Legal Notice: November 20, 2013

 

REGULAR SCHOOL 
BOARD MEETING 
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2013 INDEPENDENT SCHOOL 
DISTRICT #881 
MAPLE LAKE, MN 
MINUTES
Board Members Present: Brad Neutz, Shelley McAlpine, Arnie Michalicek, Ben Elsenpeter, Shelly Liljequist, Richard Thomas and Joe Paumen
Others Present: Mark Redemske, David Hansen, Kris Harlan, Kristi Anderson and Gave Licht
1. Meeting called to order at 7:00 p.m
2. Pledge of Allegiance
3.“DISTRICT #881 IS PROUD OF”  
A. Athletic Teams
1. Andrew Schonnesen, Sommer Carlson and Halle Geyen for qualifying and participating in the State Cross Country Meet
2. The football team and coaches for winning the section championship and earning a State Tournament berth
3. The volleyball team and coaches for winning the section championship and earning a State Tournament berth
4. Recognition of visitors: Molly Thompson, Ryan Schmidt and Lisa Weninger
5. M/S  Paumen/Thomas – Motion to table the approval of the agenda and move to approve through the consent agenda. Motion carries 7-0.  M/S  McAlpine/Elsenpeter. Motion to approve the Agenda for the regular school board meeting held on Monday, November 12, 2013 with the addition of 7 A.1 and decisions about replacing Neutz on the board and his responsibilities beginning at item 8B. Motion carries 7-0.
6.  M/S McAlpine/Michalicek –  Motion to approve the Consent Agenda for the regular school board meeting held on Monday, November 12, 2013. Motion carries, vote was 6-0 with Neutz abstenting.
7. Unfinished Business 
A1. M/S Paumen/Elsenpeter – Motion to approve Brad Neutz’s resignation from the school board. Mr. Neutz has accepted a full-time position with the school district as the District Custodian. Motion carries, vote was 6-0 with Neutz abstenting. 
A. M/S McAlpine/Paumen – Motion to accept the annual financial audit as prepared by Schlenner, Wenner & Co. Molly Thompson presented the audit findings to the board. Fiscal Year 2013 revenues were down due to pupil unit decreases. Expenses came in close to budget. The unassigned fund balance decreased by $342,964, which was anticipated. Motion carries 6-0.
B. M/S Elsenpeter/Thomas – Motion to approve a School District Facebook page to be created and updated by Kelly Pribyl. The technology committee met and developed a Parent Facebook Notification Form for parents who do not want photos of their children posted on Facebook. This form will be sent home in the Wednesday envelopes. Motion Caries 6-0
C. M/S McAlpine/Paumen – Motion to approve an amendment to our 125 Flexible Benefits Plan to be consistent with applicable regulatory guidance, including IRS Revenue Ruling 2013-17. Roll call vote: McAlpine – yes, Michalicek – yes, Elsenpeter – yes, Liljequist – yes,  Thomas – yes, Paumen – yes. Motion Carries 6-0
D. Our October 31 enrollment figures show we are down six students from the budgeted enrollment in grades EC-12. The principals reported that three new students were enrolled this week.
8. New Business 
A. M/S Elsenpeter/McAlpine –  Motion to approve a tentative seniority list.  Staff is to review the seniority list, and final approval will be at the January 2014 board meeting. Motion carries 6-0.
B. M/S McAlpine/Paumen –  Motion to approve Arnie Michalicek as the Board Chair. Motion carries 6-0.
C. M/S Thomas/Elsenpeter –  Motion to approve Joe Paumen as the Vice Chair. Motion carries 6-0.
D. M/S Paumen/Thomas – Motion to fill the following committee positions: Building and Grounds-Ben Elsenpeter, Activities Committee-Shelly Liljequist, MASWECO-Richard Thomas, Food Service Committee-Shelley McAlpine. Motion carries 6-0.
E. The board directed Redemske and the board chair contact potential candidates with past board experience to fill Neutz’s board vacancy and present a name at the December board meeting.
9. Representative Reports
A. Neutz reported MAWSECO has been holding meetings at program sites. The last meeting was held at the Wright Technical Center so board members could tour the Cornerstones and Eastern Wright programs. He also reported discussions to follow at future meetings will include whether or not to expanded these programs. 
B. Redemske reported that the High School League will be implementing changes on how game workers are paid when a school district hosts a subsection or section playoff game.  
C. Liljequist reported on how well the Safe Schools meetings are attended and how important they are as networking tools between the city, school and county personnel.      
D. Redemske reported on a Schools for Equity in Education document that shows Maple Lake is 249th  out of 335 school districts in the 2013-2014 revenue rankings per pupil unit.
E. Paumen reported that the technology committee reviewed the Facebook page recommendation and prepared a form to be sent home to parents. 
F. Michalicek reported that Wright Tech Center will be hiring a Work Based Learning Coordinator, they employed TIES for their computer networking and are working on a 10% reduction in their energy costs.
G. Harlan reported on the Backpack Buddies program and the positive results this is having with the kids, staff and community. An anonymous donation has been accepted for Thanksgiving dinners to be delivered to all of our Backpack Buddies families.  
The Girls Scouts and the Holy Cross Church donated food items to the program. Several donations were accepted: a $1,000 grant from Operation Round Up and a $250 and a $100 cash donation. Twenty-five other families will receive Thanksgiving Baskets put together by the MLE special education staff with donations coming from the Lions and staff. A School of Excellence celebration is set for December 10, 2013. Parents will be invited, kids will receive a t-shirt and Zahler Photography has donated a banner. Look for the Slice of PIE newsletter in your Wednesday envelope highlighting the tidbits from this organization’s monthly meeting. Late start consisted of an autism speaker and PLCs.   
H. Hansen reported on the success of the cross country, volleyball and football teams and how well the athletes, coaching staff, fans and community have represented the school. Irish Pride celebrations took place for the 7th, 8th and high school students for positive behaviors and good academic performance. The Veterans’ Day celebration was well attended with positive comments from the veterans in attendance on how welcomed they felt from the students and staff. The drama students will be performing “Dracula” in the auditorium on November 15 and 16 at 7:01 and Sunday, November 17, at 3:01.
10. Committee Reports
A. Activities Committee: The activities committee met with all the fall coaches. It was well-attended by the coaching staff. Items discussed included the MSHSL upcoming payroll changes for the section game workers and the budget cuts to the athletic budgets over the years. 
11.  Set Meeting Dates-  No additional meetings were set.
12. Other Business
A. Thank-You Notes
B. Upcoming Meetings:
1. DLT meeting at 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday, November 19, 2013 in the Board Room
2. Schools for Equity in Education at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, November 22, 2013 in Minneapolis 
3. MAWSECO Board Meeting at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 19, 2013 in Howard Lake
4. Wright Tech Center Board Meeting at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 3, 2013 in Buffalo
5. Regular School Board Meeting in December at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, December 9, 2013 in the Board Room
6. Annual Truth in Taxation Hearing at 8:00 p.m. on Monday, December 9, 2013 in the Board Room
7. Recertification Meeting at 3:10 p.m. on Thursday, December 12, 2013
C. Miscellaneous Information:
1. Chamber of Commerce Meeting at 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 4, 2013
2. Late Start on Tuesday, December 10, 2013
13. M/S  McAlpine/Paumen – Motion to close the meeting at 8:52 for evaluation of the superintendent and to discuss contract negotiations. Motion carries 6-0.
14. Meeting re-opened at 9:22 p.m. M/S  McAlpine/Liljequist –  Motion to adjourn at 9:23 p.m. Motion carries 6-0.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristi Anderson
Shelley McAlpine
 

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