Public Meeting Minutes: October 12, 2022 at 6:00 PM - Board of Education Regular Meeting

1. Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance

Discussion: President Gould called the regular meeting to order at 6:00 PM and the Pledge of Allegiance was said.

2. Motion to Excuse Board Member's Absence

Discussion: All members were present.

3. Open Meeting Law

Discussion: The audience was reminded that Open Meeting Laws would be followed.

4. Presentation from John Spatz, NASB Executive Director

Discussion: John Spatz, Executive Director of NASB gave a presentation on School and State Investments in Nebraska.

5. Consent Agenda

Discussion: Motion by Matulka, second by Lange to approve the consent agenda as presented including the September 14, 2022 Budget/Tax Asking Hearing and Regular Meeting minutes; the September 23, 2022 Special Meeting minutes; the September financial statement; and monthly bills. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

5.1. Regular Minutes and Budget/Tax Asking Hearing Minutes of September 14, 2022; and Special Meeting Minutes of September 23, 2022

Attachments: (3)

September 14-Regular Meeting

10/6/2022 at 4:01 PM
September 14-Budget Tax Asking Hearing

10/6/2022 at 4:01 PM
September 23-Special Meeting

10/6/2022 at 4:01 PM

5.2. Financial Statement/Report

Attachments: (1)

Financial Statements Sept 2022

10/11/2022 at 12:54 PM

5.3. Monthly Bills

Attachments: (1)

Bills Paid Sept 2022

10/11/2022 at 12:54 PM

6. Correspondence/Recognition

7. Public Forum

Discussion: Tammy Sharping addressed the Board during Public Forum about keeping elementary schools in town in their current configuration, possible facility improvements and opposition to a central site.

8. Reports

8.1. Administrative Reports

Attachments: (4)

October SpEd Board Report

10/8/2022 at 11:36 AM
October Jr._Sr. Board Report 2022

10/8/2022 at 11:36 AM
October Elementary Board Report

10/8/2022 at 11:36 AM
October AD Report

10/8/2022 at 11:36 AM

Discussion: Submitted by Scott Shepard, Jr-Sr High School Principal
     Relationships - On Monday during our Professional Development time, we took a few minutes to identify every student that is connected with an adult in our building. We will use this information along with tracking activity involvement to determine which students we need to find additional ways to engage them in the RC experience. This is critical to our success as a school in fully preparing them for their futures.
     Student Engagement - We are continuing to focus on student engagement in all aspects of our school day. As I mentioned last month, we want to use the 90 minute class period to engage students with other students, teachers, and curriculum. We are also trying to connect students with career options that will help them plan for the future. Tasha and I continue to meet with 9th-11th graders during Advisory to get them engaged with the Naviance program. A letter was sent to parents this week to highlight a student that had a great career experience and how parents can engage during P-T Conferences.
     Community Engagement - Veterans Day Program to be held on November 11, 2022 at 9:00 AM. Please plan to attend this program that will honor our local veterans while educating our students (K-12) on the importance of respecting those that have served our country. We are working with the local American Legion Posts to invite over 350 veterans and their families. Our school families have also been encouraged to invite friends and family members that have served. Former Governor Dave Heineman will be our main speaker.
     Celebrations - Fall Seasons are coming to an end. It has been great to see our students compete in the various activities. One of the highlights was the volleyball pink out game. We had a good crowd, with a full student body section, cheerleaders and pep band. I want to congratulate Asher Lahm for receiving a Letter of Commendation in the National Merit Scholarship Program. We will recognize him in front of the student body at the Homecoming Pep Rally on Friday!

Submitted by Tony Kobza, Asst Jr-Sr High School Principal/Athletic Director
     Athletic Fall Season - Athletics are moving forward towards the end of the Fall Season. We have had many great successes this fall and are hoping to finish strong.
     Concussion Protocol - We are in the process of getting a concussion baseline testing application called Sway that students can test from their smartphones or tablets. Sway will allow us to have better management and evaluation for athletes with possible concussions.
     Drug Testing - We implemented our first round of drug testing this past week. We have a schedule developed where we will test at least three students every other week. This schedule will help us to realize testing at least 20% of the eligible students as identified in the board policy.
     LED ScoreVision - The LED ScoreVision scoreboards are on track to be installed on November 1. The boards are fully funded through Business Sponsorships and family donations. This will be an exciting upgrade to our current Competitive Gym experience. I am discussing with Jared what we will do with the current scoreboards that are in the competition gym. We may move the better scoreboard to the practice gymnasium or even to Valparaiso. If we don’t find it to be both beneficial and cost effective to move the scoreboards, then we will approach the board about surplusing the items.
     Homecoming - Homecoming is the week of October 10.

HOMECOMING WEEK
We are so excited to be entering our Homecoming Week festivities here at Raymond Central. Below is a timeline of events for the week. We hope to see you involved in any way you can!

Thursday, October 6, and Friday, October 7

Class Hallway Decorations during advisory

Monday, October 10 (No School)

JV Home Football Game - 6:00PM
Bonfire behind school - 7:30PM
Homecoming Court Finalists will be announced at 8:00PM at the Bonfire
- Bonfire will include FREE Hot Dogs, Chips and Water while supplies last provided by the RC Booster Club

Tuesday, October 11

Adam Sandler Day - Dress as your favorite SCHOOL APPROPRIATE Adam Sandler Character
NCC Volleyball Tournament - 1st Round at Ashland-Greenwood at 7:00 PM

Wednesday, October 12

Despicable Me Day - Dress as your favorite Minion or other character

Thursday, October 13

Anything But A Backpack - Bring your books in anything but a backpack
- You must be able to carry your "backpack" on your own and should not interfere with the learning environment. Anything deemed unacceptable will not be allowed in the building.
NCC Volleyball Tournament - 2nd Round at 7:00 PM - Location TBD

Friday, October 14

Mustang Spirit Day - Show your school spirit and pride today!
Homecoming Pep Rally - Advisory will be moved to the end of the day. Pep Rally will start at 2:45 PM.
Homecoming Court walk through immediately following the Pep Rally on the Track.
HOMECOMING COURT ANNOUNCED AT 6:20 PM. Crowning will be on the Track in front of the bleachers.
Varsity Football Game vs Lincoln Christian - 7:00 PM
Decorations for Dance following the game in the New Gym

Saturday, October 15

NCC Volleyball Tournament Finals
Oxbow Marching Band Competition at Ashland at 4:15 PM
Homecoming Dance - Dance will be in New Gym and Commons will hold refreshments and photo opportunities
- Doors Open at 8:00 PM - No one will be allowed in after 9:00 PM. If you leave, you may not return.
- Dance Ends at 11:00 PM
- All entrants will be subject to a breathalyzer test before entering the dance
- All non RC Student Dates must be registered through the Main Office with Admin Approval

Submitted by Steve Rose, Elementary Principal and Deb Kruse, Assistant Elementary Principal

Targeted Professional Development - This is structured to attend to increasing our capacity of reaching our Campus Improvement Goal of 80% Reading Proficiency.
- Continued...Steve and Deb are conducting multiple walkthroughs weekly in teacher classrooms to determine district and individual teacher needs. Through those walkthroughs we have identified a need for staff instruction on the following:
- Continued...Staff Meetings every 3 weeks to discuss
  - 10 Big Ideas / Checks for Understanding with 100% active participation
    - Based on Explicit Instruction: Anita L. Archer
- 2nd Staff Development was on Big Idea #4
  - Active participation procedures are structured
  - Verbal, Written, Gestures
- Staff is asked to determine where and when these will be used in their lessons to check for understanding. We are seeing a lot of effort to complete this and teachers are continuing to grow and ask questions about how to make this work better in their classrooms.
Science of Reading
- Session 3, and 4 completed during late starts and PD days with Caryn Ziettlow from the ESU.
- During these last sessions we are starting to develop the understanding of what we need to implement to bolster instruction in the areas of Word Recognition that will lead to the advancement of Reading Comprehension. We are in the process of evaluating materials that will be used to replace the outdated and non-instructionally sound Wonders Reading Program that we have used for the last several years.
- Caryn from the ESU is aiding in the evaluation and selection of these materials with her knowledge of what we need and what other schools in this process have already chosen. We hope to have the curricular materials decided on by the first of the year.
School News
- Life Skills/Special Education Students attending the Sensory Safari at the Lincoln Children’s Zoo - They had a great experience getting to touch and interact with the animals.
- Teachers are beginning to meet with Student Problem Solving Teams (SPS) on a regular basis to discuss reaching students early with targeted interventions. The purpose of these meetings is to identify students who need additional support.
Testing
- NSCAS Growth - Fall testing has been completed and data is currently being analyzed. We have been given the Spring data to unpack. We have lower scores in regards to proficiency levels across all grades. Plans are in place to address these issues as we move forward. It will not be a quick fix, but we are looking to see immediate improvement in Active Participation per our Professional Development Plan which will directly impact student performance.
- NWEA MAP - Being administered to 2nd Grade - the window is being finalized and we will begin looking at the district data shortly. Individual data is already being utilized to make determinations for support of students.

Submitted by Amanda Coufal, Director of Special Education
Nebraska Part B Parent Survey Results (2021-2022):

The results from Improving Learning for Children with Disabilities (ILCD) parent survey have been released. This survey allowed parents to provide information on parent opportunities to participate in program/school improvement activities that result in improved outcomes for students with disabilities. The Office of Special Education requires parent involvement information as part of their State Performance Plan to measure aspects of Nebraska’s Special Education programs. Each year the state must provide information on an Annual Performance Report, indicating the state’s progress toward meeting the targets for each of the indicators. The Nebraska Department of Education must gather information on each school district’s efforts in meeting the rigorous targets and report those results publicly.
From the results of the survey, the following are areas of concern that the school district will work on to improve:
- Before my child was referred for special education services, the teachers and school tried different ways to help my child in the general education classroom - 68.1% agreed.
- The school helped my child with transitions (i.e., Preschool to Kindergarten; Elementary to Middle School/Junior High; and Middle School/Junior High to High School) - 76.0% agreed.
The following are areas of celebration:
- I have received information about special education for my child in a language I understand - 100%.
- I have opportunities to be involved in school activities - 98.0% agree.
- I have received information from my school or school district about my Parent Rights - 96.6% agree.
- As a member of the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team, I have input in decisions about the special education and related services that my child receives - 96.6% agree.

Sensory Safari:

On October 5th, twelve special education students, ranging from Kindergarten to Seniors, had the opportunity to participate in a Sensory Safari at the Lincoln Children’s Zoo. Students had the opportunity to touch, feel, hear, and smell at interpretive stations located throughout the Zoo. Nature experts and Nebraska Game and Parks engaged visitors at each station. Some of the highlights included:
- Petting animals such as horses, goats, birds, rabbits, turtles, snakes and fish. They also had the opportunity to feel an elephant’s hide.
- Listening to devices that made frog and bird sounds. They also had the chance to do their own turkey call.
- There was a sand pit to dig through.
- Smell different animals and insects such as bees.
Students then had a picnic at the Zoo after the event. A special thank you to our amazing cooks for packing a sack lunch for our students. A special thank you to our students’ parents for allowing their child to participate in this fun event along with our wonderful staff: Nicole Kliment, Paige Mestl, Stacey Doan, Melani Nelson, Jody Albrecht, Michelle Gerdes, Amanda Ehlers, Matt Smith, and Leann Wiese. Everyone had a great time with great weather!

8.2. Student Board Member

Attachments: (1)

Madison Parham - Board Meeting Report

10/12/2022 at 2:42 PM

Discussion: Submitted by Madison Parham, Student Body President
Good evening Board Members. A lot of exciting events have occurred since the last board meeting on September 14th. On September 21st, the seniors had an Apply to College Day where they were provided with Raising Canes for lunch and learned about financial aid, scholarships, grants, and more. They were able to apply to colleges like the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the University of Nebraska-Kearney, and the University of Nebraska-Omaha, as well as attend a career/college fair to explore their interests in more depth. This week has been a busy, but fun week so far as we highlight Homecoming. The homecoming themes this week are Adam Sandler Day (which occurred yesterday), Minion Day (today), Anything But A Backpack Day tomorrow, and Raymond Central spirit theme on Friday. Our 2022-2023 Homecoming Queen candidates are Josie Lahm, Olyvia Korthanke, Madison Parham, Rachel Bos, Madysen Ayres, and Lizzie Potter. Our Homecoming King candidates are Isaak Fredrickson, Wyatt Svoboda, Rhet Cotter, Tyson Malousek, Mason Kreikemeier, and Colby DenHartog. Our Mr. Mustang candidates are Jace Lickliter, Danny Jackson, Wyatt Svoboda, Cameron Shultz, Jack Edwards, and Tie Hollandsworth. Royalty and Mr. Mustang will be announced before Friday’s football game at 6:20 p.m. After our football players picked up two straight wins on the road these past two weeks, everyone is excited to see what they will do in Friday's football game against Lincoln Christian. The theme for the Homecoming dance this year is Glowing Galaxy and the Student Council members have worked tremendously hard to gather supplies for decorating and organizing the dance. The dance will be this Saturday, October 15th starting at 8 p.m. This will no doubt be a great opportunity for all students to get together and create a more unified environment while having fun!

8.3. Superintendent's Report

Discussion: Superintendent Johnson followed up on items mentioned at the September Board Meeting. Free lighting - all three providers were contacted (BPPD, NPPD & OPPD) and they do not offer a free EnergyWise program to schools. Consolidation of printers - our current contract expires within a year and we intend to develop a new plan going forward that will eliminate several printers and attempt to standardize in a reasonable and affordable manner. Concern with fire alarm in Valparaiso - no current issues but will need to be updated if any renovation is done. Facility master planning - facilities continue to be maintained as we explore other options. As we move forward, there will be differences of opinion, however, everyone is encouraged to be respectful and not look for conflict.

8.3.1. NASB Monthly Update

8.3.2. Important Upcoming Dates:

8.3.3. Discuss the Superintendent Evaluation process and timeline

8.4. Facilities Report

8.5. Review of Technology Plan

Attachments: (1)

October Tech Report

10/10/2022 at 9:11 PM

Discussion:

Submitted by Jaxn Kobza, Technology Director
Infrastructure

Finishing up Ruckus Virtual Smartzone project.
- This will allow us to own our own licensing and save money with renewals for Ruckus licensing.
Working on getting an idea of what we have in our network and creating a solid inventory.

Technology Projects

Getting E-gold fax setup at all schools. This is cheaper and more flexible for our needs than typical analog faxing.
Working on Building a 7 year plan for all technology rotations and system implementations.
Looking at new websites and mass communication platforms.

Issues/Concerns

Working on securing our network and meeting the requirements for cyber insurance.
Still waiting for our servers to be built to start that project.

8.6. Board Committee Reports

8.6.1. Committee on American Civics (Breitkreutz-chair, Burklund, Matulka)

8.6.2. Transportation Committee (Breitkreutz-chair, Lange, Matulka)

8.6.3. Finance Committee (Blanchard-chair, Breitkreutz, Burklund)

8.6.4. Facilities Committee (Blanchard-chair, Burklund, Matulka)

8.6.5. Negotiations Committee (Blanchard-chair, Gould, Lange)

8.6.6. Curriculum Committee (Gould-chair, Burklund, Lange)

8.6.7. Policy Committee (Gould-chair, Lange, Matulka)

8.7. Review Public Forum Presentation(s) - Consider, discuss, and take anll necessary action

9. Old Business

9.1. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action regarding next steps with master facility planning

Discussion: BVH architect, Cleve Reeves, reviewed the four potential scenarios for facility improvement including an estimated cost of those projects. Craig Jones from First National Capital Markets spoke about possible financing and levy impact if we were to move forward with a project requiring a new bond. The next Patron Committee Meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 17 to further discuss next steps with master facility planning.

10. New Business

10.1. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve an early graduation request

Attachments: (1)

Request for Early Graduation

9/21/2022 at 11:29 AM

Discussion: Motion by Blanchard, second by Burklund to approve the early graduation request of Zavier Jurgens-Miller. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.2. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve staff hires

Discussion: Motion to approve Celia Newman as FBLA Assistant; and Dr. Harriet Gould, Hannah Evans and Miranda Otte as Volunteer Sponsors of the Future Teachers Club. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.3. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve substitute teacher

Discussion: Motion by Burklund, second by Matulka to approve Michael Sterns as substitute teacher. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.4. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve RCEA as Exclusive Bargaining Agent for Non-Supervisory Certificated Staff

Attachments: (1)

Board Recognition Letter

9/14/2022 at 4:46 PM

Discussion: Motion by Breitkreutz, second by Burklund to approve the Raymond Central Education Association as Exclusive Bargaining Agent for the District’s non-supervisory certificated staff for the 2024-2025 contract year. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.5. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve the surplus items

Discussion: Motion by Matulka, second by Breitkreutz to approve 23 iPads as surplus. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.6. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve the purchase of Aptegy software for website, rapid notification, and social media coordination

Attachments: (1)

Apptegy Quote_ 1 year agreement for mobile app and web development for Raymond Central Public Schools, Nebraska

9/30/2022 at 10:27 AM

Discussion: Motion by Breitkreutz, second by Lange to approve the purchase of Aptegy software for website, rapid notification, and social media coordination. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.7. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to allow Lancaster County Sheriff's to locate a gun safe on school premises to house arms while SRO is on site

Discussion: This item was tabled at this time.

10.8. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to approve the purchase of a used 2020 Thomas bus

Attachments: (2)

Raymond Central 2020 71 C2

10/8/2022 at 11:47 AM
Raymond Central 2024 71 C2 (1).docx

10/8/2022 at 11:47 AM

Discussion: Motion by Lange, second by Blanchard to approve the purchase of a used 2020 Thomas bus at a cost of $88,350.00 as compared to a new bus at $125,330.00 with almost a 2-year wait. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

10.9. Discuss, Consider and Take Necessary Action to consider adding additional custodial support

Attachments: (1)

Custodial Request

10/12/2022 at 3:59 PM

Discussion: Motion by Matulka, second by Lange to approve adding an additional custodian at the high school. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

11. Approval of Patron Committee Meeting on Monday, October 17 and Next Regular Board Meeting - Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Discussion: Motion by Lange, second by Matulka to approve next Patron Meeting on Monday, October 17, 2022 and Regular Board Meeting on Wednesday, November 16, 2022. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

12. Adjournment

Discussion: Motion by Matulka, second by Breitkreutz to adjourn the meeting at 8:30 PM. RCV 6-0. Motion carried.

October 12, 2022 at 6:00 PM - Board of Education Regular Meeting

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