By Lori Ehde
In the ongoing saga of the school budget, Luverne School Board members are facing issues of tenure with regard to recent cuts.
During their Thursday, May 10, meeting, board members rescinded two resolutions and amended another with regard to personnel.
At the April 26 meeting, board members voted to place Luverne Elementary Art Specialist Cloyce Smith on unrequested leave of absence after cutting the elementary art program.
Classroom teachers will still offer art to students, but they will not have the specialized services Smith provided.
The board rescinded that action Thursday after learning that Smith is planning to exercise her rights as a tenured teacher.
Smith's program of specialized art was cut, but she is a licensed elementary teacher and will stay on as a classroom teacher.
That means another non-tenured elementary teacher will be "bumped" in the process.
Board members took no action Thursday on placing another teacher on unrequested leave, because they have until July 1 to notify non-tenured staff of such cuts.
In similar action Thursday, the board rescinded an April 26 resolution to place Michelle Johnson on unrequested leave of absence.
Her half-time duties as elementary technology specialist were cut, but she, too, is tenured and is opting to "bump" into another teaching arena.
The board also amended an April 26 resolution placing music teacher Patty Nelson and life sciences teacher Deb Vogt on unrequested leave of absence. The amendment states the action was due to discontinuation of the position and lack of pupil participation.
Other areas to cut
During their Thursday meeting, School Board members also approved another $23,919 in cuts to the athletic program.
oThe biggest cost savings will be seen in increasing activity fees from $15 to $30 for grades 9-12 and from $15 to $20 for grades 7-8.
Schaefer said when he researched what other districts were charging for activities fees, he learned Luverne's fees are among the lowest in the region.
Many schools, for example, charge $40 for football and $30 for all other activities. Waseca has an $82 activity fee, and New Ulm charges $70.
The increased fees in Luverne will bring an additional $10,985 in revenue to the district.
oLuverne's adult ticket prices will increase from $4 to $5, representing new revenue of $5,780. Student ticket prices will remain at $2.
The board discussed the fact that this will make family activity passes more beneficial. The 10-punch card can be purchased for $40, representing a $10 savings.
oThe board decided to eliminate towel service for a savings of $2,750, and intramural basketball (which had low participation) was cut for a savings of $177.
oAbout $1,000 can be saved in transportation by having the marching band use one less bus and one less small vehicle (instructor Dale Nelson had advised the board this would be workable).
oAs much as $3,227 could be saved by paying coaches after the season, once participation numbers are confirmed.
Other policy changes in activities could represent additional savings, but those figures wouldn't be available until after the fact.
For example, if cheerleaders attended state tournaments only if a team were competing (as opposed to one or two wrestlers), that would represent a savings.
Administrative cuts
The board also examined the duties of the elementary, middle school and high school principals, in addition to their support staff, for additional areas to trim.
After presenting the information, Schaefer said it didn't appear there was much fat to trim.
"Some days I think the superintendent would be the best to reduce, because I think you can live without some parts of the superintendent, but you can't live without some of these positions," Schaefer said.
No administrative cuts were presented to the board, and no action was taken.
Writing test results
Luverne's writing skills continue to improve, according to results of the Minnesota Basic Standards Test released last week.
In Luverne, 109 10th-graders took the written composition test, and 98 percent of them passed.
Of those who passed, 72 percent passed at the "basic" level, 19 percent passed at the "competent" level, 6 percent were considered "skillful" and 2 percent were "exceptionally skillful."
According to Curriculum Coordinator Jan Olson, two 10th-graders achieved perfect scores, as did one 11th-grader who moved into the district and hadn't taken the test.
This is the third year that Minnesota 10th-graders have taken the test. This year, seniors need to pass the test along with the basic standard tests in reading and math to graduate.
Last year, 93 percent of Luverne's 10th-graders passed the written test, and the year before that 88 percent passed.