Murray County Central School Board met on Monday, February 12th. The agenda and the re-organizational and regular meeting minutes were approved. The first item on the agenda was the financials. All financials were reviewed with some clarifications and approved.
Superintendent Joe Meyer discussed the new hires. Matthew Keithahn, Custodian, started on February 12th. Toni O’Leary, Food Service - West started on January 23rd, and Camille Paulzine, Paraprofessional, started on February 7th. The board approved the new hire assignments unanimously.
Mr. Freeman, Elementary Principal, gave his report. Grades K-6th participated in the PBIS Sledding Day on January 23rd on the golf course. The event was a success. Mr. Freeman gave a shout-out to all the teachers and staff who helped put this together so quickly due to the rapid change in weather. He also thanked the Slayton Country Club for allowing them to use the golf course and Ludolph bus services for getting everyone to and from the event safely. Everyone had a great time.
There were 52 in attendance for the successful Winter Staff event. Everyone loved the dueling pianos. Friday, March 1st will be the 5th and 6th grade Activity Night from 6:00-9:00 pm. The location has changed to Central’s practice Gym. Instead of a dance, it will be DJ Bingo, among other things. A letter will be sent out either this week or next.
Mr. Freeman attended the MESPA Conference from Feb 7th to the 9th. This allowed him to gather a lot of great information and tools to implement at the elementary level as well as network with other principals. He also attended the Principal Mentorship seminar while there.
Mr. Scandrett, High School Principal, gave the board an update. He mentioned his attendance at the MESPA conference, that AI was a big topic of discussion, and how different districts are handling its use and putting safeguards in place. The Read Act was discussed primarily as mandatory training for high school teachers. Close attention is being paid to the legislature on the interpretation of teachers of English Language Arts Standards. ELA Standards also affect other areas of teaching, so there may be mandatory training for those teachers.
Mr. Scandrett gave a shoutout to Stacey Baedke, Student Council Advisor for all her hard work putting Snow Week together. It was a great success that wrapped up with the Winter Formal. Student/parentteacher conferences will occur on March 4th from 3:30 - 7:00 pm in the new gym. A shoutout to Sharon Johnson, who is keeping up to date on the latest changes to MCA testing, which begins in April.
Class registration meetings happened last week. Parents and students should receive those forms soon to register for next year’s classes. New offerings include a criminal justice class and an introduction to education, a college-level course. A new Agriculture Leadership class is also offered that will focus on communication and leadership within Agriculture.
Some free summer college classes will be offered for Sophomores and Juniors. The courses are Industrial Tech, Criminal Justice, and Human Relations. All of these courses are college-level.
The CEO Program is working on recruitment. There will be a Lunch and Learn for students on Thursday, February 15th, for any interested students. RTR is interested in joining the program. This is an ongoing conversation, and updates will be provided as they come.
There were 11 participants in the Spelling Bee on January 18th. The first-place winner was Holland Vogel. Second place went to Scott Broeckle. Holland Vogel also took first place at the Regional Spelling Bee and is now heading to the National Spelling Bee in Maryland.
Superintendent Joe Meyer gave his report. On January 13th and 14th, he attended the MESPA annual convention. The keynote address focused on Computer Science and AI. The emphasis should be to teach the children to use it as a resource tool.
School was canceled on January 12th due to the weather, which was an eLearning day. There are four eLearning days remaining. The 2024 Legislative session started on February 12th and runs through May 20th. Key issues are underfunding for school districts, staff shortages, and the new mandates that have been put into place.
Superintendent Joe Meyer will attend “Day at the Capitol” in St. Paul on March 6th to meet with local legislators.
The number of students/ teachers that Greg Schliedel, the Mental Health/Social Worker, has seen has increased since last month. This is for both students and teachers. He has been speaking to classes about the negative effects of Vaping. He is here two days a week and has made a significant impact in a short period of time. Mr. Scandrett strongly agreed. Meyer will attend the National Superintendents Convention on Education this week in San Diego. He recognized the school board for School Board Recognition Month and for all they do for the district.
Mr. Scandrett gave the AD/ Activities report. Winter activities are starting to wind down. The boys’ basketball record is 11-9, 8-4 in conference play. Senior parent night for the team will be February 26th. The girls’ basketball team is 8-15 and 5-10 in conference play. The wrestling team has received the fourth seed in the upcoming team tournament and will host the Arrows on Thursday, February 15th, at 7:00 pm in the MCC competition gym. Followed by an individual tournament on February 24th. The Senior Knowledge Bowl Team has two meets under their belt and is off to a great start. Congratulations to Mr. Harms and the cast and crew of the oneact play, The Last Illusion. MCC received a grant of $3,500 and will be used to place AED units at the baseball field and the track complex. The Spring Sports eligibility meeting will be held on March 4th in the MCC gym.
Next, the board went on to old business discussing the Tree removal bids. Superintendent Joe Meyer stated that there were two bids for $2,100. The only difference is that Peschges would do the stump grinding and removal and the other company would not. The board approved to move forward with Peschges for the tree removal.
New business was next on the agenda. The 2024-2025 school calendar was the first item of discussion. Superintendent Joe Meyer discussed the changes to the calendar. The biggest change would be to move back to trimesters for the K-6th grades. Mr. Freeman agrees with the advantages of making this change. EA reviewed the calendar and agreed. There are cost savings and educational benefits for making this change. The board voted and approved the 20242025 School Calendar.
For the first-grade out-ofstate trip request, Mr. Freeman stated that this is for students to attend the Great Plains Zoo in Sioux Falls. This trip happens every year. The board approved.
Superintendent Joe Meyer discussed the final item of new business: policy updates. A few minor changes are coming from MSBA. Three areas were updated: 1. 410 Family Medical Leave, 2. 416 Drug, Alcohol, and Cannabis Testing, Form 3. 506 Student Discipline. The board approved these three updates.
Superintendent Joe Meyer read the first of three readings of 606.5 Library Materials, Form. Mr. Freeman mentioned that this is to set up the process if someone has a grievance about a book. The committee would consist of one administrator, teacher, media specialist, one member of the community (parent rep), and student rep. The board has to answer whether they want the committee to have the final say or the board. There will be a second reading in March, and then the final reading in April, and the board will vote.
The final item on the agenda was a Resolution accepting donations: Chairman Tony Clarke expressed his and the board’s gratitude for all those who donated.
Monday Study Club 25.00, Nobles Murray Rural Electric Trust 750.00, Nobles Murray Rural Electric Trust 1,285.00, Josh & Ashley Bonnstetter 1,000.00, Mark & Nancy Boerboom 100.00, Gary & Betsy Plotz Family 5,000.00, Slayton Building Materials 2,000.00, Class of 1974 500.00, Mitch & Jackie Johnson 100.00, Kiwanis 100.00 Kiwanis 100.00 Kiwanis 175.00, Jacob & Erin Scandrett 150.00, Minnwest Bank 6,050.00, Scott & Larry Mansch 100.00, Aaron & Bridget Kluis 1,000.00, Patrick & Colleen Freeman 200.00, Tom & Clarice Kappes 100.00, Tim & Bonnie Petersen 200.00, Pizza Ranch 60.07, Slayton Building Material 68.06, 13th District Bar Association 166.67, FFAAg Boosters 750.00, Anonymous 35.00, Corteva Agriscience 1,000.00. Donations totaled $21,014.8. The board passed this resolution unanimously by roll call vote.
Regular board meeting – March 11, 2024 @ 6:00 PM in HS Library
