Board of Education Meeting, May 5, 2008
by Jan Tremblay
USD #224 Clifton Clyde
May 5, 2008
8:00 p.m.
CliftonClyde High School
Members Present
Renay Branfort, Kenton Brown, Frank Brownell, Steve Feight, Paula Kieffer, Jeff
Koch, Steve Rogers
Other Present
Superintendent David Roberts, Principal Brenda Odgers, Board Clerk Jan Tremblay, Dave
Merica, Kathy Robinson, Ken McClanahan
Patrons: Adrianne Sorell, Bill Robinson, Dana Beswick, Jack Schwab
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 8:00 p.m. by President Brownell.
Approve the Consent Agenda
8g-Transportation, 9f-Athletic Update and 9g-Personnel were added to the agenda.
9a-Technology Needs, 9b-Driver Education Class and 9f-Athletic Update were moved to
after the Building Reports.
Corrections to the April minutes were under Unfinished Business, Custodial, should read
“Motion carried 5-2. Brown and Rogers cast the nay votes.”
Under New & Miscellaneous Business, Resignations, should read “Motion made by
Rogers, seconded by Brown to accept the resignations, with regrets, of Kara Nobert as
Social Studies teacher at the middle school and Keri Feight and Barb George as pep Club
sponsors at the high school.”
Parent Discipline should read “Motion made by Branfort, seconded by Brownell to enter
into executive session for a period of five minutes to discuss a student matter in order to
protect the privacy interests of the individuals to be discussed.”
Motion made by Koch, seconded by Kieffer to approve the consent agenda as
amended. Motion carried 7-0.
Approve Bills for Payment
Motion made by Rogers, seconded by Koch to approve the bills for payment. Motion
carried 7-0.
Review Correspondence
None
Receive Patron’s Comments
None
Hear Board Member Reports
Service Center: Brown reported that the last meeting was a teleconference
meeting. Summer programs and teacher shortages were discussed.
Hear Building Reports
Ms. Odgers:
• Graduation will be Sunday, May 11th at 2:00 p.m. Next year it will be on May 17th with
the senior’s last day on May 12th. This is needed to insure that seniors have enough
hours as required by state regulations.
• Boys and girls track teams placed first at the Clifton Clyde Invitational and at the
Washington meet. At Lincoln the boys placed 1st and the girls 2nd.
• In the Knowledge Master Open, the students placed first in the nation for schools of
200 or fewer students, 7th out of 27 Kansas schools and 161st out of the 703 national
and international teams.
• At the state championship in Forensics, three students made the semi-finals and one
student made the finals.
• Twelve students attended the Smoky Hill Education Service Center Career 2008. The
students received seven 1st place finishes, ten 2nd place and two 3rd places.
• The KAYS sponsored the Prom Walk-In with 53 participating, organized a canned food
drive for the food bank and hosted the 8th grade ice cream social and the year end party.
• The art students attended the Fort Hays State Art Show where 50 awards were
received, displayed their art work at the CCHS open house, and made backdrops for
the grade school music program.
• Friends of Rachel presented an anti-bullying program to the preschool through 8th grade.
• The TASK group is working with area school to bring Don Young to the area next year
to speak about health issues and tobacco.
Mr. Roberts:
• High school graduation date will be adjusted next year and will not be on Mother’s
Day. It will also be important in counting hours for the school year.
• At the Blue Valley League track meet the 8th grade boys placed 2nd, 7th grade boys 1st,
8th grade girls 5th and 7th grade girls 3rd.
• Middle school award night and dance is May 9th at 6:30 p.m.
• 8th grade promotion is May 21st at 7:00 p.m.
• The grade school celebrated Earth Day with several activities including planting flowers,
frosting “Earth Cookies” and making bookmarks.
• On April 30th, grades K-3 went to the Great Plains Theater in Abilene to see “Tales of a
4th Grade Nothing”.
Technology Needs (Summer Purchases): After meeting with the technology committee
and Mr.Roberts, Dave Merica presented a list of the district’s technology needs to the
board. It included 23 computers, 10 monitors, 5 printers, 3 scanners, server for the high
school, 3 laptops, sonic wall support, 2 projectors, toner cartridges and various supplies
for the tech department. The total of this equipment and supplies is $53,317 and will be
purchased from supplemental general or capital outlay. Motion made by Rogers,
seconded by Brown to approve the proposed 2008-09 technology expenses. Motion
carried 7-0.
Driver Education Class: Because of the spring demands of academics, assessment tests
and track, scheduling for driver education has become very difficult. The demands on
student time have become excessive also Kathy Robinson presented two
proposals to the board that would enable her to become certified to teach driver
education. She would get her hours online through the University of Nebraska at
Kearney. She plans to enroll immediately and complete the endorsement this
summer. Motion made by Branfort, seconded by Brown to support Mrs. Robinson in the
amount of $2,227 toward obtaining Kansas licensure as a driver education
teacher plus a $1,000 contract for the summer of 2009. Motion carried 7-0.
Athletic Update: Ken McClanahan reported to the board on the athletic
department. Some concerns he has encountered are the schedules in football, volleyball
and basketball. He does the scheduling for the league and all of the schools have problems
with open dates, traveling distances on school nights and a recent problem with a school’s
refusal to play Clifton Clyde.
His recommendations to the board include maintaining a consistent uniform rotation
system, hiring teachers who are willing to coach and the upkeep of facilities. Specific
needs in facilities are the football scoreboard, the brickwork at the flagpole, the track and
new windows for the crows nest. Improvements in the past year are the stairs to the
crows nest, the north set of bleachers. The athletic department plans to purchase a wall
mat for the gym.
Unfinished Business
Superintendent Evaluation in June: This item was continued to the June meeting.
Capital Projects Update: Bids for the high school library project will be opened on June
12th at 2:00 p.m.
Extra help will be hired for routine summer work so that the custodians can concentrate
on the weight room project.
Valedictorian and Salutatorian: Ms. Odgers met with the high school teaching staff
and their proposed criteria for valedictorian and salutatorian is as follows:
• Change from Qualified Admissions to Kansas Scholars’ Curriculum
• Use the percentage-not the letter grade-for the classes required in the KS Scholar’s
Curriculum
• If there are two valedictorians, there will be no salutatorian-recognize two students only
• Class rank will be different-all students and all classes taken will count in that
This will take affect with this year’s 8th grade class. Ms. Odgers will rework some of
the wording and bring to the board for approval at the June meeting.
Administrative and Personnel Vacancies: Motion made by Rogers, seconded by
Brownell to accept the resignations of Ms. Brenda Odgers, Mr. Anthony Barry and Mr.
Kirk Gallion, with thanks for their service to the district, effective at the end of their
current contracts. Motion carried 7-0.
Motion made by Koch, seconded by Feight to approve the contract for Barbara Hubert to
teach Spanish for the 2008-09 school year. Motion carried 7-0.
Motion made by Koch, seconded by Brownell to enter into executive session for a period
of ten minutes to discuss non-elected personnel matters in order to protect the privacy of
the individuals to be discussed. Motion carried 7-0.
The board entered into the session at 9:55 p.m. and reconvened in open session at
10:05 p.m.
Mr. Roberts and Ms. Odgers were invited into the session.
Negotiations: Discussion only. A negotiations meeting will be on May 14th, 7:00 p.m. at
the high school.
2008-09 Miscellaneous Pay Rates and Student Fees: Mr. Roberts reported that the
textbook rental fees and meal prices have not been raised since 2003-04. He
recommended a $5.00 increase in textbook rental and the following increases in meal
prices. It was noted that even with these increases, staying ahead of rising food costs if
difficult
K-12 breakfast 10¢
Adult breakfast 15¢
K-12 lunch 10¢
Adult lunch 15¢
Extra milk 5¢/carton
(this is not milk served with the meals)
Motion made by Brown, seconded by Rogers to approve the proposed rates and fee
increases as presented for the 2008-09 school year. Motion carried 4-3. Branfort, Feight
and Koch cast the nay votes.
Transportation: Russ Steinbrock requested the use of a school vehicle to transport
summer weights students to the high school during the summer. It was the consensus of
the board to allow this and revisit it again next year.
New & Miscellaneous Business
Non-Certified Proposals: Mr. Roberts proposed that the board establish a catastrophic
sick leave bank for non-certified employees. He will have more information on this in
June.
He also would like to institute an annual excellence award for non-certified employees to
be given at the staff appreciation dinner.
Supplemental Contracts: Motion made by Branfort, seconded by Brown to take a five
minutes break and then to enter into executive session for a period of ten minutes to
discuss non-elected personnel matters in order to protect the privacy interests of the
individuals to be discussed. Motion carried 7-0.
The board entered into the session at 10:35 p.m. and reconvened in open session at 10:45
p.m.
Mr. Roberts and Ms. Odgers were invited into the session.
Motion made by Feight, seconded by Brownell to extend the executive session for a period
of five minutes. Motion carried 7-0.
The board entered into the session at 10:45 p.m. and reconvened in open session at 10:50
p.m.
Mr. Roberts and Ms. Odgers were invited into the session.
Motion made by Rogers, seconded by Brown to approve the supplemental contracts as
presented. Motion carried 6-1. Feight cast the nay vote.
Dispose of Surplus Material: It was the consensus of the board to dispose of the old
wood from the high school bleachers. It will be offered to a non-profit organization on a
first come, first serve basis.
Personnel: Motion made by Branfort, seconded by Koch to enter into executive session
for a period of five minutes to discuss non-elected personnel matters in order to protect
the privacy interests of the individuals to be discussed. Motion carried 7-0.
The board entered into the session at 11:03 p.m. and reconvened in open session at
11:08 p.m.
Mr. Roberts and Mrs. Tremblay were invited into the session.
Superintendent Remarks
KASB Spring Regional Meeting is May 8th at Clay Center.
The Staff Appreciation Dinner is May 20th, 6:30 p.m. at Clyde VFW.
Adjourn
The meeting was adjourned at 11:15 p.m.
*This is the unofficial record of the May 5, 2008 meeting of the Board of Education pending board approval at the regular June meeting.
