School board regroups, discusses money woes, district improvements

Moberly School Board Secretary Trudie Barnett swears in school board members Jeff Lawrence, left, and Bobby Riley, right, during Monday night’s board meeting.

Janet Morales, Moberly Mirror

The Moberly board of Education underwent reorganization at its meeting Monday night but no changes took place as members Bobby Riley and Jeff Lawrence retook their positions on the board after winning re-election April 6.

Officers remain: Les Keleher, president; Lawrence, vice president; Ken Asbury, treasurer; Lisa Vanderburg, MSBA representative; Amy Hager, alternative representative; and Trudie Barnett, secretary.

Representatives of CTA and NEA spoke asking for continued open communication and consideration of the best interests of all students as budget cuts are considered.

The board voted to table the formulation of funding resolutions until more research could be done. Vanderburg told the group that the resolutions are voted upon at the annual meeting held in the fall. This information gives MSBA’s three lobbyists their “marching orders”, she said, as they go to the capitol.

Vanderburg pointed out that our district will have a new state representative next year and they need to be kept abreast of issues vital to the school district.

“They haven’t been school board members,” said Vanderburg. “They need to know how important it is.”

Penny said state legislation regarding funding is going to hurt the district more than anticipated.

“There are 152 districts, of which we are not one, that are not impacted. Those districts are said to be ‘hold harmless’. In 2005 when the new formula was implemented, it was determined these districts couldn’t receive less money than they had previously. With $43 million in state cuts, the hold harmless districts are not shouldering their part. It becomes an equity equality issue.”

Penny said the Moberly district had faced losing a total of $228,000 in revenue but with the Senate first round approval to the school funding phase-in adjustment, that number may only be $170,000.

At the state level, Penny said $13 million has been proposed to be cut from the Parents As Teachers program and career ladder, which Moberly doesn’t have, will be impacted. He said summer school will likely be next.

“There are a lot of things the state is taking a hard look at,” said Penny. “We won’t know until May 7 at the earliest. It’s good we’ve taken the steps we have.”

Grounds maintenance

Tim Wetrich, director of maintenance, gave a PowerPoint presentation showing where concrete work has been done near the ball fields and the stadium. He explained there had been a stadium water leak. Cameras were run 160 feet from the old concession area. The leak was found within one foot so they didn’t have to dig up too much of the new concrete to make repairs, said Wetrich. There is some controversy over the cause of the leak and Wetrich said the camera showed some joints are “skeptical” and may cause problems in the future.

Wetrich reported on the gravel work done near the track area. MATC students were given the opportunity to help with the project to learn about grading. Wetrich said it cleaned up the discus area so student athletes don’t have to walk in the mud.

Wetrich said other areas receiving concrete work include the middle school band room exit, where instruments had, at times, been loaded in the mud, and the MHS entrance to the locker room was extended out on the sides slightly.

The cost of the project is approximately $375,000. Penny said some monies were taken from the general fund and placed into capital improvements to help pay for the upgrade work. He was quick to point out that donations also go toward the stadium improvements.

Another issue regarding sports facilities was brought to the attention of the board. While they have never been a safety issue, according to Kenny Seifert, activities director, breaker boxes used to turn on the lights at the ball fields need to undergo greater scrutiny regarding safety issues. The boxes are high voltage, according to Keleher. Until this can be addressed, he said, breaker boxes need to be kept locked and staff needs to undergo training to reduce the chance of electrical mishaps.

Staff reports

FACS

Linda Farris presented a report regarding the Family and Consumer Sciences program.

Farris said the program attracts many students because it teaches life skills such as problem solving, relating to others in positive and caring ways, managing resources and developing personal responsibility.

Farris said Jocelyn Hayslip, MHS FACS teacher, sponsors the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) organization. Some of the group’s outreach programs include baking cookies for the Moberly Police Department and fire department, holiday care packages sent to troops in Afghanistan, and valentines distributed to area nursing homes.

Farris noted the FACS classes at the middle school are working with appliances that are original to the 20-year-old building. She said they learn to work around the deficiencies, considering the budget crunch the district is under. However, Penny said they would try to upgrade some of those this summer.

Farris said she and Hayslip are forming a new FCS advisory committee to assist in planning, implementing and evaluating the program

TECHNOLOGY

Alan West, district technology coordinator, gave a PowerPoint presentation explaining what the technology department does for the district.

West said the department’s core responsibilities include maintaining the 1,400 computers, 21 servers, and numerous intercoms, telephones, surveillance equipment, security and safety of teachers and student, as well as software application.

A large portion of the department’s workload had been installing software for district personnel. A management software program was purchased, at an initial cost of $5,000, which allows them to do this work in a more efficient manner. The system also alerts West and his crew if a computer in the system is causing a problem.

“It saved us a lot of time and saved the district a lot of money,” said West.

Spam is another problem taken care of by specific software programs, said West. He explained, on average, 41,839 incoming emails are sent to the district’s 300 recipients each day. The district software blocks about 90 percent of spam that comes in.

The department also monitors network security, said West.

“Anything coming through the system, such as viruses, the program names them so I have a way of tracking them and taking care of them,” he said. “They (those sending viruses) are looking for information like Social Security numbers, account numbers. About 95 percent are from China.”

With computers added throughout the district, a new computer lab at the middle school, program updates and upgrading to make the district capable of virtual class work, among other things, West said the district has invested in technology, for this year alone, $368,634.50.

Penny told the group about the availability of podcasts created by teachers and virtual classrooms.

“We want to be a leader in online classes,” said Penny.

SUMMER SCHOOL

Kelley Speakar, director of special services, said plans have not been finalized for Title I Summer School this year. However, primary students in grades 1 – 2 would like meet at East Park and intermediate students in grades 3 – 5 would be at the middle school. Speakar said students would be grouped according to reading level instead of age level and more literacy intervention would take place.

Personnel

The following personnel changes were approved by the board: resignations – Luke Guyot, MMS; Mark Hawkins, MATC; and Jason Stanoch, MMS. Resignations become effective at the end of the 2010 contract period.

New hires include: Lauren Byington, MMS Communication Arts; Gretchen Carroll, MMS 8th grade Communication Arts; Cynthia Glen, North Park Special Education teacher; Amy Henke, MHS Language Arts; Gina Kennison, GBE 4th Grade Teacher; Jesarae Oliver, East Park ECSE/Title I Aide; and Courtney Tompson, JV Cheer Coach.

Other items

A number of middle school students were recognized for their accomplishments at the middle school science fair and Science Olympiads held in February.

“Moberly is a force to be reckoned with in science,” said Superintendent Mark Penny.

The board discussed the importance of improving communication with district parents, especially concerning the Parent Portal and other online aids.

The annual art show will be held at the high school from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Friday, in the library. The public is invited to vote for their favorite art pieces.