Elk Mound Board of Education elects officers, approves summer project
By Cara L. Dempski
ELK MOUND — The Elk Mound Board of Education elected officers for the 2017-2018 school year as part of a special meeting held prior to its most recent board meeting.
The officers will remain the same, with Tim Sivertson as president, Kyle Jenson as vice president, Pat Rhude as clerk, and Gary Bodenburg as treasurer.
With elections taken care of, the April 24 meeting moved on to the agenda before the board. District superintendent Eric Wright stated the principal’s reports were brief, but did note there are several upcoming events that were brought up at the meeting. Most notably, grandparents’ day will be held May 5 at Mound View Elementary, and the annual PTO carnival will be held May 12.
High school graduation is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. May 19.
Wright presented several items for the board’s consideration, including an update on the 2016-2017 budget after receiving a TEACH grant. The district will use it to update the data cabling in all three buildings at a cost of approximately $170,000.
The TEACH grant covers $130,000 of the cost, and the district is required to provide the other $40,000 funding. However, since Elk Mound is a high-aid school district, the local taxpayers will be responsible for only $8,000 of the cost.
“The project will set our district up for digital infrastructure for the next 15 to 20 years,” Wright explained. “It will likely take most of the summer to complete.”
The district board approved increasing the liquidated damages for separation of employment contracts. In prior years, anyone who resigned his or her position or retired between July 1 and August 1 were subject to a $500 separation cost, while those resigning between August 1 and the start of the school year had to pay $750 and anyone resigning after the start of the school year paid $1,000.
Starting this year, those amounts increased to $1,000, $1,500 and $2,000 for the same time periods. Wright said the move resulted from the difficulty of finding instructors on a short turn-around when former teachers decide to resign or retire during the summer break.
He also noted teachers are provided with a “intent to return to work” letter May 15 and must return it signed by June 15 if they intend to remain with the district. This provides teachers a window to make their decisions without penalty.
The board also approved an actuarial study by Hildi, Incorporated as required by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. The study will look at Elk Mound’s Fund 73, the budget item listing fund available for post-employment benefits.
In other business, the board:
• Approved the resignation of maintenance worker Randy Siemer, preschool teacher Tanya LaRock, middle and high school vocal music teacher Brittney Yadon, and long-term substitute teacher Cammy Rathsak.
• Approved health and dental benefits for 2017-2018 with no increase for health insurance and a four percent increase for dental insurance.
• Approved the 2017-2018 curriculum coordinator contract and 66.0301 agreement with Boyceville for the coordinator to bill up to 50 days of work to Elk Mound, who can bill up to 75 days work.
• Reminded members the district staff recognition ceremony will be held May 15 at approximately 3:30 p.m., with the board meeting to start afterward between 4:45 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.
• Scheduled 2017-2018 academic year meetings for September 18, 2017, October 23, 2017, November 20, 2017, December 18, 2017, January 15, 2018, February 19, 2018, March 19, 2018, April 23, 2018, May 21, 2018, June 18, 2018, and July 24, 2018.
The board then adjourned to closed session to discuss several items. The group unanimously approved current high school junior Alexis Schindler as the 2017-2018 student representative to the board. It also approved renewal of individual teacher contracts for next year, with the exception of those who resigned.
Likewise, all teachers who applied for promotion were approved before the board voted to hire Kathleen Peterson as the new high school Spanish instructor.
