April 2, 2012 at 6:30 PM - Board of Education Meeting

Rationale:  A motion will be necessary if a member of the elected Board is absent.

Rationale:  The Bellevue Board of Education abides by the Nebraska Open Meetings Law.  A copy of the law is posted on the wall of our Board room.

Rationale:  Approve by consent items in section B and C of the Agenda identified with an asterisk and receive the information and proposals in sections D and E identified with an asterisk.

Rationale:  The Minutes of the March 5, 2012, Board of Education meeting and the March 14, 2012, Board of Education Retreat were sent to all members of the Board of Education for review.

Rationale:  Acknowledge receipt of the Treasurer's Report for March, 2012.

Rationale:  Approve the payment of claims totaling $1,135,554.81.

Rationale:  Release (1) Lisa DeVries, (2) Kristina Hagerup, (3) Tina Heth, (4) Sarah Houston-Wiberg, (5) Erin Inselman, (6) Amanda Krivda, (7) Elizabeth Livingston, (8) Khara Malcom, (9) Robin McDermott, (10) Ryan Placek, (11) Shirley Raab, (12) Christine Schenk, (13) Meghan Schuff Zimmerman, (14) Terry Smith, and (15) Jodie Westfall from their contracts effective May 23, 2012.

Rationale:  Elect (1) Kimberly Bodensteiner, (2) Shannon Heilbrun, (3) Cynthia Murray, and (4) Kristine Sextro to the certified staff for the 2012-13 school year effective August 9, 2012, subject to their release from any contractual agreements with other school districts.

Rationale:  Grant (1) Kristen Kirkelie and (2) Jennifer VanRooyen a leave of absence without pay effective August 9, 2012, through May 23, 2013.

Rationale:  The recommendation is to approve the Professional Continuing Contract Plan for the summer of 2012 and the 2012-2013 school year.

Nebraska law requires all certified staff members in Bellevue Public Schools to accumulate six hours of professional growth within a six-year period.  Bellevue offers extensive opportunities for certified staff to earn hours through our Continuing Contract Unit (CCU) program. 

A list of the activities recommended for Board approval is included in the attachment.

Rationale:  Board of Education Goal 4.2 is to participate in discussions and priority setting for technology needs with the purpose of creating a technology plan. 

Tonight, Greg Boettger, Director of Technology, will present the proposed plan from the Technology Implementation Committee.

A copy of the proposed Technology Plan is attached.

Rationale:  Marching band uniforms at Bellevue East and Bellevue West High Schools have been replaced on a ten year cycle.  The 2011-2012 school year is the tenth year for the current uniforms at both schools.  The band directors have worked with the athletic directors to solicit designs and quotes from multiple suppliers.  Since the design chosen is copyrighted and therefore only available from one vendor, a sealed bid process is impracticable.  Both high schools have selected designs from Fred J. Miller Inc.

The recommendation is to authorize the purchase of band uniforms for both Bellevue East and Bellevue West from Fred J. Miller Inc. for a cost not to exceed $175,000.

Rationale: 

In December the Elementary HAL students had the opportunity to write for authentic audiences as they participated in a writers' workshop. Mallory Weigel, a fifth grade student at Twin Ridge, placed first in the Paul A. Witty Writing Contest. Her prose entry was entitled "Imaginary." In addition, Mahala Bush, a fifth grade student at Belleaire, and Eden Liebenthal, a sixth grader at Central, wrote pieces for the Writers' Conference Contest. Mahala placed second in the essay division and Eden placed third in the poetry division. Sean McDonald, a fourth grade student at Leonard Lawrence, received honorable mention in the Totem Head Writing Contest. Three other students wrote a vocabulary puzzlers called chain links and submitted them to Creative Kids Magazine. All three will be published in the magazine sometime within the next 6 issues. These students are Elyse Splichal and Alissa Schroeder from Two Springs, and Avery Haselden from Fort Crook.

The second WordMaster Challenge took place in February and the sixth grade HAL Team 1 took third place nationally with a score of 189 out of a possible 200 at the national level.  Alexandrea Welch, a sixth grade student at Wake Robin, scored a perfect 20. She was one of only 14 in the nation to do so. Other students with outstanding scores were Dalton Fischer, Eden Liebenthal, Morgan McArthur, Alissa Schroeder, Mia Thomas, Grace Wilson, Kailey Woerner and Asja Woodard. This team is coached by Sandra Sykora. Nik Nikumen, a fifth grade student from Central, scored two perfect scores. He is the only student this year with two perfect scores.

Rationale:  Bellevue West Show Choirs competed in the Omaha North Show Choir Competition on Saturday, March 17. Bellevue West Explosion Show Choir took second place in the Prep division. The West Connection Show Choir took second place in the AA division and was 4th runner up in the finals. Three of the five judges placed them in the second runner up position.

Rationale: 

Bellevue middle school students competed in the 13th annual PI Day Math Competition hosted by Logan Fontenelle Middle School on March 14. Teams of 7th and 8th graders competed in three events: Vocabulary, Sprint, and General Math. Logan Fontenelle was the overall winner and they took control of the traveling trophy. The Logan 8th grade Team D was the top scorer in the 8th grade and Mission 7th grade Team A the top scorer in the 7th grade. 

Logan Fontenelle team members were Saint Alea Bilyeu, Emily Brandon, Emily Moss, and Robbie Harbin.  Mission team members were Kelly Speltz, Samantha Seaman, and Paige Haskins. The members of these two teams won a certificate for a pie, thanks to the generosity of Village Inn. 

In the 7th grade, Mission Team 7-A won first place in Vocabulary and General Math and tied for third place in the Sprint Round.  Mission 7-Team B won third place in Vocabulary, tied for third place in the Sprint Round, and won fifth place in General Math.  Team members were Jared Swift, Dalton Gamache, and Logan Wood.  Logan Team 7-E won first place in the Sprint Round and second place in General Math.  Team members were Morgan Gallagher, Jennifer Hinman, and Deanna Dymond.  Logan Team 7-C won second place in the Sprint Round and fourth place in Vocabulary.  Team members were Jessica Rupp, Baxter Knee, and Alexis Walther.  Logan Team 7-A won third place in General Math and fifth place in Vocabulary. Team members were Justin Matson, Ramon Gutierrez, James Earl, and Sam Beste.  Logan Team 7-F won fourth place in General Math.  Team members were Jessica Henry, Chris Marx, and Tristan Caffrey.  Logan Team 7-B won sixth place in both the Sprint Round and Vocabulary.  Team members were Nathaniel Raffety, Caleb Williams, and Nick Schwindt.  Lewis and Clark Team 7-B won second place in Vocabulary.  Team members were Alex Seigel, Jacob Banks, Addison Gangwish, and Trey Taggart.  Lewis and Clark Team 7-E won fifth place in the Sprint Round.  Team members were Brandon Simms, Daniel Young, Dolan States, and Xedrix Barbeyto.  Lewis and Clark Team 7-D won sixth place in General Math.  Team members were Emma Larson, Karen Goeschel, Audrey Lausterer, and Bethany Dart.

In the 8th grade, Logan Fontenelle Team 8-D won first place in the Sprint Round, third place in General Math, and fourth place in Vocabulary. Logan Team 8-B won first place in Vocabulary and fifth place in General Math.  Team members were Michael Kochera, Casey Jones, Brooklyn Mussman, and Tejiri Smith.  Logan Team 8-E won fourth place in General Math and sixth place in the Sprint Round and in Vocabulary.  Team members were Bre Surratt, Brysen Gantt, Alec Stroud, and Roger Norton. Lewis and Clark Team 8-F won first place in General Math and fourth place in the Sprint Round.  Team members were James Smith, Vincent Larson, and Scott Williams.  Lewis and Clark Team 8-D won second place in the Sprint Round and in Vocabulary and sixth place in General Math.  Team members were Grace Glotfelty, Nicole Koenigsman, Katrina Nesbit, and Brandi Shapland.  Lewis and Clark 8-C won second place in General Math, third place in Vocabulary, and fifth place in the Sprint Round.  Team members were Logan Van Antwerp, Zachary Vincent, Brenna Treanor, and Andrew Haggerty.  Lewis and Clark Team 8-B won fourth place in Vocabulary.  Team members were Dillon Hike, Dayne Thomas, Mitchell Seigel, and Cameron Hessler.  Mission Team 8-B won third place in the Sprint Round.  Team members were Victoria Garcia, Kennedy Evans, and Michael Lohrman.

 

Rationale:  Bellevue Envirothon Teams competed in the 2012 Metro Nebraska Envirothon Regional Tournament on March 7 at Chalco Hills. Teams compete in the areas of Forestry, Aquatics, Wildlife, Soil, Policy, Range and Special Topic which this year is “Nonpoint Pollution Source/Low Impact Development." Bellevue West Team D and Bellevue West Team E qualified to advance to the Nebraska State Tournament on May 5 in Halsey, Nebraska.  At the regional tournament, Bellevue West Team D won first place in Policy.  Team members are Maxwell Lydiatt, Cole Burmeister, Daniel Moses, and Matthew Kruger. Bellevue West Team E tied for first place in Special Topics.  Team members are Zach Williams, Alex Gangwish, Ashley Weed, and Erica Dalen. The teams are coached by Bradley Nord and Britton Sullivan.

Rationale: 

Bellevue students competed in the 2012 Durham Museum Nebraska History Day Regional Tournament on March 14-15.  Middle school students competed in the Junior Division and high school students competed in the Senior Division.  The following students qualified to advance to the Nebraska State Tournament which will be held on Saturday, April 21, at Wesleyan University in Lincoln. 

In the Junior Division, Justin Godwin won first place in Individual Web Site.  His topic was “The Higgins Boat” (also known as the Landing Craft, Vehicle, and Personnel-LCVP).  This landing craft was used extensively in amphibious landings in World War II.  The inventor, Andrew J. Higgins, was born in Columbus, NE.  Krizzel Soratorio won first place in Individual Exhibit.  Her topic was the 1918 Influenza Epidemic.  Her exhibit was titled “In Flew Enza” after a popular children’s song from the time.  Dominick Lewis won first place in Individual Documentary.  His topic was “Reconnaissance SR 71” and covered the history of the SR 71 “Blackbird," an advanced, long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft.  Megan Mueller and Nick Ciurej won third place in the Group Exhibit category.  Their project was about the S.A.F.E.R. Barrier (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction).  This was a safety initiative designed to absorb kinetic energy released when a race car makes contact with the wall. It was designed by a team of engineers led by Dr. Dean Sicking at the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, University of Nebraska-Lincoln in collaboration with NASCAR and the Indy Racing League.  All of these students attend Mission Middle School and are coached by Brent Myers.

In the Senior High Division, Daniela Cortes won second place in Individual Performance.  Her topic was “Special Education Law."  Talia Duran, Aurora Kenworthy, Samantha Ramming, and Abby Ferrante won third place in Group Interpretive Web Site.  Their topic was “Presidential Press Coverage."  All of these students are from Bellevue West High School and are coached by Joli Munch.

The 2012 theme is “Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History."  Students may select to create documentaries, design web sites, create displays, write papers, or do a performance.

Rationale: 

Bellevue West forensics and debate teams performed at NFL Quals on February 24-25. Loriana Harkey placed seventh in Original Oratory. Ashley Weed placed fifth in Lincoln Douglas Debate. Renee Bracken & Jessica Stednitz were Quarterfinalists in Public Forum Debate. Austin Brown & Grant Harrison were Quarterfinalists in Public Forum Debate.

The forensics and debate teams joined forces and earned the NFL point’s trophy this year for the Nebraska South District. This trophy is awarded to the school that accumulates the most combined Speech and Debate points over the course of the last couple of years.

Becca Hier, coach of the forensics team, was awarded the Nebraska South Forensics Coach of the Year.

Rationale: 

Bellevue students participated in the February Newzbrain Current Events Challenge.  The Mission 7th grade team “Superninja Bananaphones” won first place in the nation in the 7th grade division out of 385 teams from 18 states.  The Bellevue West team “Dark Nord Sauron” won first in the nation in the high school division out of 34 teams from 6 states. The Bellevue East “Team Boyland” won third place in the nation in the high school division.

Members of the Mission 7th grade team were Kelly Speltz, Paige Haskins, Noah Sautter, Nolan Marshall, and Samantha Seaman.  Members of the Bellevue West team were Cole Burmeister, Maxwell Lydiatt, Zach Williams, Alex Gangwish, Andy Peterson, and Kevin Hanna.  Members of the Bellevue East team were Roosevelt Boyland, Ryan Boyland, Dan Gleason, Tim Rolling, and Zach Smith.

The NewzBrain Challenge consists of 50 questions about the news of the previous four weeks.  Teams have 30 seconds to answer each multiple-choice question.  Questions are drawn from national news, international news, sports, entertainment, science, and consumer news items of the month.

Rationale: 

The Bellevue Science Olympiad teams competed in the annual Henry Doorly Zoo Science Olympiad Regional Tournament on Saturday, February 25.  Teams from all over eastern Nebraska competed in either the Senior High division or the Middle School division.

The Mission Middle School team won first place in Awesome Aquifers, Experimental Design, Thermodynamics, Meteorology, Optics, Astronomy, Rocks & Minerals, and Water Quality; third place in Anatomy and Forestry; fourth place in Crime Busters and Disease Detectives; and fifth place in Endangered, Exotic, and Extinct.  Team members were Kirsten Hall, Sydney Hanson, Mary Francis Laporte, Monica Pham, Chloe Schwarting, Tommy Casart, Trevor Fellbaum, Andrew Nelson, Michelle Ruzicka, Krizzel Soratorio, Paige Haskins, Jonathan Jenkins, Alex Molnar, Samantha Seaman, and Kelly Speltz.  The team is coached by Melody Kjerstad and Norma Thompson.

The Lewis and Clark Middle School team won first place in Anatomy, Crime Busters, Dynamic Planet, and Forestry; second place in Disease Detectives, Experimental Design, and Astronomy; fourth place in Awesome Aquifers and Water Quality; and fifth place in Meteorology, Optics, and Rocks and Minerals.  Team members were Talia Duran, Delaney Jackson, Aurora Kenworthy, Hanna Warak, Samantha Ramming, Xedrix Barbeyto, Callie Pancoe, Celeste Kenworthy, Brenna Treanor, Alex Wheeler, Sierra Karst, Mitchell Siegel, Audrey Lausterer, Sarah Zawistowski, Elaine Stueve, and Nathan Beyer.  The team is coached by Kristin Kuhn and Charles Owen.

The Logan Fontenelle Middle School team won first place in Disease Detectives; second place in Anatomy, Crime Busters, Forestry, Thermodynamics, and Optics; third place in Awesome Aquifers; fourth place in Astronomy and Endangered, Exotic, and Extinct; and fifth place in Water Quality. Team members were Beth Alexander, Caleb Wagner, Daniela Cortes, Henamari Ybay, Della Wilson, Brooklyn Mussman, Brenna Schmader, Tejiri Smith, Casey Jones, Abby Muraski, Michael Kochera, Taylor Billington, Rachel Alexander, and Tim Trojanowski. The team is coached by Christine Daniels and Christopher Casart.

The Bellevue West team won first place in Fermi Questions and second place in Optics, Astronomy, and Remote Sensing; third place in Endangered, Exotic, Extinct; fourth place in Dynamic Planet, Forestry, and Water Quality; and fifth place in Microbe Mission, Anatomy, and Disease Detective.  Team members were Brad Schrag, Michelle Pham, Ashley Weed, Nicole McElroy, Aaron Kruger, Kevin Hanna, Matt Thompson, Matt Kruger, Daniel Moses, Lauren Garcia, Sarah Bethel, Sarah Bigge, Emily Vokal, Cole Burmeister, Zach Williams, and Max Lydiatt.  The team is coached by Bradley Nord and Britton Sullivan.

The Bellevue East team won first place in Thermodynamics; second place in Forestry; third place in Dynamic Planet; fourth place in Technical Writing and Protein Modeling; and fifth place in Optics.  Team members were Brianna Boehne, Roosevelt Boyland, Zach Smith, Henry McNamara, Nathan Duffy, Rebecca Zawistowski, Sarah Sindelar, and Gage Boyce.  The team is coached by Derek Babb and David Bossman.

Rationale:  Bellevue high school students participated in the 21st annual Bellevue University Quiz Bowl on Friday, March 2.  Bellevue West Team A won the tournament.  Team members were Cole Burmeister, Kenneth Cotton, Maxwell Lydiatt, and Jacob Wilkinson. Each team member won a $1500 scholarship to Bellevue University. Thirty-two teams from thirty high schools in eastern Nebraska participated in the quiz bowl.  The winning Bellevue West team was coached by Bradley Nord.

Rationale:  The Bellevue East AFJROTC Drill Team attended the 16th Annual AFJROTC Drill Meet at Blue Springs South High School in Blue Springs, Missouri, on March 3. Results were: Armed Categories: Exhibition, 3rd place; Unarmed Categories: Regulation, 5th place; Exhibition, 2nd place; Color Guard, 5th place and Individual Drill Down, Erica Bradley, 4th place.

Rationale:  The Lewis and Clark Scouts’ Jazz Band competed at the UNO Great Plains Jazz Festival and received a superior rating.  The following students received solo awards: Jake Gasparovich, Alto Sax; Logan Pettit, Tenor Sax; Logan VanAntwerp, Trombone; Vincent Larson, Trumpet; Cameron Hessler, Trumpet; Alex Wheeler, Piano; and Brandon Robbins, Trap Set. 

Rationale:  Chelsea Mason of Bellevue West received the 2012 Boys & Girls Club of the Midlands/ Nebraska Army National Guard Class A Girls “Player of the Year.” Chelsea will be honored on April 7, 2012, at Benson High School during half-time of the High School Girls All–Star Basketball Game, 6:30 p.m.

Rationale:  Fairview Elementary School students competed in the 2012 Nebraska Scholastic Chess Team Championships in February and placed third in K-3 and K-6 divisions. Team members are: Cameron Baker, Christopher Baker, Alex Boerner, William Duralia, William Dunkleman, Randall Kim, Daniel Stedronsky, Joseph Stedronsky, Michael Taken, and Gabriel Whitt.

Rationale:  Bellevue students competed in the Nebraska State EconChallenge Tournament Finals on Friday, March 23, at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  The Bellevue East Team Gold won the David Ricardo Division of the tournament out of 104 teams. Team members were Ryan Boyland, Dalilo Alconini, George Timmins, and Elizabeth Alexander.  The David Ricardo Division is for those students who have had a semester or less of Economics.  Also in the David Ricardo Division, the Bellevue East Team Orange won second place in the state. Team members were Jamie Frangoulis, Joshua Jones, Kyle Camplin, and Noah Madrigal.  The Bellevue West team finished in seventh place in the David Ricardo state finals. Team members were Garrett Shafer, Kirsten Kingston, Brandon Pecka, and Erik Anderson.  In the advanced Adam Smith Division, the Bellevue East Team Silver won fourth place out of 32 teams who initially competed.  Team members were Brianna Boehne, Sam Ervin, Justin McCully, and Alexander Campbell.  Also in the Adam Smith Division, the Bellevue West Team 1 won sixth place.  Team members were Calvin George, Charlie Fisher, Andrew Wentz, and David Brown.  The Bellevue East Team Yellow won seventh place in the Adam Smith Division. Team members were Andrea Kepford, Victoria Trojanowski, Korey Villaflor, and Scott Walker.  Teams are tested on Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, and International Economics. The Bellevue East teams are coached by PK Simmons and the Bellevue West teams are coached by Brad Nord and Robin Kratina.

Rationale: 

Bellevue East and West DECA students competed in the 65th annual State Career Development Conference March 15-17, 2012. The students presented a variety of projects, gave speeches and took written tests. Students from both high schools took home awards and qualified for Nationals.

Bellevue East: Elise Holdawa, Ciera Vogal, and Allison Pilmaier, Public Relations Project, second place; Kayla Blackwell, Alexis Bedore, and Tyler Gesser, Community Service Project, second place; Chris Murphy and Preston Narrett, Sports and Entertainment Team Decision Making, second place; and Megan Manheim, Quick Serve Restaurant Management, second place.

Bellevue West: Taryn Derickson, Taylor Boryca, and Taylor Kuhlman, Community Service, first place; Jennifer Will, Amy Dryden, and Ashely Dryden, Creative Marketing, first place; Brandon Matuszak, Entreprenuership Franchising, first place; Maya Brown, Teri Harris and Jacob Mizener, Entreprenuership Promotion Plan, first place; Bryan Brunson, Josue Rodriguez, and Emilie Pechacek, Financial Literacy Promotion Plan, first place; Heather Dedeaux, Fashion Merchandising Promotion Plan, first place; Maggie Dailey, Valerie Targy, and James Teutschmann, Learn and Earn Project, first place; Christopher Clark, Personal Selling Event, first place; Chrissi Beaulieu, Apparel and Accessories Marketing, first place; Bryan Brunson, Automobile Services Marketing, first place; Ryan Scobey and Shelby Ehle, Advertising Campaign, second place; Jordan Ruth, Mason Allen, and Kayleigh Oxford, Creative Marketing, second place; Brittany Morrow and Garrett Schaeffer, Hospitality and Recreation Research Project, second place; Zach Dibble, Sports and Entertainment Promotion Plan, second place; Andre Gould, Haelee Kowalski, and Kyle Ofe, Buying and Merchandising Research Project, third place; Jessica Leibert, Christian Sidener, and Andrea Garcia, Business Operations Research, third place; Kathryn Radosta and Jaycee Stephens, Marketing Communications Team Event, third place; Sarah Bethel, Principals of Finance, third place; and Andy Turnbull, Retail Merchandising, third place. Leadership Academy recipients: Jessica Stednitz, Rebecca Walter, Rachel Williamson, and Katherine Wilson. Emily Donald, Central Region VP Officer Candidate, Mackenzie Hoffer, Central Region VP Campaign Manager, and Claire Lapke, Central Region VP Campaign Manager. 

Rationale:  As a part of the AdvancED District Accreditation process and in accordance with Nebraska Rule 10, each school building in the Bellevue Public Schools must participate in an ongoing, continuous school improvement process.  School staff analyze student performance data to plan and implement strategies to continually move the school toward improvement and increased student performance levels.

Tonight, Betz Principal Jacci Lucas and members of the Betz staff will present some of the structures, strategies, and activities they are implementing in their building's ongoing school improvement process.

Rationale:  The kindergarten registration process for 2012-2013 began the week of February 27.  This is an opportunity for parents to register their children for kindergarten and children to see their new school and meet the teachers.  To date, 453 of the projected 794 students have registered for kindergarten.

The age of entrance date has changed for the 2012-2013 school year.  According to state law, children will need to be 5 years of age on or before July 31, 2012.

Rationale:  The second semester Parent/Student/Teacher conferences were held the week of March 19.  The purpose of the conferences is to communicate student progress with the ultimate goal of improving student learning.  Students are encouraged to attend the conferences and share portfolios, discuss progress towards reaching essential objectives, and share personal goals for performance.  Conferences are also an excellent time to work with parents on surveys, register for AP exams, and to offer parent programs on Internet Safety, College 101, etc.

At the elementary level, 94.8% of our parents and 87% of our students participated in the formal conferences.  At the secondary level, approximately 67.6% of our middle school and 49.5% of our high school parents participated in the conferences.

Rationale:  The State of Nebraska provides funds to purchase and loan textbooks to private school children.  The Bellevue Public Schools received 235 applications for the loan of 890 textbooks for the 2012-2013 school year.  Eight hundred twenty-three of these requests will be filled from existing inventory purchased in previous years.  An application was submitted to the State of Nebraska for $3,690.07 to purchase and loan the remaining 67 books.  The full amount was received from the state, providing funding for 100% of the planned purchases.

Rationale:  Attached are revised Board Policies, 402.10, Political Activities, and 403.09, Employees Serving on Commissions, Boards, and Committees.  These policies are submitted for review at tonight's meeting with approval of the policies scheduled for the May Board of Education meeting.

Rationale:  An oral report will be provided on the recent meetings of the Learning Community.

Rationale:  April 12, PTA/PTSA Life Membership Dinner, Lied Activity Center, 6:00 pm
April 25, Secretary/Paraprofessional Day
May 1, District Retirement Tea, West High, 3:30 pm
May 5, Adult Education Graduation, West High, 10:00 am
May 7, Board of Education Meeting, Welcome Center, 6:30 pm

Rationale:  Adjourn to executive session to consider matters relating to strategy sessions with respect to personnel which are necessary to be considered in closed session for the protection of the public interest and for the prevention of needless injury to the reputation of individuals.