the framework and models. It is recommended by Mr. Strom to align our instructional model, teacher evaluation instrument and the principal evaluation instrument with current best practice according to the Nebraska Department of Education and Nebraska State Board of Education. This would include adopting the NE Teacher and Principal Performance Standards and the associated evaluation tools approved by the NE State Board of Education in 2022. Evaluations of all non-tenured certified staff will be done each semester with tenured staff formally evaluated once each year. All three documents are attached.

Rationale:  Informational/Discussion Items - Items intended only to provide information to the Board and require no action; this includes communication items. Informational items can be scheduled during Regular, Special, or Committee of the Whole meetings.

Rationale:  To keep the BOE abreast of 2025–2026, negotiations progress, and pertinent information

Rationale:  The BOE has again contracted with NASB to provide the surveys, disaggregate the data, provide each party with feedback on the outcomes, and a summarization of the data. These actions by the superintendent and the board will more than satisfy the state statute and Rule 10.

Rationale:  Meeting Report: A more relaxed and user-friendly summary, focusing on main points and decisions, making it easier to digest and understand.

Rationale:  The purpose of the public comment period is for members of the public to inform the governing body of their views. Those in attendance who have registered may now address the board for a maximum of 3 minutes each on a single topic for 18 minutes. Speakers are not allowed to yield their time to another speaker. Be aware that the board will not comment; we will listen intently.

Rationale:  The Board of Education may move into a closed session by a majority vote if necessary to protect the public interest or prevent needless injury to an individual's reputation.

Rationale:  A motion to adjourn is a formal procedure that ends a meeting. If there is any unfinished business at the time of adjournment, it is typically carried over to the next meeting. Prior to the motion to adjourn, the chair should be sure that no important matters have gone unnoticed.