Members Present:       

Jim Waugh, President
Leon Leachman, Vice President
Vicki Coash
Dan Ingalls
Chris Locke
Bernie Spradling
Tom Storrer

Others Present:           

Sue Givens, Superintendent
Norm Wilks, Director of Fiscal & Support Services
Jackie Clark, Board Clerk
David Wagner, Director of Operations
Robin Nixon, The El Dorado Times
Stan Ruff, Washington Principal
Julie Jensen, Director of Curriculum
Todd Miller, High School Teacher
Lora Meirowsky, E-NEA
Connie Worley, Lincoln Teacher
Wayne White, Patron
Shane Krause, Patron
Janet Baker, Jefferson Teacher
Steve Fellers, High School Teacher
Misty Pope, Washington/Skelly Counselor
Jeffrey Black, El Dorado Chamber Director
Vince Haines, Patron
Darla Stewart, Patron
McKenna Stewart, Lincoln Student
Mara Stewart, Jefferson Student
Deanna Robinson, Middle School Teacher
Dave Sundgren, Patron

At 6:30 p.m., Bernie Spradling moved to recess into an executive session for a period of 30 minutes to discuss matters of non-elected personnel in order to protect the privacy rights of the individuals to be discussed with board members, the Superintendent and the Director of Fiscal and Support Services present. Tom Storrer seconded the motion; the motion carried 7-0.

At 6:33 p.m., Superintendent Sue Givens and Director Norm Wilks left the Executive Session.

The board returned to general session at 7:00 p.m. with the same people as listed above present.

Leon Leachman made a motion to approve the agenda and the addendum (16a—Additional USD 490 Personnel Recommendations). Seconded by Vicki Coash, the motion carried 7-0.

Bernie Spradling made a motion to approve the consent calendar as presented. Seconded by Dan Ingalls, the motion carried 7-0.

Minutes of the September 8, 2008, Regular Meeting     
Financial Reports
Credit Card Report
Middle School Activity Report  
High School Activity Report  
Nurses Reports 

There were no comments from the public.

There were no recognition items.

• Washington Elementary Building Report – Stan Ruff
Stan Ruff is the district coordinator for the Positive Behavior Support (PBS) system. Ruff reported that the emphasis of PBS is on school-wide systems of support that include proactive strategies for defining, teaching and supporting appropriate student behaviors to create positive school environments. He said the goal is for students to recognize desired behavior. Ruff also talked about SWIS, the school-wide information system administrators are using to track data concerning behavior. He said SWIS reports would help administrators identify times and/or locations prone to elicit problem behaviors. He said that teachers would complete safety and self-assessment surveys that the schools can use to develop their behavior plans. For example, he said, at Washington a group of fifth graders model good behavior to groups of third graders, talking about appropriate behavior on the playground, in the hallways, the lunchroom, etc. Also, at Washington the staff uses SOAR cards (Safe Behaviors, On Task, Acts Responsibly, Respects Self and Others) to reward students for exhibiting any one of these four behaviors. In addition, he said Washington students could earn Eagle Bucks for positive behavior.

• El Dorado Inc. Report – Dan Ingalls & Sue Givens
Dan Ingalls and Sue Givens reported that 170 potential employees attended the recent Job Fair sponsored by El Dorado Inc.

• Legislative Update – Leon Leachman
Leon Leachman reminded the BOE that it is very important that everyone vote during the General Election in November. In addition, he reminded the BOE of the October 20th Regional KASB meeting in Winfield and the December 5-7 KASB Annual Convention in Wichita.

• Director of Operations Report – David Wagner
David Wagner reported that due to excellent weather conditions in September much progress was made on the construction of Phase II of the EHS bond project. He said that 98% of the floors and 100% of the foundation work is now complete for Phase II. He reported that structural steel work continues as block is placed. Wagner said it is critical that the stucco work on the upper parts of the commons and auditorium be completed before cold weather arrives. He said that although the contractor is about two weeks behind schedule they still estimate that Phase II (with the exception of the auditorium) would be ready for occupation around Spring Break in March 2009.

He said recent maintenance items at EHS included mowing the meadow south of the building, seeding lawns close to the building, construction of a catch basin at the multipurpose room roof drain and completion of the specifications for replacement of the gym roof and the gym floor. At the middle school, Wagner said maintenance items included replacement of a kitchen sewer line, upgrades/repairs to lighting and seats in the auditorium and placement of video projector mounts and power for the projectors in EMS classrooms. Other district maintenance items included sewer repairs at Grandview, fire inspections completed in all facilities, replacement of two heat exchangers at Lincoln, setting thermostats to heat in mobile units and boiler maintenance at EMS.

• Director of Fiscal & Support Services Report – Norm Wilks
Director Norm Wilks provided a report comparing the 08-09 General Fund (based on the Superintendent’s Report) compared to the 07-08 Audit and the 08-09 Published Budget. He pointed out that even though our budget has increased, the amount of discretionary money (we choose where we want to spend the money) has gone down. He said that our budget would be based on 2059 students (last year’s audited FTE) because this year’s FTE count is estimated to be down 79 students. He said the district would republish the budget this year to take advantage of about $434,000 additional new facility weighting money not included in the 08-09 Published Budget. He said the BOE did not include this money in the published budget in order to reduce the mill levy to local taxpayers by about two mills. Wilks pointed out one troubling statistic, that even though our FTE count is down 79 students this fall the number of students who qualified for free lunches increased 28 students over last year’s count.

Wilks also shared a list of proposed Capital Expenditures from the New Facilities Weights (additional revenue of approximately $510,000). Planned expenditures include $135,000 for EHS construction contingencies, $100,000 for EHS gym floor, $88,000 for gym and ring roof, $65,000 for EHS Phase II furniture and equipment, $12,000 for security fence at bus barn, and $110,000 for security equipment at elementary schools. In addition, Wilks asked BOE members to return Schools For Fair Funding surveys to him as soon as possible and he reported that a committee is looking at new band uniforms. He said the bidding process for new uniforms would begin soon.

• Superintendent Report – Sue Givens
Superintendent Givens asked BOE members to let her know as soon as possible if they plan to attend the Kansas Teacher of the Year Banquet in Wichita on November 22. She also spoke about the upcoming K-NEA workshop, new plaques at EHS listing students who score 30 and above on the ACT, the surveys to glean feedback from patrons about the stadium proposals, and the Extracurricular Activities Review Committee which will review the district’s activities program.

She shared an iMovie she had created to spotlight the 18 Standards of Excellence which our students earned on the 2008 State Assessments. She said that four of the five schools tested (Grandview, Lincoln, Washington and El Dorado Middle School) earned Standards of Excellence. She pointed out that two more schools were added to last year’s list. In addition, she said that the standards were set higher this year. Givens said this is excellent news and a good reason to celebrate. The administration is planning a celebration to present Standards of Excellence banners to students and staff during American Education Week in November.

Representatives of the Strategic Planning Team presented recommendations for strategic goal consideration. Team member Darla Stewart presented the four goals identified by the group:
• Communicate and market an improved perception of our schools
• Continue to focus on meeting the educational needs of ALL students
• Curriculum, instruction and assessment must remain a focus
• Enhance and efficiently use facilities in USD 490
Team member Vince Haines presented action plan strategies for the marketing goal. Team member Wayne White presented action plan strategies for meeting the educational needs goal. Connie Worley presented strategies for the curriculum goal and Shane Krause shared the action plan strategies for the facilities goal. Team members Dave Sundgren and Jeffrey Black commented on the process and the proposed goals.

President Jim Waugh thanked team members for participating in the process. In addition, Superintendent Givens shared a Long-Range Plan Development Timeline.

Todd Miller, EHS Science Instructor and District Steering Committee Chair, presented revisions to the District Improvement Plan following analysis and monitoring by the District Steering Committee.

Bernie Spradling made a motion to approve the revisions to the District Steering Committee by-laws (redirected Director of Fiscal & Support Services to more relevant assignments, added EXTEND Director to the membership and updated the membership listing). Seconded by Dan Ingalls, the motion carried 7-0.

Leon Leachman made a motion to approve the USD 490 Mission Statement developed by the District Steering Committee. Seconded by Vicki Coash, the motion carried 7-0.

Dan Ingalls made a motion to approve the proposed changes to the District Improvement Plan, which will subsequently be submitted to KSDE for approval. Bernie Spradling seconded the motion. The motion carried 7-0.

Miller also talked about the District Accreditation Process, the second-generation school improvement model through the North Central Accreditation Association.

Deanna Robinson, PDC Chairperson, presented an overview of this year’s staff development and the Professional Development Plan. The Professional Development Plan requires annual BOE approval. She said the basic change this year is in the membership roster. In addition, Robinson talked about the district’s inservice schedule and the PDC group’s participation in setting that schedule.

Vicki Coash made a motion to approve the 2008-09 Professional Development Plan Guidelines. Seconded by Dan Ingalls, the motion carried 7-0.

The Grandview PTO would like to purchase synthetic timbers to encase play areas on the playground. The request and administrative recommendations were provided for BOE review.

Tom Storrer made a motion to approve the request to purchase synthetic timbers as a gift from Grandview PTO. Seconded by Bernie Spradling, the motion carried 7-0.

Norm Wilks presented a recommendation to purchase a used school bus for in-town district transportation. He said the district would search for a 65-passenger bus at a cost of less than $20,000 with fewer than 100,000 miles, if possible.

Leon Leachman made a motion to approve the purchase of a used 65-passenger school bus for under $20,000. Seconded by Dan Ingalls, the motion carried 7-0.

Norm Wilks presented information regarding the lease of a Bobcat skid loader for maintenance department use.

Leon Leachman made a motion to approve the lease of a Bobcat skid loader from Baystone Financial Group of Topeka at a cost of $3,800 for one year. Seconded by Vicki Coash, the motion carried 7-0.

These are routine requests, related to school improvement or the instructor’s teaching field.

Bernie Spradling made a motion to approve the teacher requests for college hours. Seconded by Tom Storrer, the motion carried 7-0

Leon Leachman made a motion to approve the USD 490 personnel recommendations, which include the addendum. Dan Ingalls seconded the motion. The motion carried 7-0.

Bernie Spradling made a motion to approve the BCSBC recommendations. Seconded by Vicki Coash, the motion carried 7-0.

Purchase Card
Vicki Coash made a motion to approve a Purchase Card for Erin Coym with a limit of $200 per month. Seconded by Dan Ingalls, the motion carried 7-0.

• October 13 – Board of Education Breakfast/Lunch at Washington
• October 17 – Inservice/Workday
• October 20 – KASB Fall Regional Meeting, Winfield 3:30 pm
• October 21 & 23 – Parent-Teacher Conferences
• October 24 – No School
• October 31 – Early Release