The first order of business at the Unified School District 418 Board of Education regular meeting Monday was to elect officers for the 2008-09 school year. By a unanimous vote, Bob Tolle and Donna Viola were elected president and vice president respectively.

Additional board organization items were approved prior to the regular business session.

Fifteen administrative appointments were approved, including clerk – Chris Ruder, assistant clerk – Carol Holm and treasurer – Jennifer Neff. Ruder also was appointed school food authority, authorized representative for federal programs, Kansas Public Employees Retirement System representative, hearing officer for suspension or expulsion appeal, office of Civil Rights and Title IX assurance official, handicap accessibility 504/ADA assurance official and Municipal Investment Pool officer.

Dr. Randy Watson, superintendent, was appointed hearing officer for free and reduced price meals application appeals and the freedom of information officer. John Klenda was appointed school attorney. Acting as alternate KPERS representative will be Neff, and Angie McDonald will serve as the McKinney Homeless Student Coordinator.

Appointed as attendance officers for each school site were the principals of each building: Craig Marshall – Eisenhower Elementary School, Jana Koehn – Lincoln Elementary School, Lew Faust – McPherson High School, Todd Beam – Roosevelt Elementary School, and Sue Hosey – Washington Elementary School. The McPherson Middle School appointment simply read To Be Determined.

Thirteen items fell under the organizational business umbrella and following the board’s review, those recommendations were approved by a 7-0 vote. As a result of that action, The McPherson Sentinel was designated the official newspaper, and the First Bank of Kansas was designated as the depository for the school district funds for 2008-09. The board also chose to renew its membership in the Kansas Association of School Boards at a cost of $10,571; the dues reflect a $40 increase over last year’s fee.

The board adopted its meeting schedule, with regular meetings scheduled on the second and fourth Mondays during the fiscal year. Board action established a minimum of 1,116 hours for the school year, with one day designated as a weather makeup day; the existing calendar has been developed on the hours option.

As required by the Kansas State Department of Education, the board approved the KSDE food service agreement. As KSDE recommends, the board approved a resolution to waive generally accepted accounting principles and fixed asset accounting. In alignment with Kansas statutes, the board approved resolutions establishing petty cash funds, authorizing activity fund expenditures and authorizing the use of purchasing cards.

Three district employees – Ruder, Neff and Tracey Wedel – will be bonded for $60,000 each. According to Ruder, this is a typical bonding amount for employees working at the district financial level; other employees are covered up to $100,000 under the district insurance policy. Board members also approved a resolution authorizing the district to participate in the state-managed investment pool. The final item was the home rule resolution. Written by the KASB legal department, this resolution guides the district in implementing the home rule policy.

The final organizational item, board member appointments, was listed for discussion only. Tolle asked members to review the committee descriptions and to advise him or Viola if they had preferences for membership on district committees. Appointments to the following committees will be made at the July 28 meeting: Chamber of Commerce Education Committee, Classified Job-Alike Committee, McPherson Unified School District Community Education Foundation, Curriculum Coordinating Council, District Calendar Committee, District Art Collection Advisory Board, District Facilities Committee, District Technology Committee, Financial Audit Committee, Head Start Policy Council, HCC/Vocational Advisory Board, KASB Governmental Relations Network, McPherson Recreation Commission, Negotiations Team and Supplemental Duty Committee.
In other business:

EXECUTIVE SESSIONS Following two separate executive sessions for personnel, the board extended the central office contract for Keith Sherwood not to exceed 20 days. According to the contract, Sherwood would be paid $350 per day as well as a one-month, single health insurance premium. This action will provide time for Sherwood to help Ruder as he assumes the responsibilities of the associate superintendent position. In a second motion, the board approved Sherwood’s employment as the interim principal for McPherson Middle School for 2008-09.

Following this action, the board amended the information for the attendance officer at MMS, striking the words “To Be Determined” and substituting Sherwood’s name.

PERSONNEL The board approved the following personnel actions. Resignations were accepted from Sandra Barton – 4th grade LES teacher, Kristin Anderson – EES music teacher, and Kelly Weber – MMS paraeducator. Employment was approved for Dawn Lamkin – fourth-grade LES teacher, Cynthia Reynolds – EES music teacher, and Mary Patty – EES physical education assistant with a degree.

SUBSTITUTE PAY INCREASE By a 7-0 vote, the board accepted the proposal to increase the pay rate for substitute teachers from $83 to $85 per day. Watson said the rate keeps the district competitive with other districts in the county; he also noted that the substitutes did not receive an increase in 2007-08.