The regular meeting was held starting at 5:00 p.m.
The board of education conducted an open interview with Mrs. Denise Bergstrom for the position of superintendent of the district.
The November 2023 meeting minutes and treasurer’s report were approved with no changes.
The student council secretary updated the board on student council activities for SnowFest.
The theme for this year’s hall decorating is children’s books. Round two of voting for Snowfest court will end this week. SnowFest is scheduled for Friday, February 2nd, and there will be a dance after the basketball game that evening.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, a community member expressed thanks to the board and administration for their continued support of the Exchange Teen Center, which meets twice a week to support and provide activities for any students who want to attend. She also wanted to convey her support of Mrs. Bergstrom for superintendent.
An elementary parent wanted to let the board know that he thought that elementary students needed more time for lunch, and would like to see more time added to their lunch time. He also conveyed strong support for Mrs. Bergstrom for superintendent.
The board approved the hiring of Mr. Todd Waldron for the Business teacher position that was posted due to Mrs. Kristine Herendeen leaving and Mrs. Robin Ellison retiring soon.
Supt. Denney updated the board on the progress made toward the board goals:
Goal #1A – Monitoring of students at the end of the trimester/semester.
Goal #1B – Ongoing efforts through MiCIP focus on identifying gaps and making adjustments to reduce them.
Goal #1C – Exploring options for online offerings/programming for next school year.
Goal #1D – Tentative agreements with both bargaining groups should help in attracting and retaining employees; planning ahead for pending teacher retirements.
Goal #1E – Held multiple input sessions during the Strategic Planning Process that involved a wide spectrum of the community.
Goal #1F – Comet Connections; PBIS.
Goal #2A – Updating master list of maintenance projects; change out door of elementary boiler room.
Goal #2B – Desktop computers are needed with the next 12 months.
Goal #2C – No new collaborations at this time; always listen to ideas.
The board set the date and time of Monday, December 18, 2023 at 5:00 pm for a special meeting to review the terms of, and take action on, the tentative agreements reached with both of the district’s bargaining groups.
After interviewing Mrs. Denise Bergstrom for the district’s upcoming superintendent position, the board agreed to offer her the position and enter into contract negotiations with her, with a start date of July 1, 2024.
Superintendent Denney reported to the board members on the following:
- Congratulations to Denise Bergstrom.
- Thank you to the bargaining teams for both units.
- Thank you to everyone who participated in the strategic planning meetings.
- Senior portfolio presentations have been taking place; we have an amazing group of kids. Thanks to Katie Powers and Robin Ellison for coordinating the presentations.
- The National Parks Service is adjusting their schedule to send invitations to schools to have students decorate ornaments for the Christmas trees at the nation’s capitol; therefore, our elementary students’ artwork will be displayed again this year on the Michigan tree in Washington, D.C.
The board members commented on the following:
- The board is very happy to offer the upcoming superintendent position to Denise Bergstrom. Congratulations to her.
- Welcome to Todd Waldron.
- The middle school student council is collecting items for the community food pantry. The board appreciates their spirit of giving.
- Napoleon Schools will be hosting the county board meeting on February 3 (tentatively) and will be showcasing their district’s mobile industrial arts classroom.
The regular meeting was adjourned at 7:17 p.m.
