BOARD OF DIRECTORS
NORTH LINN COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Regular Meeting 7:00 PM
North Linn District Office
3033 Lynx Drive
Troy Mills, IA
Wednesday, October 16, 2024
100: Call to Order and Determination of a Quorum
President, Jeffrey Boss, called the regular meeting to order at 7:00 PM. Present were Directors J Benesh, Hoover, Krogmann, and Michael, Superintendent Breitfelder, Secondary Principal Stoll, Elementary Principal Schott and Secretary Peyton. Also in attendance were Gretchyn Kane, Emily Raab and Greg Novey. Directors R Benesch and Price were absent.
200: Adoption of the Agenda
It was moved by J Benesh, seconded by Michael to adopt the agenda as presented. Motion carried 5-0.
300: Consent Agenda
Secretary Peyton discussed the September financial reports and shared topics of discussion from the Activities Conference she attended virtually the last several weeks. It was moved by J Benesh, seconded by Hoover to approve the following consent items; Minutes of the September & early October board meeting, bills, Secretary’s financial reports, Activity Fund report and Food Service report. Motion carried 5-0.
400: Audience Communications
There was no communication from the audience.
500: Informational Reports, Discussions, and Presentations
501: Superintendent Report
Gretchyn Kane presented information on the upcoming FFA trip to Indianapolis for the National Convention where the North Linn Chapter will receive the Premier Chapter Award in the area of Growing Leaders. Emily Raab and Greg Novey presented information about the requested band/choir trip to St. Louis this summer. They detailed the events planned for the group and the fundraising planned to pay for the trip. Superintendent Breitfelder shared information from the Activities Director report and had Mr. Novey share that the marching band attended the State Festival on October 12th and scored a Division II rating on their performance. This is the first time in several years we have attended the event and was the first time many members of the band had marched a full performance. The board congratulated Mr. Novey on the accomplishment. Superintendent Breitfelder also shared an update on the security grant funding, the plan for the board to visit the elementary school on November 22nd and the middle and high school sometime this winter. She also shared the certified enrollment that was certified on October 15th. Resident students increased by 9, Open enrolled out students increased by 4 and open enrolled in students increased by 5. She discussed the outcome of the facilities meeting held earlier that evening and also shared her goals of increasing enrollment and improving staff morale.
502: Elementary Report
Elementary Principal Schott thanked the board for the additional meetings held this month to quickly hire staff after a couple of resignations. He also shared information about the last Leader in Me assembly and the new classroom awards that are being given at the assemblies and also shared the success of the recent PTO walk-a-thon held on October 4th. He discussed some classroom wide interventions as well as Title interventions that are being implemented in the building. He shared that the playground equipment has had a few issues but Mr. Goedken has been able to fix them quickly and gave praise to the Resource Teachers who have worked hard with new staff.
503: Secondary Report
Middle School/High School Principal, Kaitlyn Stoll, shared that collaboration is a main focus in the building and they are working on ways to implement collaboration among students regularly into the classroom environment. Staff has been working hard and have been leading professional development sharing examples that have worked well. She discussed the goal setting that is happening with the students and shared information about attendance at the secondary level. She also gave an update on the new Spanish program and the continued search for a permanent teacher.
504: School Improvement Report
School Improvement Director, Kimberly Graven gave an update on the recent professional development day in September and the plan for the upcoming November professional development meeting. She also shared the FAST assessment scores in reading and math for the district and discussed the approach the data team is taking when reviewing the information and highlighted some successes and some areas that will be monitored. She also discussed the reports that she has or will be submitting to the state soon.
505: Discussion regarding Offering Early Separation Package
Superintendent Breitfelder and SBO Peyton lead the board in a discussion about offering an early retirement plan in the coming years. They shared the number of staff that would be eligible in any given year and what the early separation plans have included in the past. The board decided there would not be an early separation plan offered in fiscal year 2025.
600: New Business
601: FFA Overnight and out of state travel request
It was moved by Hoover, seconded by Krogmann to approve the North Linn FFA chapter travel request to attend the National Leadership Convention in Indianapolis, IN October 22nd through 25th. Motion carried 5-0
602: Band/Choir Overnight and out of state travel request
It was moved by J Benesh, seconded by Hoover to approve the North Linn Band and Choir overnight and out of state travel request to take students to St. Louis with the Central City CSD Band/Choir students May 30th through June 1st or June 6th through the 8th 2025 whichever date works the best for the group. Motion carried 5-0.
603: Approve Fundraiser Requests
It was moved by Hoover, seconded by J Benesh to approve the request from FBLA to sell Boo Grams for $1 October 28th-31st, the Vocal Department’s request to sell World’s Finest Chocolate bars at the Musical on November 15th and 16th and for the High School band and choir to sell cookie dough to raise money for the upcoming trip to St. Louis. Motion carried 5-0.
609: Open Enrollment Requests
It was moved by J Benesh, seconded by Krogmann to approve one open enrollment into the district and 6 open enrollments out of the district. Motion carried 5-0
610: Approve Cooperative Agreement with University of Iowa for student teachers
It was moved by Hoover, seconded by J Benesh to approve the Cooperative Agreement with the University of Iowa for student teachers for the 24-25 and 25-26 school years. Motion carried 5-0.
700: Personnel
It was moved by J Benesh, seconded by Hoover to approve the following hires: Justin Kress, Co-Head baseball coach and Brandon Stepanek, Middle School boys basketball coach pending background check as well as approve the following resignations: Jackie Hamilton, special education associate and Justin Kress, Assistant High School Baseball coach. Motion carried 5-0.
800: Board Communications and Calendar
801: Board Communications
802: Board Calendar
Superintendent Breitfelder shared that the next regular board meeting will be held on November 20th at 7:00PM in the District Office.
900: Adjournment
The time being 8:53PM it was moved by Hoover, seconded by Michael to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0.
________________________________ ________________________________
Kerry Peyton, Board Secretary Jeffrey Boss, Board President
