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SHERMAN COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

BOARD WORK SESSION MEETING MINUTES

February 11, 2014

Superintendent Search

Jeanie Pehlke gave an update on the process. To date there have been 12 potential applicants show

interest in the position. She has received four complete application packets. Jeanie requested that dates

be decided to fill in the timeline discussed at the January board meeting. It may be a possibility that

more interest could be generated if the closing date and a salary is posted. This has been common

question from interested prospects.

During our posting there were seven posted Superintendent positions, including our district, on the

OSBA website. Four of them had closed and two were closing soon – one on 2/21 and the other on 2/24.

Salaries were listed on the other postings ranging from $95k - $145k.

The following dates were agreed upon:

Closing date: February 24, 2014

Screening Committee Review: the week of the 24th

Interviews: March 5th and 6th

Background Checks: March 7th

The screening committee will include Kim McKinney, Todd Swan, Director Jim Macnab, and Vice Chair

Angie Thompson. Ivan will look for classified employees and community members to also be included on

the committee.

The interview committee will likely consist of Jeanie Pehlke and members of the community.

The interview process will be conducted as it was the last time. The board will interview the applicants

first and then the interview committee will proceed with their interview.

The salary range for our posting was discussed. The board members agreed that the salary needed to be

competitive with the other job postings. It was also discussed that the salary could be negotiated up or

down depending on experience. It was agreed to post the salary at $90-98k/year.

Project Manager

A proposal was received from Mike Parker and Mike Marino. One significant difference in the proposals

is the proposal amount. Mike Marino is not charging for his time in the programming phase. Mike

Marino and his colleague discussed their proposal with the board. He said they would do a feasibility

study to help determine which of the three options would best suit the district. Scott, an architect and a

colleague of Mike Marino, introduced himself and explained they will tailor the scope of the work with

our goals. They will use demographic information to also determine current and future needs. They will

have current cost data from a new elementary school they are currently working on in order to give

accurate estimates. Scott stated that if we enter into an agreement with Mike Marino, all goals, plans,

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and schedules will be laid out before we enter into a contract for the construction phase. An example of

this was passed around for review. Mike Marino is local to Central Oregon. They will adjust the cost of

the proposal if it is determined that some of the items outlined have already been done. The proposal

that was presented was based on what they knew at the time. Mike Marino’s company has never had a

claim against them.

Kinder Update

The position was posted and three applicants applied. Susan Mobley was hired and is currently working

in the Kindergarten class three hours per day and two days per week. This will cost the district $4100 for

the remaining school year. Ideally, the preference would be to have her three hours per day and four

days per week. This would cost the district $8200. There is federal money available for this for reducing

class size. The board agrees that they would prefer to see this position four days per week in order to

better fulfill the students’ needs.

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SHERMAN COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

REGULAR BOARD MEETING MINUTES

February 11, 2014

The Board of Directors of Sherman County School District met in the Sherman County Public/School Library Meeting Room in Moro, Oregon on February 11, 2014. The following were present: Chair, Bill Martin; Vice Chair, Angie Thompson; Directors: Kyle Blagg and Jim Macnab; Interim Superintendent, Ivan Ritchie; Business Manager, Kim McKinney; Board Secretary, Jennifer Berry; Administrators: Todd Swan, Bill Blevins; Staff Members: Gerald Casper, Janet Pinkerton, Jill Jenson, Sheri Sharp, Kalie Rolfe, Jessica Baptiste, Lorraine Consoliver; Students: Gabe Fritts, Clay McLeod, Logan Barrett, Ben Holliday, Wyatt Stutzman, Paige McLeod, Bethany Lohrey; Visitors: Brian Metke, Tanya Barrett, Tamar Fritts, Liz Cranston, John Holliday, Dorothy Holliday, Wade McLeod, Jen McLeod, Robert Waltenburg, Gerald Lohrey, Donna Lohrey, Brad Lohrey, Pat Consoliver Absent: Director, Liz Mills

SUMMARY OF ACTIONS TAKEN

Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to adopt the consent agenda as amended. Action: The motion carried unanimously. Motion by Director, Jim Macnab with second from Director, Angie Thompson to approve the end of year band trip with transportation costs. Action: The motion carried unanimously. Motion by Vice Chair, Angie Thompson with second from Director, Kyle Blagg to direct Superintendent Ritchie to negotiate a professional services contract with Mike Marino for the programming phase of project. Action: The motion carried 3 to 1 with a no vote from Director Macnab. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to hire an additional Kindergarten teacher, three hours per day and four days per week for the remainder of the school year. Action: The motion carried unanimously. Motion by Director, Jim Macnab with second from Director, Kyle Blagg to approve the audit as presented. Action: The motion carried unanimously. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Vice Chair, Angie Thompson to adopt the budget calendar for the 2014-2015 school year as presented. Action: The motion carried unanimously. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to set open enrollment figures as discussed. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

Unofficial Minutes

3.1.2

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Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to adopt resolution services for the 2014-2015 school year. Action: The motion carried with Vice Chair Angie Thompson abstaining.

CALL TO ORDER

Chair, Bill Martin opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag at 7:00 p.m. and thanked everyone for coming.

Student of the Quarter

The following presentations were made to students who received recognition and a plaque for Students of the Second Quarter: Sheri Sharp, 1st Grade Teacher – Student Gabe Fritts Jessica Baptiste, 3rd Grade Teacher – Student Logan Barrett Jill Jenson, SJSHS Teacher – Senior High Student Bethany Lohrey Jeanie Pehlke, SJSHS Secretary – Senior High Student Ben Holliday Principal Bill Blevins on behalf of PE/Health Teacher Carrie Danchok – Junior High Student Paige McLeod

Student Body Report Wyatt Stutzman presented the student body report as follows:

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Recognition of Students, Staff and Community We are extremely fortunate to have gracious staff and community members who support our

school and students. This school year we are continuing the tradition of recognizing various

supporters at the beginning portion of each School Board Meeting. While it is possible that we

may periodically miss an opportunity to thank someone, we sincerely appreciate the

commitment of all of our supporters. We would like to recognize the following people for their

devotion to our schools, students, staff and community.

Congratulations to Logan Barrett, Gabe Fritts, Ben Holliday, Bethany Lohrey, and Paige McLeod who received Student of the Quarter Awards.

Special thanks to Jessica Baptiste, Shannon Hansen, Jill Jenson, Jeanie Pehlke and Sheri Sharp for presenting the Student of the Quarter Awards at the Board meeting.

Thank you to all of the volunteers who supported the Athletic Foundation by giving their time at the crab feed this past weekend.

Connie Martin for her outstanding volunteer efforts and hard work formulating and submitting the District TAG Program report to the State of Oregon.

Gary Shelton for administering OAKS test training.

High School Basketball Volunteer Coaches: Steve Bird, Jared Collins, Austen Justesen, and Clint Moore.

Middle School Basketball Volunteer Coaches: Tracey Fields, Jim Macnab, and Whitney Weedman.

Jared Collins for announcing at the basketball games.

Bert Perisho for running the scoreboard.

Jill Harrison and Dee Lane for keeping the score books.

Sherman Pep Band for playing at home basketball games.

Molly Belshe for her outstanding work as the Booster Club President.

Thank you to Craig Wood for working long hours to get the Jr./Sr. High School’s heating system back online after an extended power outage.

We appreciate the Oregon Department of Transportation for de-icing the Jr./Sr. High School parking lot and High School Loop.

Cindie King for coordinating an exciting Read n’ Rec night for the 4th graders.

Deanna Christiansen and Sheri Sharp for putting together The Five Dog Night literacy afternoon at the Elementary School.

A big thank you to the Elementary School Student Council for putting on a very successful Bake Sale.

Thank you to Mid Columbia Bus and Tom Finch and his drivers for driving in winter weather for us to have school the last several days. Also a huge thank you to Brian Cranston, Brian McKinney, and Darrel Yarbourgh for clearing the school parking lots; to Craig Wood, Dan Aldrich and Ryane Whitley for clearing snow from sidewalks to open our schools for the education of children on Monday. Also, thanks to the County crews, Steve Kaseberg and Joe Justesen, for clearing roads and helping get our busses to school.

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We truly appreciate the amazing support we receive from so many thoughtful people. Thank

you to everyone in our great community and school district for your continued support! When

you have time please visit our Sherman County School District Web Page for the monthly

appreciation comments. – Ivan Ritchie

COMMENTS FROM VISITORS

Liz Cranston – As a parent and volunteer in the Kindergarten class, she stated she would like to encourage the board to vote for the four day per week option for the kindergarten class. Kalie Rolfe – As a parent and educator, she would like to encourage the board to vote for the four day per week option for the kindergarten class. Dr. Brian Metke – He stated he would like to provide input on the project manager proposal. He has visited with both candidates and would like to encourage the board to choose Mike Parker. Dr. Metke highlighted a few of the positive attributes that Mr. Parker could provide the district. Mike Parker is an engineer and he will give a 5 and 10 year plan. He will use various models when developing his plan, including educational research and a financial plan. Dr. Metke provided educational blueprints to the board.

ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA Business

Approved Board Meeting Agenda, February 11, 2014 with the following modifications: [Add 3.2.10 – Approve Preliminary Hire of Susan Mobley for Kindergarten Teacher; 7.2 Executive Session Personnel ]

Approved Minutes of Regular Board Meeting, January 13, 2014 Approved Bill Listing, Financial Statement

Personnel

Accepted Resignation of Gail Macnab, FACS Teacher & Student Council

Advisor

Approved Coach Hire of Joe Justesen for Baseball Head Coach

Approved Coach Hire of Kali Rolfe for Tennis Head Coach

Approved Coach Hire of Gary Shelton for Tennis Volunteer

Approved Coach Hire of Todd Swan for Track Head Coach

Approved Coach Hire of Kyle Pfeifer for Track Assistant Coach

Approved Coach Hire of Britney Macnab for Track Assistant Coach

Approved Coach Hire of Jacob Gradek for Track Assistant Coach

Add closing date and salary range. Working on screening and interviewing

committees.

Approved Preliminary Hire of Susan Mobley for Kindergarten Teacher

Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to adopt the consent agenda as amended. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

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REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS

Sherman Booster Club Report Kim McKinney reported on behalf of the Sherman Booster Club. The Booster Club no longer carries their own insurance therefore; the club is required to report to the School Board in order to be under the district’s umbrella. The Booster Club report is as follows:

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Superintendent Report Superintendent Ritchie began by reporting that on February 5th, Chair Bill Martin, Vice Chair Angie Thompson, Principal Bill Blevins and himself met with the county court to give the district’s quarterly report. The court explained financial obligations that the court had regarding a BPA powerline. As a result the district’s SIP dollars will be reduced by $200,000 next December. The court made it clear that the SIP dollars the district received so far are available to spend as the board sees fit. Tom McCoy explained the courts expectations to guarantee any borrowing commitment the district pursues for the consolidation of schools to a central location. They agreed with the concept of hiring a project manager in order to obtain specific costs for a proposed project. Superintendent Ritchie shared a couple maintenance issues that have taken place. Brown Roofing repaired the shop roof that had been leaking. They will return when the weather improves to do additional repairs. The septic system at the Elementary School backed up and the tanks were pumped by Vista Sanitation. The tanks were pumped last May. Superintendent Ritchie reported that he is exploring options with a company to do some exploratory work on the drain field distribution boxes when the weather improves. This will be considerably less expensive than pumping the tanks. Probationary evaluations are being completed and probationary teachers will be a future agenda item. Superintendent Ritchie thanked Principal Bill Blevins and Todd Swan for their dedication and hard work keeping each building humming along in this time of severe weather.

Administrative Report for Sherman Elementary

Todd Swan reported: Fire Drill – The school has one fire drill every month. Due to extreme weather conditions the drill had to be cancelled and rescheduled. The drill was completed on January 31st and successfully ran in record time. 2nd Quarter Assmebly – The awards assembly was held with a new format for the first time. Kindergarten through third grade had their assembly at 1:00 and the fourth through sixth grades started at 1:30. Literacy Afternoon – Sheri Sharp and Deanna Christiansen coordinated a literacy afternoon revolving around the book, The Five-Dog Night. Grade Reporting – Due to the power outage on the Teacher’s Planning Day, grades were postponed to February 7th. Title Audit - Gave an update on the title audit prepared by Sheri Sharp.

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Indistar Training – A new program involving Title. Surveys - A letter was sent home with students requesting that parents complete a survey. The survey was conducted on Survey Monkey. OAKS Testing Training & Administration – Applicable personnel participated in training on OAKS testing and administration.

Athletic Director Report Athletic Director, Todd Swan discussed: Remaining High School Basketball Schedule Senior Night – Pregame recognition at the SWC vs. Sherman game Junior Hoops - Halftime Show was cancelled due to basketball scheduling changes. It was moved to Wasco during the normal Junior Hoops schedule for an extended time. All League Format Change Sherman Invitational Basketball Tournament – June 19th-22nd Champions Camp – June 23rd-25th – Looking at the addition of gymnastics. Football – 8 Man All-Star – Nick Coleman Baseball – Update on the possible coop with Arlington. Arlington is now at three possible athletes. The fee for Arlington has been decreased to $500. The district charges Sherman athletes $100 per athlete. Chair Martin advised that they would be willing to reduce the fee to $300. Friday/Saturday Basketball Schedule – 24 total games: 19 - Friday and Saturday, 5 - Tuesday Basketball Participant Entry/Exit Basketball District Tournament – The tournament will be in Hermiston on February 20th - 22nd. Track Pit Repair – Mats have been picked up for repair.

Administrative Report for Jr./Sr. High School – Bill Blevins Principal Blevins presented the following report: Bill Blevins Principal Report for School Board Agenda Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Proficiency-Based Report Cards

Mr. Casper, Mr. Shelton, and I had some training to create a standards-based student report card using our

current school management system, School Master.

This report is due by the end of the school year to parents.

Prinipal Blevins states that this will be a daunting task that Gerald Casper and himself will complete. If

the task proves to be more than time and resources allow, a spreadsheet can be used.

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ORVED

Paul Peterson of the Oregon Virtual School District has formally requested to renew our charter

agreement between ORVED East and the Sherman County School District.

Principal Blevins stated that he feels we could use ORVED in a better way. One possibility is to make

ORVED a class with a certified teacher. Other schools have successfully done this. Chair Martin would

like to see a breakdown of the reasons the students are taking the classes. For example, how many are

using it because the class isn’t offered and how many are using it because it doesn’t fit their schedule.

Chair Martin would also like to see different ways we can improve upon this program. Principal Blevins

has concerns that he would also like to address. He is concerned with the time it takes to have student

questions answered and he would like to track if this happening. The district gets $15,000 from ORVED

for being the HUB and the classes are free for our students. One remaining question is what is the

timeline to renew with ORVED?

Goldendale Observatory

On January 17th, our 7

th graders visited the Goldendale Observatory, which houses one of the nation’s

largest public telescopes. Sadly, it was a cloudy evening, but still an informative field trip for our 7th

grade students.

Common Core Professional Development

The staff continues to use half-day Fridays to push forward with the shift to the Common Core State

Standards. Parsed standards have been placed into units/themes where they will be taught. Next step is

to develop Unit Preparation Worksheets that will allow teachers to fill in gaps where standards do not

address Bloom’s Taxonomy of 1. Remembering, 2. Understanding, 3. Applying, 4. Analyzing, 5.

Evaluating, and 6. Creating.

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Robotics Competition

Our students completed in the First Tech Challenge in Hood River for 13-18 year olds. Teams are

responsible for designing, building, and programming robots to compete against other teams.

Next up, is another robotics challenge in Hermiston on Presidents Day.

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)

I am looking into the possibility of developing a program of study for S.T.E.M. at the high school. Jacob

Gradek and I will be traveling to Ridgeview High School in Redmond to meet with Cory O’Neil who has

a state approved STEM program.

We currently have two programs of study at the high school: agriculture and culinary arts. I would like to

see a college preparatory program of study at Sherman.

Principal Blevins stated that one of the most valuable resources he could get from this visit is to get the

grant they wrote for this and tweak it for us.

Early College

Winter Quarter Enrollment -

New Administrative Rule – a student may drop a class within the first 8 weeks and receive a

“Withdraw”, which would have no effect on their college transcript. However, the school must still pay

the $101 per credit for that class. If a student drops a class within the first week, the school does not need

to pay for the class. I am proposing that the families of students dropping a class between weeks 2-7

should be held financially responsible for the class and not the school.

Principal Blevins suggested adding to non-completion of the class to this rule. The board agrees and

would like to see the administrative rule.

Attachment

State Tests for 2014-15

While we will be shifting to the Smarter Balanced Assessment for English and Math next year, we will

still be completing Science and ELPA testing using the OAKS test. Not sure about Social Studies as of

yet.

Enrollment

Our senior class has been reduced by one student.

Principal Blevins explained that this student moved and to date has not enrolled in another school. If this

student does not re-enroll, our district will have to report this as a dropout.

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In addition to Principal Blevins printed report he added that water is coming in room 12, the special

education room. He discussed the possible need for a snow route and that the School Messenger system is

working fairly well now after a few issues were resolved.

Year End Band Trip Lorraine Consoliver presented an overview and handout of the 2014 band trip. She requested

approval from the board to take end of year band trip to WOU, Evergreen Wings & Waves

Waterpark, and the Salem Center Mall. The band trip can be reimbursed as a field trip. There

will be approximately 15 Junior and Senior High students attending. The cost of transportation

is $1500. The student cost would be $275 if the district will not pay the transportation fee. If

the district will pay for transportation, it will bring the student cost down to $125.

Motion by Director, Jim Macnab with second from Director, Angie Thompson to approve the end of year band trip with transportation costs. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS Project Manager Proposal

This topic was discussed during the work session. Vice Chair Thompson states that she is in favor of working with Mike Marino and contracting our needs for services. Director Blagg agreed with Vice Chair Thompson. She is please that Mr. Marino attended meetings twice thus far and with his location he is easily accessible. Director Macnab expressed concern regarding Mr. Marino’s scope of work. Discussion commenced deciding that scope of work will be negotiated by Superintendent Ritchie. The proposal in the packet is not what the board will be approving. Motion by Vice Chair, Angie Thompson with second from Director, Kyle Blagg to direct Superintendent Ritchie to negotiate a professional services contract with Mike Marino for the programming phase of project. Action: The motion carried 3 to 1 with a no vote from Director Macnab.

Kindergarten Options This topic was discussed during the work session. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to hire an additional Kindergarten teacher, three hours per day and four days per week for the remainder of the school year. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

Audit

The audit was sent home with the board last month. The recommendations were similar to what has been made in the past. There is not enough segregation of duties because of small staff. They recommend that we need to have additional insurance for this liability. We may need to up this amount in the future.

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Motion by Director, Jim Macnab with second from Director, Kyle Blagg to approve the audit as presented. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

Second Reading of Board Policies I-L No action required. The policies are out for public review until February 14th.

NEW BUSINESS

Probationary Evaluations

No action required. Evaluations are in progress.

Section 22 Assurance Superintendent Ritchie presented the Section 22 Assurance in this public meeting as required. The report is due to the state by April 15th. We are meeting all the requirements.

Budget Calendar Kim McKinney presented the proposed 2014-2015 budget calendar. The timeline is the same as last year, only changing the dates according to the new calendar year. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Vice Chair, Angie Thompson to adopt the budget calendar for the 2014-2015 school year as presented. Action: The motion carried unanimously. There are currently two openings on the budget committee. There is an opening for a Moro and a Grass Valley resident. This committee member cannot be someone we pay.

Open Enrollment 2014-2015 School Year Superintendent Ritchie recommends setting open enrollment figures as follows: 65 total, 30 for elementary – with the exception of no 1st graders, 20 for Junior High, 15 for Senior High Currently we have about three students that come from out of district. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to set open enrollment figures as discussed. Action: The motion carried unanimously.

Resolution Services 2014-2015 School Year March 1st is deadline to accept resolution services. Robert Waltenburg gave a presentation on ESD services. He explained that the ESD is an equalizer. The North Central ESD has one of the highest tax rates in the state of Oregon. The ESD allows leverage of three counties resources to make sure all kids are serviced equally.

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The ESD provides four services that are outlined in the handout he provided. They are Special Education Services, School Improvement Services, Technology Services, and Administration Services. The ESD provides a certified librarian to keep costs down. This allows each district to hire an assistant rather than hiring a certified librarian. Technology – Issues with receiving services in our schools was addressed. Robert advised that if the districts needs are not being addressed to contact him directly. The timeline for a response should be 48 hours. Staff Development funds to Sherman County Schools were cut this year. Chair, Bill Martin expressed his concern that we were not made aware of this. He felt that once the issues were starting to be resolved, it was taken away. Motion by Director, Kyle Blagg with second from Director, Jim Macnab to adopt resolution services for the 2014-2015 school year. Action: The motion carried with Vice Chair Angie Thompson abstaining.

COMMENTS FROM VISITORS

None received.

Executive Session Adjourn to Executive Session under ORS 192-660 (2) (i) Superintendent Search. Return to open session at 9:29pm.

FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, CLOSING COMMENTS, AND UPCOMING EVENTS

School Safety

School Calendar

Ghost Students

NEXT MEETING Next regular board meeting, March 10, 2014

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, Chair Martin declared the meeting adjourned at 9:29 p.m. ___________________________________ ________________________________ Chair, Bill Martin Board Secretary, Jennifer Berry