B1, Area Learning Center Update

Dissent: None

Jenni Sjosten, Assistant Principal of the ALC, and Russ Reetz, High School Principal, presented an update. The ALC focuses on relationships, flexibility, and individualized approaches, with a mission grounded in safety, collaboration, respect, and restorative opportunities. Enrollment is stable at around 182 students, showing a typical 30-40% increase throughout the year. The ALC boasts a 77.5% graduation rate (up 26 percentage points since 2021) and 50% of students making the honor roll. The Rotary STRIVE Scholarship program honored four ALC students this year. Academic performance is tracked by credit earned vs. attempted (currently at 61%), establishing a baseline for future improvement. The ALC will transition to trimesters in alignment with the high school, introducing 'mini-mesters' (six-week grading periods) to increase credit-earning frequency for at-risk students. Experiential learning, including field trips and community service, and family engagement through events like Bingo Night and Intentional Social Interactions (ISIs) were highlighted as strengths. An ALC program review is underway with District 916 to evaluate a potential shift from an ALC to an ALP designation, which would provide more flexibility in middle school programming, enhance high school offerings, and optimize state revenue reporting for attendance. Questions covered student referral processes, credit earning in mini-mesters, open enrollment figures (25% of students), differences between ALC and ALP designations (specifically middle school requirements), ALC capacity (200-225 during school year, 300 in summer), funding differences (none), and student participation in high school activities.

B2, FY2025-26 Preliminary Budget Overview

Dissent: None

Mr. Wald and Ms. Johnson presented the preliminary budget, emphasizing that the general education formula allowance has significantly lost purchasing power over 23 years due to inflation. Key assumptions for FY2025-26 include stable enrollment (8,300 students), a 2.74% formula allowance increase, budgeting for summer term unemployment ($650,000) and paid family medical leave ($226,000 for FY25-26, $376,000 for FY26-27). The preliminary budget projects a $500,000 deficit but aims to maintain the 8% unassigned fund balance policy ($11.4 million ending balance). Projections for FY2026-27 show the fund balance potentially dropping to 7.5%, requiring future adjustments. The nutrition services fund projects an $800,000 deficit for next year, but a healthy fund balance from previous years can absorb this. Community services is working out of a COVID-related deficit, projecting an excess revenue of $115,000. Debt service fund is managed by the state with a 105% levy to cover payments. Board questions focused on headcount numbers (included in salaries/benefits), the centralized budgeting process (not zero-based), the discrepancy between bond referendum planning (10,000 students) and current enrollment (8,300), and the growth in support services. The finance team clarified that expense increases are primarily cost-of-living and that direct comparisons of support services across districts can be misleading due to coding differences, noting that the district's focus on long-term facility maintenance projects also impacts these figures.

C1, Action on Tentative Agreement, for 2025-27 Fiscal Years for International Union of Operating Engineers Local No. 70 Transportation Unit

Dissent: None

Moved by Thompson [3:04] · Seconded by Ellison [3:05]

Mr. Mons reported that early bargaining with the transportation unit was initiated due to rapid advancements in market compensation for bus drivers. A collaborative dialogue led to a tentative agreement. He acknowledged the efforts of the negotiation team, including Tim Wald, Andi Johnson, and Cynthia Gustafson.