Oak
Hill United School Corporation
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MINUTES
OF A MEETING
The Board of Trustees of the Oak Hill United School Corporation met in the Administration Office of the Oak Hill United School Corporation on Wednesday, December 10, 2003 . Board members present were: Dana Biggs, Scott Dubois, Mark A. Johnson, Brian Middlesworth, Toby Middlesworth, Dennis Messersmith and Kevin Pearson. Also present were Superintendent James W. Smith, Business Manager Jill Morphew, School Attorney Gene Johnson, Harold King, Terry Renbarger, Mike Keaffaber, Bill Bishop, Jean Shonkwiler, Rob Martin, and Recording Secretary Libby Medley. Representing the news media was Tiffany Winters of the Peru Tribune. Also present were Brett Pettitt, Andrew Rhodes, Brandon Tinkel, David McQueen, Bridget Vandewater, Rachel Richey, David Morgan, Shelby Pitman, Jessica Hochstedler, Ashton Crouch, Molly Hodge, and Joe Weaver. Executive Session Prior to the regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees, an executive session was conducted beginning at 6:00 p.m. according to I.C. 20-8.1-5.1-13. 1. CALL TO ORDER Mr. Messersmith, Board President, called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mr. Messersmith opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance.
3. MINUTES APPROVED The minutes of the regular meeting and executive session of November 12, 2003 and special executive session of November 25, 2003 were approved as presented. 4. PERSONNEL Mr. Smith made the following personnel recommendations for Board consideration: PAGE TWO – DECEMBER 10, 2003
Toby Middlesworth moved to approve all personnel recommendations as presented. Brian Middlesworth seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. 5. CONTINUING BUSINESS A. Speedway Chosen From Bus Bids After review of bus bids received December 2nd, Mrs. Morphew recommended to the Board for consideration to purchase a 20 passenger bus, a 72 passenger bus, as well as a 14 passenger activity bus from Speedway International for a total of $146,246.00. Mark Johnson moved to approve the transportation request as presented. Scott Dubois seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. (see enclosure) B. General Obligation Bond Sale Approved Mr. Gene Johnson reviewed the bond sale, and noted that David A. Noyes & Co. was the successful bidder on the 2003 general obligation bonds. This transaction was possible due to: (1) an approval report from the local government finance; (2) published advertisement of the notice of sale; (3) bid approval. Kevin Pearson moved to approve the general obligation bond sale as presented. Mark Johnson seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. C. Resolution for Bond Bank Loan Approved Mrs. Morphew requested Board consideration to execute a resolution authorizing 2004 borrowing needs as follows: General Fund $743,292 Capital Projects $381,154 Transportation $137,211 Brian Middlesworth moved to approve the resolution which would permit 2004 borrowing to cover cash flow shortages. Toby Middlesworth seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. 6. NEW BUSINESS A. Expulsion Appeal #0304-1 Upheld Brian Middlesworth moved to uphold the findings of the Hearing Examiner in Expulsion Appeal #0304-1 and that the student be expelled through January 5, 2004. Scott Dubois seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. B. Closure of Calendar Year 2003 Approved Mrs. Morphew requested Board consideration to close the calendar year 2003 by transferring appropriations within the same fund from those with excess appropriations to those who have been over-expended. Toby Middlesworth moved to approve inter-fund transfers to close the 2003 Calendar Year as presented. Brian Middlesworth seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. C. Maximum Tax Rate for 2004 Approved Mrs. Morphew requested Board approval for a maximum total tax rate for the 2004 budget not to exceed $1.6970. Mr. Smith advised that a combination of the following actions by the state legislature have effected the school budgets: (1) Eliminated grant to schools for A.D.A. (Average Daily Attendance); (2) Eliminated financial support for the transportation operating fund; (3) Authorized payment of utilities/insurance from Capital Projects which increased the tax rate; (4) Inventory tax was eliminated from Capital Projects income, thereby increasing the property tax levy. Toby Middlesworth moved to approve the maximum 2004 tax rate as presented. Mark Johnson seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. D. Tucci Appointed to Converse-Jackson Township Library Board Mark Johnson moved to approve replacing the term of Tim Guiff with Karyn Tucci. Scott Dubois seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. E. Student Council Fundraiser Approved Mr. Smith requested Board consideration in approving the fundraiser request of the Student Council at Oak Hill High School to provide a spaghetti dinner on January 16, 2004. Brian Middlesworth moved to approve the Student Council fundraiser request as presented. Dana Biggs seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays. 7. CELEBRATIONS A. Mr. Joe Weaver highlighted the efforts of the student council members at Oak Hill High School. Due to their work ethic, this year’s sponsorship for Mr. Weaver has been very enjoyable.
B. Mr. Keaffaber told of the involvement of the Junior High Student Council that held a canned food drive with the winning homeroom getting to go to lunch first for two weeks in a row. An astounding 6,557 items were collected. (Mr. King verified this as parents who checked their own pantries found many items missing.)
Also, Mr. Al Mitchel and Mrs. Lisa Belcher applied for and were awarded grants in the amount of $500, respectively.
C. Mr. Renbarger had the following celebrations for Sweetser Elementary in Mr. Shroyer’s absence: · Sweetser students participating in the Spell Bowl placed third in their division. All members of the team received a medal and spelled at least 2 of their 7 words correctly. Ryan Mughmaw spelled 5 of the 7. A special thanks to the high school students who assisted with preparing the students. · Lorrie Newhouse and Johnna Tucker participated in the Junior Entomology Insect Identification Contest on November 18th. Lorrie placed 3rd and Johnna placed 4th individually. Together they were the winning team and will go on to the State Junior Contest. · Third Grade students went to Suite Living to share Christmas carols and present a short play for the residents. · Mrs. Hall’s Fifth Grade students went to Northwood Manor Retirement Community to share the Christmas spirit. · Mr. Reiff’s Fifth Grade students will share Christmas carols with the patients at Marion General Hospital on December 15th. · Fourth Grade students, instead of exchanging gifts, will bring gifts to be shared with area families receiving assistance through Family Services.
D. Mr. Renbarger shared the following celebrations for Swayzee Elementary School:
· Parent committee organized supplying math facts (flash cards) to all students the first of the year. They also organized a Reading with Santa in which Santa read books to children who were awarded books for attending. · Sixth grade students participated in Exchange City in Fort Wayne. They were educated in economics and financial matters. Instructors at Fort Wayne reported that the students were extremely well behaved and the most prepared of any group. Kudos to the teachers for the hard work they did in preparation. · Mrs. Roxann Clark did a great job with the Science Fair with 120 participants. · Students held a canned food drive with 1,800 cans collected. These items will be donated to the Samaritan Room at Converse Church of Christ.
E. Ms. Shonkwiler had the following highlights from Oak Hill High School: · The fall play was presented and the students did a great job. · The Christmas Music Concert was also well done and well attended. · A thank you to the Marion Chronicle Tribune for the article on Advanced Placement classes at Oak Hill High School. · Josh Needler was a champion in the Entomology Contest and Oak Hill will be seeking its 39th state championship. · The faculty and staff at Oak Hill High School were acknowledged for their continual efforts to assist students and this was evidenced at a recent case conference.
F. Mr. Rob Martin commended the fantastic fan support for our student athletes and noted many times Oak Hill outnumbers opposition fans when Oak Hill is “on the road.”
G. Mr. Smith noted his appreciation for all those present at this evening’s meeting who were required to wait when the usual meeting time was moved half an hour later. Mr. Messersmith commented that it was nice to have so many students present that we almost ran out of chairs in accommodating them.
8. CLAIMS
Scott Dubois moved to pay claims #894 through #1106, Lunch and Textbook Rental Claim Checks #11024 through # 11049, and Lunch Payroll Checks # 4565 through #4617. Kevin Pearson seconded the motion and it carried 7 ayes and 0 nays.
9. ANNOUNCEMENTS/REPORTS
There were none.
10. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 8:05 p.m.
11. EXECUTIVE SESSION
Following the regular meeting, the Board of Trustees met in Executive Session to discuss the performance of an individual employee as per I.C. 5-14-1.5-6.1 (8). |