School board to discuss communication protocols

Before the Newton Community School District Board of Education convenes for its regularly scheduled meeting 6:30 p.m. Monday night, all seven members will lead a workshop one hour before to discuss communication protocols.

Superintendent Bob Callaghan told Newton Daily News the school board will likely talk about how communication should be between the board and staff, including administrators and teachers. That discussion will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the E.J.H. Beard Administration Center.

After the hour-long talking point, the school board will adjourn for its regular meeting. At the top of district business is the acceptance of the school district’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2019.

Results from this audit will be presented by Mike Stanley of Hunt & Associates, P.C. and NCSD Director of Business Services Tim Bloom. In the past, Stanley discussed his findings with the board, who would then vote to accept the audit. Last year’s audit was an overall positive financial report.

School board members will also consider approving the certified seniority report and a copier and print solution agreement. NCSD does not own its copiers and printers, but instead rents its machines from a company. Callaghan said it is too cost prohibitive to own copiers and printers.

Bret Miller, director of teaching and learning, will hold a discussion item with board members regarding in-district transfer requests for elementary school students. Board members will be informed of how this process is dealt with. No action will be taken on the matter, according to the agenda.

This discussion item will likely address parents’ requests to, for example, transfer their child to Aurora Heights Elementary School when they live in the Thomas Jefferson Elementary School area.

Two separate resolutions are up fro discussion and approval that deal with the School Budget Review Committee’s requests for Modified Allowable Growth (MAG) for both at-risk/dropout prevention and administrative costs at the Grandwood Consortium.

Callaghan explained the latter.

“There are students that go to other school districts for educational reasons, typically, and we are allowed to request spending authority for some of the administrative costs — there is a state formula of so much per day that you can charge,” he said.

“We had to pay for administrative costs — the kids are in a school, there’s a principal there, etc. — so we have to spend that money. Now, we are just asking for the authority to have spent it.”

The total amount that will be request for at-risk/dropout prevention is $900,668. The total amount requested for administrative costs will be $5,270.79. Callaghan said these requests are not about spending money but rather about spending authority.

"We are asking for the authority to spend that at-risk/dropout prevention money," Callaghan said.

NCSD Board of Education will continue reading its board policy reviews and then reflect onthe 74th Iowa Association of School Boards Convention and Trade Show.

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com