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Board superintendent evaluation results in 'accomplished' rating

By
Mavis Fodness

Luverne School Board members gave Superintendent Craig Oftedahl a final grade of “accomplished” for his performance in the 2020-21 school year.
Each of the seven board members scored Oftedahl on a four-point scale in six areas.
Four dealt with district goals and two were about personal goals.
A 4 is “distinguished,” 3 is “accomplished,” 2 is “satisfactory” and 1 is “unsatisfactory.”
Board members met in an Oct. 28 closed session with Oftedahl for a final evaluation interview.
Board Chairman Eric Hartman delivered a message to Oftedahl at the Nov. 23 board meeting.
“I want to personally thank you for your leadership, your guidance, under less-than-ideal circumstances in the last year especially and the last few years,” Hartman said.
“Covid and a building project — is there anything else we could have added to the mix of things?”
The construction and remodeling project started with long-range planning in 2016 (Oftedahl was hired in July 2015) with the actual construction beginning in 2019 and is in the finishing stages this fall.
The $31 million project is coming within budget, according to business manager Tyler Reisch, who reported on the construction budget at the Oct. 28 meeting.
As of the Nov. 23 meeting, $730,107 remains in the construction account.
Other district goals and Oftedahl’s score in each include:
•provide leadership for the district during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2.86.
•provide leadership in the area of finances, 3.14.
•continue to cultivate community partnerships, 3.71.
The overall score toward district goals was 3.35.
For the personal goals the score include:
•strengthen communication on a consistent basis, 2.71.
•lead the process to improve efficiency of the district, 3.29.
Overall personal score toward district goals: 3.0.
 
In other business at the Nov. 23 meeting, the board approved the following personnel:
•hired Savannah Siebenahler as middle-high school paraprofessional beginning Nov. 29, Tara Sudenga as middle school girls’ basketball coach, and Mike Gonnerman as middle school boys’ basketball coach.
•transferred Danielle Ganun from middle-high school paraprofessional to preschool paraprofessional.
•accepted the retirement of Brenda Fodness as middle-high school cook effective Nov. 30.
•approved the following volunteers: boys’ hockey, Kaden Erickson; gymnastics, Cody Gehrke; and wrestling, Joel Evans, Lance Ripka, Matt Fodness and Jeremy Hough.

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