By Lori EhdeLuverne School District will see more than $90,000 of new computer equipment and software in the coming months, courtesy of Microsoft Corporation.Luverne typically budgets $40,000 annually for its technology hardware and upgrades."Yes, this is a good thing for Luverne," said district finance officer Marlene Mann. She presented details to Luverne School Board members at their Thursday, Feb. 9, meeting.The money is from a settlement of a class-action lawsuit in which Minnesota customers and businesses claimed Microsoft Corp. was violating anti-trust laws by overcharging for its Windows operating system and its Excel and Word programs.The company had denied overcharging, saying the prices on its products had dropped.The vouchers will automatically go to districts which will be able to shop from a list of 1,500 hardware and software products – not all of them Microsoft. Districts have until 2012 to use up the vouchers, but Mann said Luverne’s technology department won’t waste time shopping."We’ve learned that money that’s here today might not be here tomorrow, so we’ll spend it quickly," she said.Many of Luverne’s planned purchases include items that will improve the long-term technology of the district.For example, several hardware upgrades are planned to network servers and switches that serve multiple labs."They’re the sorts of things that will make life better here, but you may not notice them on the outset," Mann said.In addition to district-wide upgrades in general purpose equipment and curriculum software, other purchases include printers, projectors, six or eight additional computers in the Mac lab, a 15-unit mobile lab for the elementary and technology training.The exact amount Luverne will receive is $90,141.36.Of that, $46,181 will be used in the elementary school, $23,211 will be spent on the middle school, $20,507 will go toward high school technology improvements and $225 in the alternative school.The amounts awarded to each building were determined in the settlement and must be spent half on hardware and half on software.Luverne’s vouchers are among $55 million that will be available to districts statewide, based on the percentage of students enrolled in state free and reduced meals.Roughly $430,000 worth of vouchers will be spent by schools in southwest Minnesota. It breaks down as follows:Luverne, $90,141.33Pipestone, $99,831.53Adrian, $54,084.80Ellsworth, $15,549.38Edgerton, $24,338.16H-BC, $23, 662.10Ruthton, $18,929.68Brewster, $15,324.03Fulda, $37,408.65Murray Co., $51,380.56The money is part of a $182 million settlement that made vouchers available to residents and businesses that purchased certain products from Microsoft.Half the value of the unclaimed vouchers was made available to the Minnesota Department of Education after the public deadline to claim them had passed.Tobacco settlementMicrosoft isn’t the only one giving money to Luverne schools.Mann told School Board members Thursday that nearly $11,000 was paid to the district as part of its share of a tobacco settlement dating back to 1998.However, it’s unclear how the money will be spent.Those eligible to receive the money include anyone on the district’s Blue Cross-Blue Shield plan between 1978 and 2001. That includes about 100 Luverne School District employees on the health plan during that time, and the district itself, which paid a portion of the premiums.Mann said she’s meeting with the insurance committee and representatives from the district bargaining units to agree on appropriate use of the funds.Many districts are opting to put the money toward general health or wellness programs.To disperse the money fairly would require administrative costs – particularly in locating eligible employees who are no longer with the schools today.Many districts are finding that individual awards wouldn’t amount to much, but pooling the money for the health of the district would benefit a broader good and would better fit the initial intent of the lawsuit.Blue Cross was the first health plan in the nation to sue the tobacco industry, to hold the industry accountable for its actions and to prevent a new generation of smokers in Minnesota.The industry settled the lawsuit in 1998, agreeing to pay Blue Cross $469 million in damages and to change the way cigarettes are marketed in Minnesota.Blue Cross remains the only health plan to have recovered damages.In other business:
The district will receive bids on the track resurfacing project at 1 p.m. on March 9. The estimated $200,000 project will be budgeted for next year, since the work won’t be completed until after July 1.
The board approved a $5 fee increase for driver’s education, bringing the cost to $245. The increase will cover about $1,000 in new textbooks and salary increases for licensed teachers (about 50 cents more per hour).
The board accepted the resignation of Michelle Schrantz as middle school softball coach and hired Lucinda Rofshus for the job.
The board accepted the resignation of choral director Beth Behal, who has been on an extended leave of absence. She has started a restaurant, Camille’s, in Sioux Falls and has chosen to stay with the business.The board praised her work with the choral department and also commended her replacement, Kyle Eastman, for continuing the excellence over the past two years.
The board approved a request by athletic director Todd Oye to make it the district’s policy to cover the cost of head coaches joining the Minnesota State High School Coaches Association.It will cost the district $450 this year, but it ensures that all students who qualify for athletic and academic recognition (such as Academic All-Star, for example) properly receive that recognition.
The next board meeting will be at 5 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 23.
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