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Nevada R-5 Board of Education votes on name for new elementary building: Weber Elementary
The Nevada R-5 Board of Education met in regular session Wednesday evening and voted on the name for the new elementary building, among other agenda items.
Following Board President Lois Pendrak calling the meeting to order, a motion was made and seconded to approve the consent agenda consisting of the meeting agenda, minutes of the previous meeting (Jan. 11), payment of the bills, monthly reports, American Rescue Plan renewal, and the substitute/volunteer list. This was approved by the board, 7-0, with abstentions.
The first new business item was the consideration of out-of-state travel. The first request was for Nevada High School Vice Principal Chad Rourk to attend the KAMO Leadership Forum, in Pittsburg, Kan., on April 20. The second request was for high school English students to visit the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes, in Fort Scott, Kan., on March 7. The last request was for Benton Elementary students to also attend the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes on March 7 and March 8. A motion to approve the requests as presented was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
Next in new business was the consideration of the 2023-2024 district calendar. Three calendars were presented to staff to vote on. The results of those votes were: Traditional Calendar (48 votes); Thanksgiving/Spring Break (144 votes); and four-day weekends (37 votes). A motion approve the Thanksgiving/Spring Break calendar as the district's 2023-2024 school calendar was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
The board then considered adjusting the March Board of Education meeting to a 6 p.m. start time. Superintendent Dr. Tyson Beshore made this request to accomodate for teacher evaluations scheduled on that same day. A motion to approve the adjusted start time was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
The third item for consideration was the purchasing of three new Wi-Fi buses. Three bids were presented for consideration and they included Central States Bus ($355,185); Midwest Transit ($403,212); and Midwest Bus Sales ($359,294). A motion to approve the bid from Central States Bus was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
Moving on, the board considered adding a boy's tennis assistant coach. Dr. Beshore requested the addition due to numbers and locations of events. A motion to approve the additional coaching position as requested was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
Dr. Beshore noted, in the next item, that the Board of Education had appointed a naming committee at the January board meeting to get together and come up with name suggestions for the new elementary building. Dr. Beshore then shared the three names provided by the committee for the board to consider. These names included: Weber Elementary; Nevada Elementary; and Nevada Primary Elementary. A motion to approve Weber Elementary as the name for the new elementary school was seconded and board approved, 7-0.
The sixth new business item was the consideration of the District Testing Plan/Security Agreement. Dr. Beshore presented the Assessment Plan and Testing Handbook, along with a security agreement, for approval. A motion to approve was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
Next, the board considered adding a school psychologist/educational diagnostician. This position would start with the 2023-2024 school year and would be covered by the special education budget. A motion to approve the adding of the position was seconded and the board approved, 7-0.
The final item in new business was the consideration of adding Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) staff at Cedar Ridge. Dr. Beshore noted that, due to numbers, an additional ECSE teacher and paraprofessional are needed. With a motion and a second, the board approved, 7-0.
In informational items, Dr. Beshore noted the following resignations:
• Brittani Bartz will resign as Truman Elementary teacher, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Jansen Miller will resign as Benton Elementary teacher, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Taylor Rainey will resign as High School Special Education teacher, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Katie Alexander will resign as Girl's Tennis Coach, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Mackenzie Wolfe will resign as Assistant Softball Coach, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Janell Hawks will resign as Assistant High School Cheer Coach, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Lori Thorp will resign as Middle School Girls Basketball Coach, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Marsha Hooper will resign as High School Prom Coordinator and Junior Class Sponsor, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Sandy Gilmore will resign as Middle School After-School Detention, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Jeni Hearting will resign as Middle School Renaissance Sponsor, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Katlyn Wilson will resign as Middle School Yearbook Sponsor, effective end of 2022-2023 school year.
• Cassidy Walles will transfer from Truman Elementary teacher to ECSE at Cedar Ridge, effective 2023-2024 school year.
A motion to adjourn to closed session for the purpose of hiring, terminating, disciplining or promoting, and personnel records, evaluations, applications was seconded and the board approved with a roll call vote, 7-0. The meeting adjourned at 7:46 p.m.
Minutes of the previous closed session were approved with a 7-0 roll call vote.
The following employment actions were approved with a 7-0 roll call vote:
• Toby Thorp was recommended for employment as Head Boys Tennis Coach.
• Kelly Cox was recommended for employment as Kindergarten teacher, effective 2023-2024 school year.
• Cassie Irwin was recommended for transfer from High School Counselor to Nevada Regional Technical Center (NRTC) Counselor, effective 2023-2024 school year.
• Shelly Wilkerson was recommended for employment as custodian, effective 2023-2024 school year.
With a 7-0 roll call vote, the closed session meeting adjourned at 8:04 p.m. The next Nevada R-5 Board of Education meeting will be held at 6 p.m., Wednesday, March 8, in the Central Office board room.