The Crookston School Board met on Monday evening and approved a cell phone policy, the three-year School Resource Officer contract, and adding another preschool class. The meeting recap is below.
The meeting started with the board pulling two items from the consent agenda and adding one to the main agenda. The first item was Kent Erickson’s resignation as a custodian at the high school, which will be discussed at the September meeting. The other item pulled was Paige Erickson’s employment as a paraprofessional at the high school because she already resigned. The item added to the main agenda was preschool enrollment.
CELL PHONE POLICY APPROVED
The board unanimously approved the cell phone policy for the district. The policy will remain the same for K-8 grades, as no cell phones are allowed. Grades 9-12 will be allowed to have cell phones before school, during passing time, at lunch, and after school. The high school will provide pouches for students to put their cell phones on the back of each classroom door during class. “Kids are expected to put their cell phones in the pouch at the beginning of class, and they will be able to take the cell phone at the end of class,” said Superintendent Randy Bergquist. “The only way students can utilize their cell phones in the classrooms is if it happens to have an academic component to the lesson plan or whatever is being taught. For any kind of medical purpose, we will allow children to have their cell phones. We know diabetes. There are so many gadgets on cell phones that help with medical-related concerns, and we will definitely let students have those.”
Cell phone punishments at the middle school will be very similar to the punishments at the high school. They are below –
-On the first violation, the student will be asked to return the device to their locker.
-On the second violation, the device will be confiscated and brought to the office, where the student can pick up at the end of the day.
-On the third violation, the phone will be confiscated, brought to the office, and will remain there until a parent/guardian comes to retrieve it.
-On the fourth violation, the phone will be confiscated, and the student will either need to leave the phone at home or will be expected to turn the device into the office upon arrival and may pick it up after dismissal for the remainder of the year.
-If there is a fifth violation, there will be grounds for suspension.
SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICE CONTRACT APPROVED
The board unanimously approved a three-year school resource officer (SRO) contract with no significant changes to the contract. The Crookston Police Officers union is currently in contract negotiations with the City of Crookston and whatever percentage raise they get will be honored by the district. The SRO will also get free lunch provided by the district so the SRO can eat with the students. “We are going to have our school resource officer around at lunchtime where there is a little more instability. Kids will be able to be on their phones, but we are going to have our school resource officer eating with the kids,” said Superintendent Bergquist. “Maybe one table one day and another table the next day. I am excited about that because I think it is good to have a school resource officer in the Crookston schools.”
PRESCHOOL ENROLLMENT, ADDITION OF ANOTHER TEACHER
The Crookston School District currently has four full-time preschool classes and two part-time preschool classes, with many three and four-year-olds currently on a waiting list. The board unanimously approved trying to hire another preschool teacher to offer five full-time preschool classes at 16 kids per class. “I think it is great news,” said Superintendent Bergquist. “I think one of the ideas of keeping Washington School was to increase our preschool numbers, and that has come to fruition. We have our numbers increased and we are going to add another section of preschool. If we get them into the door, hopefully, they will stay with us through the 12th grade. We are excited about that, and hopefully, we can find a preschool teacher.”
FAMILY RESOURCE CENTER LEASE AT WASHINGTON SCHOOL
The school board unanimously approved leasing a portion of the south side of Washington School, the Family Resource Center. “We are excited to work with the Family Resource Center and Victoria Ramirez. They are going to be stationed on the southern part of Washington Preschool, and they will have an area where parents can find out different opportunities for themselves or their children,” said Superintendent Bergquist. “It is an opportunity to have a place in the school so parents can get acclimated to the school setting no matter what grade their child is in.” There will be a separate entry for the Family Resource Center.
SCHOOL BOARD GOALS AND CORE VALUES SET
The Crookston School Board set two goals and four core values for Crookston School District #593.
GOALS
Goal 1 – They will implement the core values with fidelity.
Goal 2 – Close the achievement gap for all students
Core Values –
1. Communication – Crookston Public Schools will excel in communicating with students, parents, staff, and the community.
2. High Expectations – Crookston Public Schools will be a place in which high expectations are set for our students and staff.
3. Relationships – Crookston Public Schools will excel in building strong relationships with students, families, staff, and community.
4. Support Systems – Crookston Public Schools will provide a strong system of mental health and academic support for students and families.
UPDATED POLICIES AS RECOMMENDED BY THE SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION
The board unanimously approved the second reading and passage of Policy 506 – Student Discipline, Policy 507 – Corporal Punishment and Prone Restraint, Policy 507.5 – School Resource Officers, and Policy 514 – Bullying Prohibition Policy. The question was brought up, and the School Resource Officer can use prone restraints if needed.
TRUTH IN TAXATION HEARING DATE SET
The Crookston School District will hold its Truth in Taxation Hearing on December 9, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. at the Crookston High School Choir/Orchestra room. They will move the regular school board meeting from December 23 to December 9 at 5:00 p.m. State law requires all Truth in Taxation Hearings to be held at 6:00 p.m. or later.
PARAPROFESSIONAL CONTRACT APPROVED
The board approved a contract with the paraprofessionals for the 2024-27 school years. They will get raises of 4.5, 4.0, and 3.5 percent over the three years. They will go from 2 to 3 personal days and 8 to 9 paid holidays. The district also increased the 403b match from $370 to $400.
MISCELLANEOUS
The board unanimously approved Crookston FFA students’ attendance at the FFA National Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, from October 23 to 26, 2024.
The board approved Superintendent Randy Bergquist to be the Identified Official with Authority for the District. It is something required by the state each school year.
The board approved the following hires – Brittany Rassett as a German teacher, Kira Johnson as a Middle School Science teacher, Marianne Isaacs, and Kabie Weisert as full-time substitute teachers. Also Mark Ecklund and Shannon Zavala as kitchen helpers at the high school, Diane Seddon as head cook at the high school, and changing Wanda Proulx from a kitchen helper to assistant cook. The board also approved Kari Sinks and Lori Wagner as paraprofessionals at Highland School, Barb Holweger as an Instructional Assistant at Highland, a change for Sara Pester from elementary teacher to Title 1 teacher at Highland,
The board approved the fall coaching staff and lane advancement requests.
The board approved the following donations – $600 from the National FFA Foundations and $416.50 from the Crookston Eagles Auxiliary for the FFA program. $500 from HN Quality Plumbing, $100 from Widman’s Candy, $100 from Crookston Fuel Company, and $500 from the Crookston Eye Clinic for the Highland School playground. The board will be asked to approve the following donations to the Girls Golf program – $200 from Mark Jacobson, $200 from Jaclyn Martin, $200 from Jeff and Debbie Dufault, $500 from Mike and Jenny Nelson, and $500 from Gary and Lori Hoerner. And an anonymous $10,000 donation to the Crookston High School scoreboard/athletic complex.
The board approved the resignations of Brad Hubred as Middle School Science teacher, Mariah Christian and Gabriela Ostgaard as paraprofessionals at the high school, and Emily Meyer as Success Coach at the high school.
The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 23.
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