South Central Reporter

Aviston Elementary School District 21 Board of Education met Jan. 18.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Aviston Elementary School District #21

1. Call to Order—7:00 pm

a. Roll Call

a. Members present: Thole, Voss, Eversgerd (present until 7:30 pm), Kohnen, Toennies, Schulte, Strubhart

b. Members absent: None

c. Non-Members present: Superintendent Hamil, Principal Niemeyer, Carol Rapp, Amanda Beer, Shelly Albers, Kendall King, Lori Locke, Alexis McAllister, Tammy Kuper, Kelly Jackson

b. Pledge of Allegiance

2. Public Comment/Recognition of Visitors/Good News Report

a. Public Comment: Kelly Jackson addressed the Board with concerns regarding student health and safety and placing a school nurse on staff.

b. Good News Report: Recent professional development trainings for teachers have included updates and techniques to improve instruction for children with special needs and training for increasing curiosity and student performance in the classroom. The Eagle Squad theme for the month is “honesty”. Volleyball has approximately 50 student-athletes participating in grades 5-8.

3. Motion to Amend the Agenda:

a. None

4. Approval of Consent Agenda:

a. Approve Minutes of December 21, 2022 Regular Meeting.

b. Approve Payment of Bills

c. Treasurer’s Report

a. Motion by Schulte, second by Voss to approve the consent agenda items.

b. Roll Call: Thole, aye; Voss, aye; Eversgerd, aye; Kohnen, aye; Toennies, aye; Schulte, aye; Strubhart, aye. None opposed. None absent.

5. Superintendent’s Report

a. Technology Update – Wiring and WiFi access points were installed throughout the building on January 3 as part of the WiFi upgrades. The project is still awaiting two network switches for completion. Quality Network Solutions will provide a technology report and recommendations at the regular February meeting.

b. School Maintenance Grant and Facilities – The District was awarded $20,525 in matching funds to install a new security camera system and upgrade the current public address system. The District will utilize Health/Life Safety funds to match the state portion.

c. Education Fund Referendum – The resolution and ballot question for the referendum was filed in Clinton and Madison Counties on January 6. A steering committee is being established to begin the referendum campaign.

6. Old Business

a. Building Addition – FGM Architects met with office personnel to finalize floor plans for the office area. Kitchen personnel met to discuss the food service areas for continued design revisions. FGMA is scheduled to provide an update and the most recent project renderings at the regular February meeting.

7. New Business

a. Motion by Schulte, second by Kohnen for consideration and action on a resolution providing for the issue of not to exceed $6,650,000 General Obligation School Bonds, Series 2023, for the purpose of increasing the Working Cash Fund of the District, paying certain outstanding claims against the District, refunding certain outstanding bonds of the District, providing for the levy of taxes to pay the principal and interest on said bonds, and authorizing the proposed sale of said bonds to the purchasers thereof

b. Roll Call: Thole, aye; Voss, aye; Kohnen, aye; Toennies, aye; Schulte, aye. Strubhart, no. Eversgerd absent.

b. 6-Month Review of COVID Safe Return to School Plan

a. Motion by Voss, second by Kohnen to review and accept the COVID Safe Return to School Plan with no changes.

b. All in favor. None opposed. Eversgerd absent.

c. Non-Certified Employee Intent to Retire

a. Motion by Schulte, second by Kohnen to accept the letter of intent to retire from Karla Fuehne, Bookkeeper, effective April 7, 2023.

b. All in favor. None opposed. Eversgerd absent.

d. Consideration to Hire Extracurricular Positions

a. Motion by Kohnen, second by Thole to hire Megan Ritter as Assistant Bowling Coach and Logan Niehaus as Assistant 5/6 Volleyball Coach for the 2023 season.

b. Roll Call: Thole, aye; Voss, aye; Kohnen, aye; Toennies, aye; Schulte, aye; Strubhart, aye. None opposed. Eversgerd absent.

8. **Closed Session - Closed session may be used to discuss contract negotiations, employee issues and other items as deemed necessary by the board and as approved in 5 ILCS 120/2 of the Open Meetings Act.

a. Motion by Schulte, second by Voss to enter closed session at 7:50 pm.

b. All in favor. None opposed. None absent.

c. Motion by Strubhart, second by Schulte to return to open session at 8:30 pm.

d. All in favor. None opposed. Eversgerd absent.

9. Adjournment

a. Motion by Voss, second by Strubhart to adjourn the December 21, 2022 meeting at 8:32 pm.

b. All in favor. None opposed. Eversgerd absent.

https://avistonk-8.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/january-18-2023-minutes.pdf