MPS Installs New Board Members

The Malta School District met on May 15 at 7 p.m. with a newly elected Chairperson of the board, and two new members. In a special meeting at 6:15 p.m. prior to the regular meeting, Katie Brown and Kyle Kluck were administered the oath to their positions as newly elected school board members by Darlene Kolczak. Following the swearing in ritual, Kluck and Brown and board members Angel DeVries, Jessica Oyler and Katey Marquis voted and DeVries was selected as Board Chairperson, Marquis was elected Board Vice Chairperson.

Following the pledge to the flag, a motion was made by Brown and Oyler to approve the Consent Agenda, which included the agenda for the meeting, the minutes from the April 10th meeting, approve the bills and approve the substitute list.

The student showcase was a video created by Kallie Rummel's 5th-grade students. They created characters and did a story, the creativity of the young minds is intriguing.

Marquis reported that the curriculum committee will be meeting to review new books.

For administrative reports, Elementary Principal Zach Handley shared happenings at the school, which included field trips that day; the kindergarten class had gone to the Dinosaur Museum and the third grade had toured East Hutterite Colony.

The Smarter Balanced testing has been completed; the new one for the upcoming will be the MAST testing.

Summer school will be held at the Middle School this summer due to the heating and vac system being installed.

Handley stated the new phone system will be installed soon.

He said the kindergarten and fifth-grade visits have taken place.

The fifth graders seemed anxious to move on to the bigger and challenging world of the "Middle School." At this time, there are 34 incoming kindergarten students.

Handley thanked the PIE organization for the new playground equipment; the equipment is a welcome addition for the physical well-being of the students.

He shared upcoming dates which include the track meet on May 21, followed by the 4-5 grade music concert that evening. May 22 is the AR BUG assembly at 8:30 a.m. and on the last day of school, the students will have a movie at the Villa Theatre, with a noon dismissal.

Principal Shawn Bleth reported on upcoming events. Graduation was on Sunday, May 19.

On May 6, the parent meeting for eighth grade was held and Bleth said about 2/3 of the students were represented by parents in attendance.

He addressed the recent ACT test results; students made a remarkable improvement and he thanked Mrs. Webb and Mrs. Handley for their work in preparing the students.

Bleth stated comparisons from May 3 of last year to May 3 this year. In 2023, students had averaged an absenteeism of 11.9 days. This year the average was down to 9.6 days, and he spoke on the need for regular attendance at school. Last year, there were 38 students who had missed 15 days or more of school and this year there were 20. He said the drop in numbers was both pleasant and encouraging. He said that next year with the transition to a four-day week, there will be a great challenge to attend school, stating it is impactful. The drop in days of being absent reduces the stress on the student as well as the teacher with the added work.

Scheduling was done last week, there is no one hired at present for the Ag Ed position, so adjustments might have to be made according to students wanting the class.

The senior class was ..."finally able to get in their senior trip, they lost after several tries. First because of CoVid, then the skiing trip because of nice weather...last Thursday they were able to go bowling in Glasgow." The students then enjoyed a stop on the way home at the Sleeping Buffalo and Prime 54 arranged a tea for them with appetizers and desserts, which went over well.

In his report he stated there was a need and possible revision of the mission statement as a school. There was a consensus of those in attendance the current one is too long and no one really could recite it. He had Mrs. Crasco share some ideas the high schoolers had come up with and this will be formally presented at a later board meeting following a revision.

Supt. Steve Bucks presented the coaches that were being considered for hire for the 2023-2024 season; the board approved the action. He then presented the coaches for the 2024-2025 school year as well as the speech therapist and psychologist; Oyler made a motion to approve those names presented, it was seconded by Brown and the motion passed.

Bucks asked for a nomination for someone to work on the transportation committee; Oyler made a motion to have Bucks fill the position again this year; a second was provided by Brown. Motion passed.

DeVries stated the finance committee will be DeVries and Marquis; transportation will be Kluck and Brown; building committee will be Kluck and DeVries; curriculum will be Brown and Oyler; personnel will be Marquis and Oyler. A motion was moved by Oyler, seconded by Marquis, motion carried.

The calendar for the 2024-2025 pre-school special education was discussed. The classes will run one week after school starts, running until the last week before the end of school. Marquis moved to accept the calendar, followed by a second by Kluck, and the motion carried.

Item 6 on the agenda was the asphalt in the school parking lot and also some at the grade school. Both Bucks and Bleth stated they were impressed with the quality of the work done by one of the submitted bids from CK on work from last year. Marquis and Kluck moved and seconded a motion to hire CK, the bid was for $59,300.

The seventh item on the agenda was the flooring possibilities; Bleth shared information on the two projects being considered, those being the carpet in the choir area and the floor in the ag education room. After much discussion on the urgency of either project, DeVries stated that the building reserve fund is low, and there were items in the safety assessment that had been completed that were a priority that needed to be addressed. Marquis also mentioned some projects in the cafeteria at the grade school that need to be addressed as well. Due to a lack of motion, the item died.

Board policies were on the agenda, to give the new board members time to review the items, a motion was made by Oyler, seconded by Brown, to table the discussion and any decisions until the June meeting. Motion carried.

Bucks shared updates on the Title audit, the Special Education program that needs to be revisited, and the Carl Perkins Grant that has not opened up as of yet. He stated the eighth-grade certification is Wednesday, May 22 at 2 p.m.

Bucks then had Darlene Kolczak address the meeting and share information from the County Superintendent's Office.

The June board meeting will be held on the 5th of June due to conflicts. With a motion from Oyler, seconded by Marquis, the meeting adjourned.