Boyceville school board preps for graduation, discusses open enrollment
By Cara L. Dempski
BOYCEVILLE — The Boyceville school board learned all 54 members of the Class of 2017 will walk across the stage for graduation at the end of the month.
The board discussed the May 26 ceremony bidding adieu to the seniors during its May 15 regular meeting held in the high school library. The board also had a chance to meet the Class of 2017’s top two students, Maxwell Engel and Brooklyn Hellmann.
Engle, the valedictorian, was introduced at the beginning of the meeting, along with his parents and younger brother Will. He explained he will be attending the College of Wooster in Ohio come September and plans to major in political science.
The salutatorian, Hellmann, was introduced toward the end of the meeting after playing in the Bulldogs’ home softball game. She will be joining her older brother at the College of St. Scholastica in the fall, with plans to pursue a degree in physical therapy.
The discussion about the upcoming graduation led to discussion and action regarding the 2017-2018 open enrollment applications into and out of the district schools. Documentation included in the meeting information packet indicated 13 students applied for open enrollment into the district, while 20 Boyceville students had applied for open enrollment elsewhere.
Superintendent Kevin Sipple indicated not all students who applied to leave the district were certain to leave, and asked the board to keep that in mind when making its decision. He also noted two of the 13 students applying to come into the district require special education services, and their applications would be denied due to there being no open spots in the program.
The school board unanimously approved all incoming and outgoing applications.
The Boyceville board then moved on to approving the hiring of Renda Armstrong as a middle/high school multi-categorial special education teacher. Principal Steve Glocke noted Armstrong has served as a long term substitute in the special education department and knows the program, which made her a good fit for the position.
She replaces Nancy Anderson, who retires after 33 years teaching, 31 of which were spent at Boyceville.
The governing board also approved the resignation of high school English instructor Corey Smith. His resignation letter indicated he had found a position closer to his home in Eau Claire and opted to take it in order to spend more time with his family.
In other business, the board:
• Read policies regarding Special Release – Tech Update – Phase I – Revised Definitions, Credits from Non-public Schools, Cost Principles – Spending Federal Funds, Procurement – Federal Grants/Funds, Technology, Technology Privacy Draft, and Content, Services and Apps Draft. This was a first reading; the second reading will occur at the June regular meeting, when the board will vote to approve the changes.
• Heard a report about May Mental Health Awareness Month from special education director Bonnie Barker.
• Learned from TCE principal Nick Kaiser that the elementary students are rapidly approaching the end of the year and will hold a picnic June 1 for the last day of school.
• Heard an update from middle/high school principal Steve Glocke that included upcoming important dates for the seniors. Baccalaureate and the Senior Awards night will be held May 24 at 7:00 p.m., and graduation at 7:00 p.m. May 26.
• Approved a Spanish student trip to Puerto Rico in June 2018.
• Adopted a new website accessibility notice.
• Approved renewal of WIAA membership for the 2017-2018 school year.
The board then moved into closed session. Sipple later reported no action was taken during the session.