Board meeting notes submitted by Dustin Barnes

The Tarkio R-I Board of Education held its regular monthly meeting Monday, May 15, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. in the central office of the Tarkio R-I School District. Members present were Brooke Vette, Amy Hurst, Raymond Gebhards, Sam Hannah, Jamie Barnett, Josh Wright, and Corey Martin.

District Obligations

The consent agenda was approved. It included the following items: The minutes from the April 15 regular meeting and closed session meetings and the special board meeting from April 19, transfer of funds to pay certified teachers, program evaluations for the PAT Program, and District Curriculum; hired Mrs. Twilla Clark as a half-time special education teacher, Mrs. Shannon Bruns as assistant girls’ golf coach, and Mr. Casey Martin as summer maintenance support; the extra duty pay schedule for 2024-25 with adjustments from the April meeting, with the base at $38,100 (this will be adjusted with the adoption of the new salary schedule in June); the 2024-25 contract with Tarkio Tech; recommended policy updates covering student attendance, administration of medication at school, personal leave, and curriculum services related to ELL, and the 2024-25 ACES contract.

District Obligations

The district financial reports were presented for the month and the board approved the bills for the month. A three-year utility report was provided that showed continued decreases in the high school utility bills.

Communications

The TAC and CTA reports for the month of May were presented. The Career Ladder Committee gave a 2023-24 summary report.

Administration Reports

Mr. Barnes reported on the elementary, facility and technology updates. Attendance was 94.98% up to this point of the year. Summer school sign up is completed with 59 students enrolled. Map testing was completed the week of April 29. Several teachers finished their LETRS training this year and various others are entering year one or two next year. Elementary field day was held on May 8. Three teachers, Ms. Taylor, Ms. Steele and Mrs. Dow, finished up their EMS Math Specialty Program. Step up day took place on May 15. The last day of school will be Tuesday, May 21. Elementary awards assembly will be held May 21. Leadership teams and PD Committee will meet with RPDC and DCI on Wednesday, May 22, to complete planning for PD For next year. They are finishing up curricular requests as well as furniture and technology purchases.

Mr. Dodson submitted a junior high and high school report which included the following information. Highlights included: total junior high/high school enrollment is 162 students and overall attendance is 94.82. FFA attended the State Convention this past month. FFA Ag day was held for the elementary. Several kids went to the state music festival and came away with some gold and silvers. MAP and EOC assessments were completed May 1-7. Seniors had their job shadow day. Senior awards assembly was held May 10 and graduation was May 12. Odd hour finals will be given on May 20 and even hour finals on May 21. The last day of school will be May 21. Teacher PD Day is May 22.

Mr. Heddinger gave the following report:

MSBA Summary – Missouri Emergency Operation Plan tool is available for the 2024-25 school year and is free to school districts. Mr. Heddinger reported that the school district currently has an emergency plan in place and utilizes the Crisis Go app as a communication tool in the event of an emergency. Given Tarkio’s situation there is no need to pursue the MOEOP tool option. MSBA Summer Summit will be June 24 and 25 in Branson. The delegate assembly will take place during this same time period.

• Building and Grounds Update – The geothermal rebate process continues to move forward. The pre-filing registration process is 95% completed. The goal is to have this completed in the next two weeks. RSM did confirm that the district can anticipate a rebate in the range of $1,000,000 based on 30% reimbursement rate. The district may still qualify for an additional 10% based on other criteria that is being determined. This would add an additional $300,000 to the rebate. The multi-purpose room at the Tarkio Activity Center was flooded on May 6 and 7. This has been turned into insurance and ServePro was hired to complete a 100% mitigation cleaning process. The district will also be turning in with this insurance claim the purchase of some new wrestling mats and possibly new cheerleading mats.

• DESE Update – The AMI Plan for 2024-25 was submitted as required. He is currently working on getting some reimbursement from DESE for various trainings teachers have completed this past year.

• Welfare and Benefits Committee – Tarkio is currently in the middle of the open enrollment period for staff to enroll with MET (new insurance provider). Under the consent agenda the Board approved two changes to Policy 4320 – Personal Leave. The first change adds a separate category to cover bereavement leave and how that is handled. The other change increases the number of sick days that can be accumulated from 60 to 75. The updated salary schedules and district insurance contributions will be approved at the June meeting.

• Legislative Update – SB 727 passed, and Governor Parson signed it into law on May 9. There was a big push by MSBA, MASA, MARE, and other educational organizations to persuade the governor to veto the bill. It has been shared that there are some good parts to this bill and some not so good parts. The biggest concern right now is not this upcoming school year or even the 2025-26 school year. The issue is beyond that and the many unfunded mandates that will be required under this legislation. School districts will be facing financial challenges which will require tough decisions, i.e. going to the voters to increase the levy, cutting programs, cutting staff, freezing salaries are all possibilities. This will be a continued topic for the next several months.

• MOSIS and Core Data Submissions – The June Student Core Submission for MOSIS is the big one that wraps the year all together. This is due by June 30 and their goal is to have it completed by mid-June.

• Agenda Items for the June Board Meetings – Mr. Heddinger shared the agenda items for the June meeting with the board. These include – Approving of the 2024-25 Preliminary Budget, BOE Meeting Schedule for 2024-25, Transportation Rates for 2024-25, All Salary Schedules for 2024-25, Vo-Tech Transportation for 2024-25, Meal Prices for 2024-25, All Handbooks, Adopt Policy 0342 – Conflict of Interest and set the Tax Rate Hearing for August 21, 2024.

• The Board of Education will hold its next meeting June 19 at 7:00 p.m. in the superintendent’s office and August 21, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. in the superintendent’s office. The August 21 meeting will also be the tax rate hearing. There will be no meeting in July.

Old Business

Mr. Barnes gave his monthly presentation of the CSIP to the board. This month the topic was Functional and Safe Facilities. This was an information item only.

New Business

Mr. Barnes and Mr. Dodson shared with the board information regarding student handbook changes for the 2024-25 school year. This was an informational item and the board will take action on these recommendations at the June board meeting.

The board approved the bid for a new freezer. There were three bids received – P1, Eickemeyer Refrigeration, and Titan Marketing. The bid from Titan Marketing was unanimously approved.

The board approved the summer maintenance work list.

Executive Session

The board met in closed session to discuss personnel matters. The executive session adjourned at 8:47 p.m.

The meeting adjourned at 8:48 p.m.