GC School district will not expand daycare options
By Scott Wild
GLENWOOD CITY – In a well-attended Board Meeting, Glenwood City Schools recommended not offering an expansion of daycare for younger kids at this time. School Board Member Chuck Draxler said, “We were looking at this as an option to keep kids in the district.” Parent Todd Johnson said to the board, “My opinion is that I never thought it is in the public interest to put another business out of business. I don’t think it’s fair.”
He is referring to “Little Acorns”, the daycare center for infants to 4 year olds two blocks from the school, inside the Glenhaven Inc. skilled care facility. John McCutchin, President of Glenhaven, and three teachers of “Little Acorns” also attended the meeting.
In other key school board business, the board voted for the dissolution of the Transitional Skills Center as a Charter School Entity. “We will go back to having three schools instead of four,” commented Elementary Principal Betsy Haltinner. “It does not change the education experience for our students,” said High School Principal Patrick Gretzlock. The Transitional Skills Center remains the essentially the same, without the additional Charter School Entity. Only 10 students were in program, and only for a few hours per day, with lots of additional paperwork for the charter school status.
The board also discussed a flurry of exciting end of the school year events and activities. At the board meeting, Judy Achterhof was awarded for 15 years of service to the school district. “It’s been an honor,” said Achterhof. The Staff Recognition Dinner on May 9, 2018 honored 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 35 years of service from staff members, and 2018 retirees Diane Nelson, Joanie Branigan, Sandy Utphall, Lorna Tiberg, Kris Kielmeyer, Mary Mahoney and Rick Tiberg. At State Solo Ensemble Festival an “Exemplary Performance” group was chosen including Liz Wink, Mariah Voeltz, Tressa Peskar, Anna Brigham, Olivia Scalze and Maggie, all receiving perfect scores. And in Arts, Alex Holldorf was the student winner of the Melsmic Foundation Art Grant.
The elementary school will be installing new playground equipment for next year – the “Buck A Bout.”
Friday May 18, 2018, is the Reptile Show at the Elementary School, and the Pops Concert for the High School (7:30 p.m). Thursday, May 24, 2018, will be both the Elementary Band Concert and Walk of Honor and Senior Picnic. Finals will be May 30-31.
Nicole Brite gave an intriguing presentation about Wellness Plan Update. While BMI (Body Mass Index) for students in school districts like New Richmond have been decreasing, Glenwood City has increased. “We have impact on two meals,” said Brite. The future impact is still being figured out, with small decisions making a big difference. “We have the option of fruits and vegetables instead of a cupcake treat for student’s birthdays,” said Brite. High School Principal Gretzlock added, “Studies have shown that lower economic status lead to higher BMI.” The school will continue to look at more ways to encourage students to be active and eat healthy.
In other board news:
• Funding for a new sound system and carpet replacement for the Elementary Library was approved.
• An increase of 10 cents per meal for school meals was approved.
• Preparation is in place for June 8th deadline for the School Safety Grant.
• 15 students have signed up for summer school Hilltopper Hangtime.
In Executive Session, the board approved the hiring of Jacob Letter as Spanish Teacher, and Dan Stansbury for the 12 month custodial position. The next school board meeting will be June 11th, 2018.
