The Heartland School board met on Monday, October 13, at 7 p.m. for its regular meeting, which had a relatively light agenda. Click here to view the full agenda.
Present Board members: Lacey Gloystein, Ryan Goertzen, Jen Hiebner, Tyler Newton, Jeb Mierau. Absent: Tammy Ott
Administrators present: Superintendent Jeremy Klein and Elementary Principal Dana Reinke.
Here are some highlights from their meeting.
Superintendent Jeremy Klein’s building/construction update:
He reported that the old elementary playground equipment, which he hoped would have already been moved, will be removed by Thanksgiving.
He explained the water leaks discovered in the North Gym, the activities hallway, and the shop since last Monday’s rain, and what was being done to remedy them. Another problem revealed was that the heating units do not have enough gas pressure. There is also a minor problem with an area of carpet in the front entryway that was not adhering properly. He will stay on top of getting these issues resolved.
Henderson/Bradshaw Banners:
Superintendent Klein has been meeting with Burton Peters and Larry Vancura about creating banners for past NSAA State Championship and runner-ups for Bradshaw and Henderson before the consolidation. The board agreed this was a good idea, and Klein said that Peters and Vancura offered to purchase the banners. The board discussed several locations for placing the banners in the North Gymnasium.
Staffing Discussion:
Klein raised the possibility of Heartland hiring a nurse to work at the school. He provided the board with information from other schools in the conference with nurses on the staff. Currently, the office personnel, administrators, teachers, and Mary Hiebner (elementary librarian) all pitch in when there is any medical issue or emergency.
“It’s been all hands on deck when a medical issue arises. We have multiple people taking care of things like following up on concussion protocol, taking someone to the hospital, and administering meds. Other health-related needs include working on health plans for asthma, dietary restrictions, seizure disorders, and food allergies. But we do have cracks when you have so many different people involved,” said Klein.
He recommended the board start looking at hiring an RN. The board was open to further discussion about adding a nurse to the staff and will continue looking into it.
Resignation of Lynn Hall
Later in the meeting, the board accepted the resignation of musical instructor Lynn Hall, who will retire at the end of the school year. He has been at Heartland for 29 years. They all agreed he would be missed and commended him for his excellent work.
Because of his resignation, Klein provided the board with conference comparisons of the number of music instructors and band & vocal participation numbers at Heartland. After discussion, the board agreed on the importance of keeping two full-time music instructors.
Consent Agenda Items:
Typically, this is a routine process of bundling several items together for approval, but the board spent considerable time discussing whether to approve the current construction claim of $66,943.59.
Board members were concerned about the lengthy list of incomplete items. After discussing several scenarios and the legalities, if the claim wasn’t approved for payment at the meeting, they decided to approve it along with the other consent agenda items.
The building committee will have a walk-through with one of the contractors present to confirm the numerous incomplete items before their next formal meeting with them later in October. The board expressed its desire to see the project completed in its entirety and the possibility of withholding further payment in the future if it’s not finished to their satisfaction.
Executive Session:
The board went into executive session at 8:25 p.m. to discuss collective bargaining with the teachers’ organization. They adjourned after their closed session.
