During the Seward Public School Board Meeting, the board:
• approved its budget and tax resolution for the 2017-2018 fiscal year. The school district’s tax asking is $14.9 million with a $0.94 levy per $100 of valuation.
• approved a lease agreement with the Seward Youth Center, which will allow it to use rooms in the Seward Middle School in the afternoons.
The youth center will pay $400/month on a month-to-month basis.
Youth Center Board Member Erika Kratochvil said the youth center is working to sell its current building on Highway 34 and Fourth Street.
• heard an enrollment summary from Superintendent Dr. Josh Fields. He said the school district has seen a steady increase in enrollment. However, overall, the elementary school’s enrollment is down.
Fields also said there are around 50 kids within the school district who are home schooled.
• discussed the morning bus stops at St. John Lutheran School and St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School. Fields said there are two students who attend St. Vincent and can walk to school from Seward Elementary.
He also said he contacted St. John and reported the Lutheran school did not want to take on the liability of having students dropped off early in the morning.
No action was taken on the issue.
• approved an agreement with Varsity Group for an LED screen. That screen would be used for advertisements during Seward High games. The board has not decided where the sign will be installed.
During the board’s Aug. 15 working period, Activities Director John Moody said Varsity Group will provide the $15,000 screen and maintenance. The school will finance the screen with the ad revenue it creates over three years.
After those three years, the school would own the sign and split the ad revenue 50/50 with Varsity Group, which is responsible for finding the advertisers.
• accepted a bid from Aspen Builders of Lincoln for $24,200 per acre for roughly eight acres of land near the middle school.
Board Member Jerry Rumery said he was concerned about accepting a bid from an out-of-town company.
As a public entity, the board is required to take the highest bid, unless there is a disqualifier, like the bidder has no experience or its intent is different than the school’s, according to Fields.
The only other bid was from WEB Development for $20,200 per acre.
“A $30,000-plus difference is hard to walk away from,” Board President Ryne Seaman said.
• approved the new math curriculum. During a Sept. 14 interview, Fields said state standards are on a seven-year cycle. Math was recently updated, so the school district worked to find math curriculum that most aligns with the state’s new standards.
Fields said these standards are more rigorous and focus on college and career readiness.
Students in kindergarten through fifth grade will use Pearson’s enVisionmath, sixth through eighth grade students will use Go Math! and high school students will use McGraw-Hill for algebra and geometry classes. Fields said other math classes for college credit use books required by the college or the Advanced Placement Board.
• approved changes to the school board’s policy 4040, the district’s separation incentive program for long-term employees. The change details that the school board cannot exceed $35,000 in separation funds to eligible retirees.
