January BOE meeting wrap-up

All members of the El Paso County Colorado School District 49 Board of Education were present at the regular board meeting in January. Samaya Singleton, a 10th grader from Pikes Peak Early College, and William Kessinger, a 12th grader from Vista Ridge High School, were present as part of the student board of representatives.Before the regular meeting, the BOE held a ìFantastic 49î and recognized Megan Rasmusen and Jay Bonser, Gateway to Technology teachers at Skyview Middle School, for their integral role in helping the school receive Project Lead the Wayís Inaugural Distinguished School Gateway Award. More than 100 middle schools across the nation who displayed exemplary science, technology, engineering and math programs received the award. SMS was the only middle school in Colorado to receive the award.The BOE also recognized the following: Mirsada Dzanic, building manager at Vista Ridge High School, for fostering a caring community and providing a clean facility; Kevin Roche, facilities manager at the Creekside Success Center, for going above and beyond for students and staff; and Lisa Hartman, counselor at Evans International Elementary School, for coordinating the ìWildcat Week of Thanksî community outreach program.Board updateDave Cruson, secretary, thanked Ridgeview Elementary School for hosting a memorial to Monty Scaggs a retired lawyer who worked as a substitute teacher. ìWe were blessed to have him,î Cruson said.Chief officersí updatePedro Almeida, chief operations officer, said he visited Inspiration View Elementary School, and construction is well on track.Brett Ridgway, chief business officer, said the draft of the districtís financial audit is available and he hopes to wrap up that process soon.Peter Hilts, chief education officer, said the 4A cheer squad from Sand Creek High School was one of the top 10 performers in the Colorado High School Activities Associationís state competition. The 5A co-ed cheer squad from VRHS took fourth place in the state competition and the 4A co-ed cheer squad from Falcon High School took second place.Open forumDeborah Hendrix, executive director of ParentsChallenge.org, invited D 49 to participate in a school fair Jan. 25 at the Space Foundation Headquarters and Discovery Center in Colorado Springs, where students and parents had a chance to learn about the educational options available in the county.Action itemsThe BOE unanimously approved the following:

• Renewal of the charter school application for Imagine Classical Academy ñ- Indigo Ranch, also known as Grand Peak Academy
• Revisions to the district accountability advisory committeeís bylaws
• The 2019-2020 school calendar, and preliminarily approval of the 2020-2021 school calendar
• New course proposals: Future Business Leaders of America leadership I and II at SCHS; large animal vet science at Falcon High School; veterinary pet care at FHS; agriculture economics and marketing at FHS; SAT/PSAT math prep at VRHS; and digital art at FHS
• Course name change proposals at VRHS: chamber choir to show choir; critical thinking to global studies; and business math to personal finance
• BOE meeting dates for the 2020-2021 school year
• Adjustment of the scheduled launch for Mission Innovation 2.0 to August 2019
• The new individualized education compliance assistant job description

The BOE discussed the priority improvement plan for the Academy for Literacy, Learning and Innovation Excellence, and unanimously approved the decision to continue on the path the school is on to improve its school performance frameworks rating.Discussion itemsMatt Willhelm, project manager with Wember Inc., updated the board on the districtís 3B project list. He said work at SCHS is done and the cost came in at $44,000 under budget. Work at FHS is also complete and the cost was $106,000 under budget, he said. Construction on Inspirational View Elementary School is moving forward, and Willhelm said the plan is to shoot for a June 28 completion date.Nancy Lemmond, executive director of individualized education, presented information about two new job description proposals for a deaf/hard of hearing teacher and an occupational therapist. The board unanimously approved this at the special meeting on Jan. 23.Ridgway presented information on the annual review of the districtís legal representation. Marie LaVere-Wright, president, requested a breakdown of what is covered by the retainer contract and additional costs that would be incurred. The board unanimously agreed to continue on with Miller Farmer Law, LLC, as its legal representative.Ridgway also presented the amended budget update and said the board needed to decide what to do with the additional fund balance. The board unanimously agreed to keep the fund balance at 8.5 percent of the budget rather than adjusting it either up or down. The board approved this at the Jan. 23 special meeting.Additionally, Ridgway presented an update on the 2018-2019 charter school budgets and described how revenue changes occur with changes in student count. The board approved this at the Jan. 23 special meeting.The next regular meeting of the BOE is Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the board room at the D 49 Education Services Center.