Board recognizes outstanding students, staff

BISMARCK – The Bismarck R-5 Board of Education recognized outstanding students and staff as part of its regular monthly meeting Thursday night in the school cafeteria.

High School Principal Jason King and Elementary School Principal Karen Knowles announced their choices for staff member and student of the month for each of the buildings.

King introduced special education teacher Jessica Davis as staff member and Jake Jarvis as student of the month for the high school.

Knowles chose maintenance head “Cotton” Williams for staff member and Shaylin Ryder as student of the month for the elementary school.

Knowles next recognized fourth, fifth and sixth grade students in her school that have rated proficient and / or advanced on Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) testing. Each received a certificate of recognition and a medal.

The recipients’ names will be printed in a future article in the Daily Journal.

In his monthly superintendent’s report, Superintendent Chuck Hasty informed the board that the current district enrollment totals 547 students. He added that the number of enrolled students has fluctuated since the beginning of school. The current school year began in August with 566 students, but dropped to 532 students by the end of September.

Hasty said the state is currently funding the school at 92 percent, a higher percentage than the 90 percent figure the district had set for its budget.

“We’re on pace to have a good year financially,” said Hasty. “It will be especially good for the district if Prop B is passed on Nov. 6. This will mean $87,000 a year for the district. There’s a lot of support for the proposition but there is some opposition as well. You may have seen some of the ads on TV. It’s passage would be good for public education and would definitely help our school district.”

 He told board members the budget is “in good shape” and that he would offer them a full report on the financial outlook for the district after the Nov. 6 election.

Regarding last month’s board decision for Hasty to seek bids for district HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) units, the superintendent admitted the district “might be moving a little fast.”

“I want to make sure we get the best deal,” said Hasty. “Have you ever gone to a dealership, bought a car and then came back home and asked yourself, ‘What did I do?’ I decided to step back. I want to make sure we’re comfortable with the decision we make. Right now we’re a couple of months away from a final decision.”

Several activities coming up next week were mentioned. They include the high school awards banquet next Thursday, district volleyball and parent / teacher conferences.

Board member Wendell Jarvis gave a report on the school’s baseball field. He commented that while work has been slower than he had hoped, the volunteers who have given of their time, materials and effort had “pulled together to do a great job.”

“We’ve been having a lot of people in the community coming by to tell us how nice it’s looking,” Jarvis said. He also noted there was interest in installing a flagpole and 15 x 25 foot American flag at the ball field. Jarvis estimated the cost for the pole would be $3,500 as well as another $600 for the flag. There would be additional costs involved in decorating the area around the flagpole and for lighting of the flag which would be on display 24 hours a day.

Jarvis suggested the school might help pay for the cost of maintaining the flag and said the VFW had expressed interest in holding fundraisers to help with the cost of the project.

Hasty said the district’s performance standards have risen over the past several years, noting that the school met state standards for “distinction” last year. He added that the state was now moving swiftly toward instituting MSIP 5, a move which Hasty said “will be a challenge because they are raising the performance standards.” Hasty said, however, that he felt confident the district “has the staff, curriculum and students to pull it off.”

District bus routes and eligible riders were approved.

Policy 5320 was approved. It gives variance to local vendors on certain district projects.

The following consent agenda items were approved: Minutes from the regular and closed meeting held Sept. 20; the treasurer’s report and financial statement; payment of bills; and action on resignations and employment of staff.

Kevin R. Jenkins is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-431-2010, ext. 114 or at kjenkins@dailyjournalonline.com.