Approve six-period trimester structure beginning next school year
Members of the Butterfield-Odin Public School (B-OPS) School Board closed their regular April meeting on Monday, April 18, in order to deal with allegations against a school employee.
When the closed meeting was closed and the regular open meeting reopened, Board Members voted to discipline half-time K-12 Principal Lisa Shellum.
Approval was on a 4-3 voice vote,with B-OPS Board Chair Joel Penner, B-OPS Vice-Chair Leon Wenner, B-OPS Treasurer Andy Pierson and B-OPS Clerk Tammy Wolle voting in the affirmative, and B-OPS Board Directors Kristy Haseman, Diane Peterson and Renae Meyer casting votes in opposition. A formal letter of reprimand will be delivered to Shellum and also placed in her file.
In a statement provided by Penner, and approved by School Attorney Kevin Rupp, the School Board’s and Penner’s response is, “A complaint was made against Lisa Shellum, which has been investigated. The Board determines that discipline is warranted. I cannot disclose what the complaint was about or the nature of the discipline that has been imposed. That information remains private until the grievance process has been completed. Because of Minnesota’s data privacy laws, I cannot tell you anything more about this situation.”
B-OHS switches from five-to-six period days
The Board, at its earlier Tuesday, April 12 Study Session, had discussed programming, teaching and student learning. At that time, B-OPS Principal Barry Schmidt presented an optional 6 x 3 high school schedule. The high school currently has a 5 x 3 schedule.
That structure switch was approved by a unanimous vote at Monday’s meeting.
Butterfield-Odin Public High School (B-OHS) now has a 5 x 3 “skinny” period structure – a five-period day containing 63-minute classes, with the fifth hour split into two smaller 35-minute periods – in a three-trimester school year. The schedule also provides 12-minutes of travel time for electives between first- and second-hour. Students now earn 15 credits per year, or five credits per trimester. Current graduation requirements are 54 credits, but some students earn up to 60 credits Presently, mathematics is the only class students must take all three trimesters.
The new plan calls for a six-period trimester structure. The sixth-period would be split for choir and band, allowing 27 minutes for each of these instructional periods. All other periods will be 58 minutes in length. Electives will continue to be offered during the first- and second-periods. Students will earn six credits per trimester, or 18 per school year.
This new structure alters the credits needed to graduate The Class of 2017 will need 57 credits, the Class of 2018 will need 60 and the classes thereafter will need 64 credits.
Language Arts (LA), Math, Science and Social Studies will be required in all three trimesters in 2020 and beyond. Beginning in 2020, students will be required to have successfully completed 12 credits of LA, 12 credits of Mathematics, nine of Science and 12 of Social Studies. Additionally, students will need 17 elective credits.
The number-one noted benefit of this structure change is that students will have core classes all three trimesters, which should improve student achievement and help prepare them for lifelong experiences. In addition, the 6 x 3 will provide more opportunities for 11th- and 12th-grade students to take elective courses in a schedule that matches up with St. James Public High School.
It was also presented at the School Board Study Session that, as St. James Public High School will now be offering full-time art, the end result will be the reduction in that program offered at B-OHS.
In other business
+ Approved the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 Master Agreement between Independent School District #836 and the Butterfield-Odin Education Association. Negotiations were delayed due to changes in the superintendent position. The new agreement was approved by teachers on a 24-0 vote. All teachers will receive a flat salary increase of $1,500 in 2015-2016 and $1,2oo in 2016-2017, rather than a percentage increase on a salary schedule based on years of experience and additional credits/advanced degrees. Other changes of note include: increasing the district’s health insurance contribution from $5,650 to $6,000 for 2015-2016 and from $6,000 to $6,500 for 2016-2017, capping the use of personal sick leave benefits at 160 hours in any 12-month period (not applicable to absences due to the illness or injury of a minor child, adult child or spouse), increasing teacher duty work days from 178 to 180 with 172 student days (getting closer to the state average of 175 student instructional days and the United States average of 180 instructional days) and increasing the term life insurance police for any teacher working more than 20 hours per week to $20,000 from $6,000.
+ Approved the shared student agreement with St. James Public Schools at the rate of $350 per student for each trimester course, commencing with the 2016-2017 school year. The proposal now moves to St. James for a vote by their School Board.
+ Approved modifications to the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school year calendars to include two extra duty days. These days will be added to the end of each school year. In the 2016-2017 school year, those days will be Monday, May 15 and Tuesday, 16, with Wednesday, May 17 as the teacher work day. The two added days in the 2017-2018 school year will be Monday, June 4 and Tuesday, June 5, with Wednesday, June 6 as the teacher work day.
+ Approved giving permission to half-time B-OPS Acting Superintendent Sandra Novak to seek permission from the Minnesota Department of Education to begin the 2016-2017 school year prior to Labor Day.
+ Approved the 2016 Auditing Contract with Abdo, Eick and Meyers for $12,570. The proposal submitted was for three years, but the contract could be written just for 2016. The proposal also included total costs of $12,900 for 2017 and $13,230 for 2018.
+ Approved the draft superintendent attribute list as presented by Harold Remme of the South Central Service Cooperative (SCSC). SCSC is assisting the Board in its superintendent search. According to Remme, the list could be used as a scorecard during interviews or from which to develop interview questions. The attribute list includes: 1. Has excellent communication skills, both written and spoken. 2. Has a proven record as an educational leader. 3. Works collaboratively with others and seeks input from staff, parents, students and community as a team builder to develop options to respond to difficult issues facing the school district. 4. Thinks and plans strategically with the ability to align school district educational programs and finances to a strategic plan. 5. Is visible in schools and the communities and is able to develop partnerships with business, government and community groups. 6. Has a good working knowledge and understanding of school finance. 7. Is described by others as honest, ethical and dedicated to students and to the school profession. 8. Is a good listener who possesses strong interpersonal and mentoring skills. 9. Has a good working knowledge, understanding and ability to evaluate educational best practices and programs. 10. Has small school and community experience.
+ Approved on a 4-3 split vote (Penner, Wenner, Wolle and Pierson, yes; Haseman, Peterson, Meyer, no) a draft superintendent compensation budget. Remme, along with Ed Waltman, reviewed the salary and benefits of superintendents from surrounding budgets to prepare the draft compensation budget. However, the final compensation and benefits of the candidate of choice will be negotiated between the Board and individual. Haseman expressed her displeasure with the draft’s proposed compensation increase from the one currently in place. The Board-approved draft compensation budget places the 2016-2017 half-time superintendent total salary, with benefits, at $69,535.
+ Approved a snow make-up day for Monday, April 25. The day was originally scheduled as a Staff Development Day, but that will be re-scheduled for Tuesday, May 31.
+ Approved a Leave of Absence through the end of the 2015-2016 school year for kindergarten teacher Wendy Besel. The Board also approved the hiring of Laura Dorn as a long-term kindergarten substitute teacher through the end of this school year.
+ Accepted the resignation of B-OPS Director of Choirs Sarah Cartwright.
+ Heard reports from School Counselor Tammi Samuelson and School Social Worker Tiffany Sandbo. They each summarized the programs and projects completed this school year, and further defined their goals for B-OPS students.
+ Listened to the Principal’s Report by Schmidt. He noted that student testing is well underway. Schmidt also shared that summer school intervention in reading and mathematics will be held in a pair of two-week sessions – two weeks in June and two weeks in July.
+ Heard a report on the Riverbend Education District from Peterson.
+ Heard a report on the County Collaborative by Peterson and Meyer. Peterson has been elected as the group’s Vice-Chair. The collaborative includes the Watonwan County School Districts of Butterfield-Odin, St James and Madelia.
+ Heard from Haseman about a recent sports pairing meeting with St James. Also attending were Pierson and Meyer. Thirty-two B-OHS students in grades 7-12 participated in the fall sports of football, cross-country, tennis and volleyball; 28 took part in the winter sports of boys basketball, wrestling, girls basketball and gymnastics and 18 are currently participating in the spring sports of softball, baseball, track-and-field and golf.
+ Two individuals registered to address the Board during Open Forum. Each presenter is given three minutes. Casey Lloyd listed several rumors from a list of rumors he stated are out in the public arena. He also questioned if the Board’s “majority four” had an agenda when they began their terms. Brenda Meyer raised questions concerning why, at the November 2015 Board Meeting, Shellum’s half-time contract as superintendent/curriculum director was not renewed, and why the decision was made on January 21, 2016, to place Shellum on immediate suspension from those positions. She also raised possible Open Meeting Law violations against School Board members. Meyer then began to tie her opinion as to why the decision was made at the January 21 meeting to a Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA) workshop held earlier in January that dealt with “Investigations of Complaints and Allegations” and the duty of an administrator to investigate, when her three minutes expired and the meeting was adjourned.
Upcoming meetings
+ Monday, May 2 – Special Board Meeting to approve superintendent candidates to interview, 6:30 pm.
+ Thursday, May 5 – Special Board Meeting to interview superintendent candidates, 6:30 p.m.
+ Monday, May 16 – Regular Monthly Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m.
