School boards begin focusing on upcoming academic year

With just over two months remaining in the school year, the Lind and Ritzville School Boards are turning their focus to changes being implemented within the districts next year.

During the school board meeting on March 28, the board members also discussed the updates currently being completed within the two districts.

Superintendent Rob Roettger presented to the board regarding the transportation cooperative and the funds available.

This year, with a decrease in gas prices, the school districts have spent over $4,100 less in March than the previous year. While the lower gas prices are beneficial this year, Roettger reminded the board members they need to consider these prices will not stay the same every year, and they will have to budget accordingly.

Roettger also presented a potential plan about the addition of a shuttle for the districts next year. He displayed the estimated costs for the board, showing the middle school would have to commit between $11-14,000 to travel 12,000 miles a year, while the high school fund would increase $19-27,000 for 20,000 miles.

An additional shuttle would help bus students who live in the outlying areas, such as Hatton, after extracurricular activities.

During his superintendent update, Roettger explained the 176-day waiver for the districts has been accepted.

He also presented about the potential to receive a $60,000 physical education grant to update equipment in the districts. The grant is offered through the Educational Service Districts (ESD) and has been distributed to surrounding districts in the past, and the district learned about it through the hard work of Ritzville Principal Tom Arlt.

Roettger said the district is also looking into an Elementary Counselor grant for K-8 grade work. This addition would help provide consistent counseling services to all students, and the school board members all shared their enthusiasm at the potential of receiving the grant.

The Washtucna School Board requested to have a special meeting with representatives from the Lind and Ritzville Schools Boards to discuss the potential of an athletic cooperative in the future.

Recently, the LaCrosse School District made the determination to only remain in an athletic cooperative with Washtucna and Kahlotus for volleyball and spring sports. Roettger explained this meeting is solely a work session, and no decisions will be made final during the meeting between school boards.

For the Lind School District, Roettger presented on multiple upgrades being completed within the two schools. The Lind School District passed a bond for school improvements and safety upgrades, and the funds for these projects comes from the bond funds.

In the elementary school, the lockdown button has been installed and allows the secretary to put the entire school into lockdown in the case of an emergency.

The district also purchased new playground equipment for the elementary students, and the equipment will be installed from April 11-15.

The next projects include improvement of the sidewalk in front of the elementary school, and upgrades to the school intercom system.

The Lind School Board also approved an intercom upgrade for the district, as the current system does not work effectively in all classrooms. The project would fix any broken speakers and would allow the district with an ability to schedule bells. The estimated cost for the project is $15,000.

For next year, Roettger explained there are multiple staffing changes the districts need to consider. Mainly due to class sizes, Roettger said the districts need to consider the possibility of combining some classes, while splitting others.

The need continues for the school districts to hire a high school math teacher, but Roettger said they have not had any success in attracting applicants for the position. The school board members agree they needed to work on creating a package of perks to attract applicants.

Lind Principal Cindy Deska elaborated on the difficulty to gain applicants for the math position. While there is currently a limited pool of candidates for the position throughout the state, Deska explained her and Arlt attended a Whitworth job fair and realized how competitive it is for districts to find math teachers.

Without job perks, Deska explained the districts will have a hard time finding a new teacher, mainly because of the location of the schools.

Deska also presented on the walk throughs the teachers have been completing and how they have helped the educators grow and find new practices to adapt in their own classrooms. The teachers in the district have also visited the Colfax School District to learn about using the Reading Wonders and My Math curriculum, which the Lind and Ritzville School Districts implemented this year.

The Lind School District is also looking into providing summer support for students, Deska explained. Currently, a primary focus of the administration is looking to monitor open campus for middle school students because of issues with students abusing the luxury.

The Ritzville School Board discussed the potential of increasing the rate for students to be enrolled in preschool next year. Currently, preschool expenditures total $131,614, while the revenue is $42,500 through state’s early learning program and $10,565 through tuition collection.

Currently, the school district is charging $60 per month for each student, and the students are in the school four days a week for three hours each day.

If the school board decides to increase the rate, the school board members discussed the need to only make a slight increase in order to ensure parents can still afford to enroll their children in preschool.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Lind School Board interviewed Laurinda Ritz to fill the vacant position on the board.

As the sole candidate, Ritz publically interviewed with the Lind School Board about her interest in joining the board. After an executive session, the Lind School Board unanimously approved for Ritz to fill the vacancy.

The next school board meeting is scheduled for April 25 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 15 of the Ritzville Grade School.