LA CENTER SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 101

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 

Minutes of Board Workshop

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

7:00 PM

High School Conference Room

 

Present:  Mark Mansell, Cris Yaw, Wendy Chord, John Parsons and Laurie Kansanback

Administrators:  Dave Holmes

 

The meeting was called to order by Dr. Mansell at 7:00 pm.

 

1.       KWRL Meeting Report:  Cris and Mark attended the annual KWRL meeting on October 29th.  Bob was slated to also attend but was not feeling well that day.  Cris stated that the meeting was very informative.  She said the cooperative is very healthy financially, due to prudent planning and practices.  She did not feel that the Specialized Transportation services we currently receive from the ESD112 cooperative are providing nearly as much value as the services from KWRL.  Perhaps we should look into having KWRL provide our specialized transportation.  Mark added some additional information about some of the factors affecting the ESD112 co-op’s service.  Also discussed was the possible property purchase at the La Center Junction.

 

2.       WSSDA:  Mark let the board know that we have begun to talk about possible budget cuts at the state level due to the $5 billion deficit and what that might mean to I-728 and I-732 funds.  I-728 is a state initiative that provides funds to help reduce class sizes.  In our district approximately 7 teachers are paid with I-728 funds.  I-732 is a state initiative that has to do with cost of living allowances.  He just wants the board to be aware that we are watching closely and preparing to “tighten our belts” if and when necessary.  There was discussion about the cost to attend the upcoming WSSDA conference in Spokane.  Only the 3 new board members are planning on going and it was decided that the value to the district is there because of the new board member training available at the conference.  Mr. Parsons offered to pay his own way if necessary, but it was noted that the board spends very little money and it would be a “false economy” to forego something like this at this time.  It was further noted that airfare and hotel rates were kept at the minimum.  Board members will attend and the district will pay for it as originally planned.

 

3.       Facility Needs Discussion:  The board discussed the poor state of the economy as well as the over-crowded conditions at the K-8 campus.  This discussion flowed over into a discussion of some of the pros and cons of year round education.  John feels it needs to be a “last resort” but agrees there is a lot more discussion needed.  The board members present felt like they needed more time to decide on whether to try running another bond measure in the spring or deal with the facility needs at the K-8 in some alternative way.  This will be discussed in more detail at a later date.

 

4.       Executive Session:  Mark briefed the board on a personnel matter.

 

Meeting adjourned at 8:30 PM.

 

 

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Member                                                                        Member

 

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Member                                                                        Member

 

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Member                                                                        Board Secretary