001and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Right. The mission statement of the school district is that Little Falls Community Schools works together for each learner to achieve academic and personal growth in a collaborative, safe, and engaging environment. Tail, do we have any public comments? >> We do not. Thank you. >> Okay. Next, uh I'm looking for an approval of the agenda, which you should have in your packets. So have a motion by Dan. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> I have a second by Mark. Any further discussion? Right. Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppos. Same sign. >> All right. Motion carries. All right. Now, we need to do a um close session. That's
002my next item of business in regards to attorney client privilege um with school district business here. Um remind me again. Do I need to We just need to close the meeting. Correct. So look for a do I need a motion? Yeah. Okay. So I'd be looking for a motion to close the meeting. >> So moved. >> Have a motion by Kelsey. Do I have a second? >> Second. >> And a second by Mark. Okay. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. Second. >> All right. We will excuse ourselves to the the door room next door and be back. No, I did too. >> I never I never eat the steak. Heat. Heat. Everything. Heat. Heat. Baby, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. It
003got away. >> That had nothing to do with the closed meeting. >> It always does. poster. >> Mhm. All right. So now, um, guess I would look for a motion to reopen the meeting. So motion by Dan. Do I have a second? >> A second. >> And a second by Mark. Okay. All in favor? >> I. >> All right. Oppos same sign. Okay. Our meeting is back now open. So um I will get to the resolution here, Kelsey. So, I'll hand it off to you. >> U Kelsey Herszog introduced the following resolution and moved its adoption. Whereas, the school board of independent district number 482 adopted a resolution proposing placement of Shannon Larson on partial unrequested leave of absence on April 20th, 2026 on the grounds of lack of pupils. The proposed unrequested leave of
004absence is 4.53 FTE resulting in Shannon Larson being reduced to 27 FTE from 8ft FTE. And whereas said written notice of the proposed placement on unrequested leave of absence was received by Shannon Larson by electronic service on April 21st, 2026. And whereas said written notice of the proposed placement on unrequested leave of absence contained a statement setting forth the reasons for the proposed placement as well as a statement that Shannon Larson was entitled to a hearing before the school board uh provided Shannon Larson made a request in written in writing within 14 days of receipt of said notice. And whereas Shannon Larson made a written request for a hearing on April 29th, 2026. And whereas a hearing was held on May 15, 2026 at the Little Falls Community Schools boardroom at this location with John
005Hughesby, an independent hearing officer presiding. And whereas following said hearing, John Husby found that Shannon Larson should be placed on an unrequested leave of absence as a teacher of independent district number 482 on the grounds of lack of pupils at the end of the 2025 2026 school year effective June 30th, 2026 pursuant to Minnesota statute 1228.40 subdivision 10 and the district master agreement without pay or fringe benefits. Be it hereby resolved, pursuant to the determination and order of John Husby, Shannon Lar Larson is placed on a partial unrequested leave of absence as a teacher of independent district number 482 on the grounds of lack of pupils at the end of the 2025 2026 school year effective June 30th, pursuant to Minnesota statute 122A.40 40 subdivision 10 and the district master agreement without pay or fringe
006benefits. The proposed unrequested leave of absence is for 0.53 FTE resulting in Shannon Larson being reduced to 2.27 FTE from.80 FTE. Be it further resolved that a notice of placement on partial unrequested leave of absence together with a with a copy of this resolution and the hearing officer's determination and order be forwarded to said teacher personally and that an affidavit affidavit of the same be placed in the teacher's personnel file together with a copy of the notice and resolution. >> I will second your motion. >> Okay. >> Dan, >> yes. >> Doug, >> yes. Yes. >> Julie. Yes. And Mark. Yes. And myself. Yes. >> You should just read those. They have a checklist. Too funny. >> All right. That passed. >> Thank you, Kelsey. >> All right. Next, we have the cons consent agenda,
007which um you should have in front of you. Again, consisting of personnel, approval of prior meeting minutes, and the approval of financial transactions. Assuming you have all had a chance to take a look at it, I would entertain a motion. >> So moved. >> I have a motion by Kelsey. Do I have a second? >> I have a second by Mark. Any further discussion on the consent agenda? >> Okay, hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> Oppose. Same sign. >> All right. Motion carries. Kelsey. >> All right. Here we go. This is a long one, too. Whereas the following have generously offered to donate to Will Falls Community Schools. Therefore, be it resolved by the Little Falls Community Schools Board of Education to gratefully accept the gifts. Mid Minnesota Federal Credit Union
008donation of $500 to the Lils Community Schools Community Services for support uh the trip to the Minnesota Twins game. The Surma family donation of $3,000 to the Little Falls Community Schools Surma Family Scholarship Fund. Surma Family donation of $3,000 to the Little Falls Community Schools Surma Family Scholarship Fund. Little Falls Rifle and Pistol Club. Donation of $500 to Little Falls Community Schools Community Services Clay Target League. Big Lake Sportsman Club. donation of $500 to Little Falls Community Schools Community Services Clay Target League. Lakeland Dentist, donation of $200 to the Little Falls Community Schools Community Services Clay Target League. Lincoln Area Business Association, donation of $2,500 to Lil Falls Community Schools Community Services Clay Target League. American Legion Post 136, donation of $1,000 to the Lil Falls Community Schools Community Services Clay Target League. Lil Falls
009Machine, donation of $100 to the Lils Community Schools Community Services Adults with Disabilities Program. Bob's Lumber and Supply, donation of $200 to Lil Falls Community Schools Community Services Adults with Disabilities Program. Um, Mildred Thompson and uh, Deborah Grant, donation of $100 to Lil Falls Community Schools Day of Caring Program. Dorothy Ratz, donation of $250 to the Little Falls Community Schools Day of Caring Program. Anonymous, donation of $5,000 to Lil Falls Community Schools Robotic Program. Mark Gerby, donation of $167 to the Little Falls Community School CEC Scholarship Fund. Diane Spilum, donation of $600 to Little Falls Community Schools Spillum Scholarship Fund. Pine Country Bank, donation of $245 to Little Falls Community Schools to cover the cost of three sport athletic trophies. Flyer Athletic Boosters gambling account donation of two You don't know how much? >> It's
010$2,637.50. >> That is not anywhere what mine says. >> No, I know mine either, but I know what it was. >> Okay. >> But I wrote the check. >> Okay. to Little Falls Community Schools for track jackets initiative foundation donation grant of $25,497.7 to the Little Falls Community Schools to support educational programming, classroom enhancements, music room equipment, sensory room enhancements, and other educational resources that enhance student learning. >> I second your motion. >> Okay, here we go again. Dan, >> yes. >> Doug, yes. >> Julie, yes. Mark. >> Yes. >> Self. Yes. >> All right. Motion carries. Thank you, Kelsey. All right. Catch your breath. Uh, next we have flyer pride cards. Do we have any? Looks like none. >> Yep. We have some >> We do. >> Oh, I don't. >> Yes. All right,
011ladies. Uh, Jules, take it away. >> Sure. Uh, Tim Mowski, ground crew. Tim, I believe mowed the courtyard at middle school, taking the time to go around all the poop, preserving them for us to enjoy. Thank you. And it's time to eat. I have Nathan Selby it/computers. Nate is somebody who wants to be unseen and doesn't want to be recognized for anything. He is someone who works behind the scenes to make sure teachers and students have their Chromebooks and computers fixed and ready to use each day. He is always helpful to answer the phone or an email. Nate pours his time and passion into coaching the esports team and connecting with the students. Nate makes the world a better place. Trisha Lav. >> Okay. >> All right. Thank you. >> All right. Looks like next
012we have a presentation by Mr. >> Is that correct? >> Joey Simon. >> All right. Come on up. >> Hey. Hey everyone. Good evening. Glad to be here. Um, I'm Joey Simonac and just finished my second year teaching Spanish at the high school. Uh, 12th year total teaching. Um, and it's been an incredible two years. Truly feel like I'm teaching at my home where I live, being part of the community. I I couldn't be happier. Um, and seeing the students language growth and and getting along at the school and it it's been wonderful. And so, um, seeing the language program grow over the past couple years was also really exciting. Uh, seeing the numbers, uh, enrollment go up, um, has been a positive sign. And I thought, you know, how else can I get kids
013more engaged and excited about Spanish whether than other than going to a Spanish speaking country and doing a trip. And so, um, I'm going to talk about the Spanish club trip I had planned, the company I chose, um, why I chose Costa Rica and why students are what they're going to get out of this amazing experience. And so, I chose ACIS through kind of word of mouth through a colleague at the school. Uh, and as I researched them, it was very impressive how they've been doing this for more than 40 years. Their global network is very impressive. uh they prioritize safety and communication and they know everything about the country that you're going to. The tour guides here have been there for like 30 years. They've had this connection. So, I'm really confident in this
014in this program. They they have everything um down to a tea what we're doing for the 9-day trip. Uh the total cost covers hotels, transportation, all the excursions we're going to do. Um, and so that's why I chose this company and why it stood out to me. Um, and why Costa Rica? I've talked to so many Spanish teachers and everyone says Costa Rica and so I thought for a first one it would be a really uh good country to go to. Not for just, you know, the Spanish growth and language experience, but just seeing the beautiful country and the the the people the the community there are are really positive and I think it's going to be great for our students. Um, and so I'm really excited and I've never I haven't been there myself,
015so I can't wait. Um, and so Costa Rica June 2027 is on the board. And uh, what students are going to get out of this is not just increasing their language skills. Uh that's I feel like that's the main the main reason. But also um um personal development skills like interpersonal skills, communication, gaining confidence talking in their second language with with the people of Costa Rica. Um improving their uh language proficiency. I truly believe in this nine days we're going to experience so much geography, wildlife exploration, language skills that you could cover in a whole semester in a class. So that's what they're going to get out of this is incredible and hopefully inspire them to continue the language. I want them to keep going. Um I want them to travel more in the future.
016Um and so that's that's the why behind the trip and what they're going to get out of this. And so I'm coming forth to you to uh request your approval and your sponsorship on this life-changing experience for these students in June 2027. And if you have questions, certainly let me know. But I did send you a packet of of everything you need to know about the company, what we're going to be doing, where we're going, and I plan to have another a chaperone myself leading the trip. And I do need one more. I' like a female chaperone. So, if anyone's interested, Costa Rica 2027, talk to me, let me know. We can make it happen. But, uh, yeah, thank you for your time and listening and I appreciate everything. >> How many kids? How many
017kids >> as of right now? So, I did the a couple parent uh student info meetings. Uh lots of excitement and so far we have eight officially signed up. Like they did the down payment ready to go. And that that actually surprised me, you know, kind of planning it in in April and and doing the meetings in May and we have eight officially signed up with probably eight more genuinely interested and just waiting for various reasons. So, it could get up to 10 to 12. >> What other questions do you have? Do you have any fundraisers planned? Like >> right now I double booked myself surprisingly. Summer brain already going. Uh but uh right now it's pizza ranch night and that was a big that was a big factor. A lot of families wanted to
018fundraate. So I had pizza ranch night. We're busting tables and I'm doing little mini Spanish lessons and the kids are doing great talking about the trip and and wanting to explore and travel the world. Uh, we're going to partner with um we partnered with a Costa Rica coffee company out of California. I just sent them a message, hey, do you do fundraisers? And they were like, only local ones, but I've been wanting to branch out and I want to make this work. And so, we're going to be selling Costa Rica coffee, brewing it live and selling by the cup, but also bags. And I just thought it would be really meaningful to do a Costa Rica coffee. Um and then we have plans for the Little Falls Art Fair, Coburns, getting involved in the community,
019meat raffles, anything we can do. >> Okay. >> Um but yeah, fundraising um is a really big option. And so we started today. >> How much is this costing a student >> the total cost is 3900 a little over just under there? We go 30. Thank you, uh Mark. 3917. So, for the program fee, uh that in that includes everything. Uh flights, three to three and four star hotels, that includes tipping the drivers, tipping the tour guides, two meals a day, uh five or six excursions that include like uh visiting volcanic hot springs, horseback riding in the rainforest, visiting national parks. Um yeah, it's it's an incredible I think the value is there. Absolutely. Is this the same company, Joey, that our our Europe trip students are on? >> Yeah. That are on right now,
020I believe. Yeah. So, that's why I Karen Warner really uh really really had a high praise with with ACIS and um I I've been working for for fundraising too and ideas. And so, the representative is named Heidi at ACIS and so helpful, so knowledgeable. Like, I'm very confident in this in this trip. I'm excited. Later on in the agenda, we'd ask your your approval of the of this trip. >> Amazing. >> Well, yeah. Thank you so much for your time. I appreciate it. >> Okay. Thanks, Joy. >> Have a great night, everybody. >> All right. Next up, we have Ms. Preszinski. Communications update. >> All right. That's a tough act to follow. Mine isn't smart. >> Where are you taking us? >> Nowhere. >> Sorry. >> Story my life. >> We could write a story.
021Um well, thank you guys for your time tonight. Um I cannot believe I've been in this position for almost one year. So, we're just going to go through some of those highlights, what we've done as a district, and then what we're focusing on for the next school year. Um so, please feel free to stop me at any point. I'm just gonna try to go as high level as I can with with some detail in between. So if you have questions just um stop me. So first up is we are working on our website and really updating the the vocabulary making sure that it is consistent um for all of our families and making sure that it is as less clicks as possible to get to where you really want to go. So really diving in
022this summer to all of the data where people are really going on our website, what they're using, what they're looking at. And we are working with Final Site, which is our vendor who hosts our website to create um there it is to create an app so that there will be a Little Falls Community School app. We started that process last week. My hope um is that it will be final before the school year starts and it will also link all of the apps that parents need or families need to have and students need to have at their fingertips so they're not okay what do I go here or what do I do here where is that again you know everything will be in one unified location and then you can branch out from there. Um
023we've been sending out the quarterly newsletter. we've sent out four and it usually goes to about 77 to 7,800 um households within our school district. So, we've got that um bit more in our community engagement. Um, we have fostered relationships with Mississippi Connections, which is a Wednesday morning networking meeting almost every single Wednesday morning. And it's a lot of our small business owners that they just come together and we all talk about what current needs are. You know, we help support one another by offering referrals if there's a connection that we need. Um, you know, different things like that. We've partnered a lot more with the chamber as well. And I feel that that's really going to be a huge hitter for us, especially with our flyer flight path at the high school and working
024with larger and some employers, you know, and getting students that educational piece right here in our town. Um, we've also joined Minsra and NPRA, which those two are um, school PR associations. Minsspra is the state of Minnesota, ENSRA is more national. Um, Minsra really has provided that networking, that individual one-to-one um, conversation and really um, allows us to work with other districts within the state who have very similar problems or situations that we do. So, they've been a really great resource when, you know, I have questions or I'm looking for templates on things like everybody is all willing to share. Um, NSRA really kind of hones in on all of that communication base. They've got templates built that they share out to all districts. Um they have like the staff to provide onetoone meetings for
025us for 15 minutes anytime we need it. You know um I use that for emergency uh communication management and you know just ideas of what what do we need to share and what typically do families want to hear. Um we have also partnered with our teaching and learning team and MTSS team. So Lisa Sers's all of the information that she sends out and what she does in the district and we're really working on taking that language and then translating it so that families understand what are our kids learning and how are they learning and what can we do to support them as as parents and family members and our community. Um we did send out an end of the year email this year and um Mr. Johnson and I worked on that for probably over
026a week. It started at like two pages and then went to five and then we were able to scale it back down to three or two. But really the intention of it was that before everybody left for the summer break, they knew what was happening as much as we could possibly share um and that we knew for the next school year so that we are transparent. Um, and the major focus of this summer and this next school year is to be intentional, have consistent cadences of messaging so families know like I should be expecting something um, and not just random when things arise. Okay, so going to social media. I've got a couple graphs. They're really tiny. I apologize for that. But really focus on a consistent strategy. Um, I used a lot of this
027year to see what brought engagement in versus what didn't and so that I we could build that plan for this next year and the coming years after that and really hone in what families really want to hear about or our communities really want to hear about. So the graphs on the the right is from July 20 July of 2024 to end of June of 2025. The graphs on the left are July of 2025 to June of 2026. So, as you can see, there's um a lot more engagement, you know, increasing followers by almost 900 individuals. Um we've had almost 50 some thousand more visits to our pages and even just the link clicks which a lot of them went back to our website. you know, people were looking for information and they were following the
028the posts and um getting them to the information we were trying to share. So, any questions? No. Okay. So, with that, um the senior spotlights were really an eye openener for me this year and it was really fun to read them. It was a lot of work um creating what 60ish posts um from our seniors, but it was really a lot of fun and it provided me a lot of insight of what do our students like really enjoy and and what do they um feel most engaged in and and obviously everybody's different and they're all going to engage differently, but um there were a common themes. Um, so the NBA shot classes, I had zero clue what that was and I had to like keep following and following all of and reading through them. Well,
029that's the no boys allowed shot classes. A lot of the girls that took them, they just loved those classes with Mr. Lebla. So, that was really cool to see. Um, Day of Caring, that was a huge one for people. Our senior class or our students really enjoy whether it's going out and helping the community or just, you know, being together and having a day off of school, but being with their friends and you know, it was just a really really good time. Um, and then I'll just read a little bit on here what I typed out. I said, "Reading through these, it also gave me the impression that our students felt the district does a fantastic job at offering them opportunities where they feel they belong and are included. So many opportunities between band, choir,
030art programs, shop classes, aviation, clubs, esports, athletics, the fly or flight path, transition services, OJT, you name it. There's so much happening and I feel very honored and privileged to share these stories. So, you know, next year I'm really excited to really hone in on more of these and find those students that want to share what they're what they're experiencing. Um, all right. Any questions on social media? No, I would just tell you that it's a noticeable improvement. So, just the whole social media and the and and and obviously that's a big thing in >> in life right now. So, >> yeah. >> So, thank you. >> Thank you. >> All right. So, grants um we've written about 14 of them and I've secured about seven so far. So that's about $120,000 that um we
031were able to bring into the district. Um the three top heavy hitters were cyber security grant we got for $60,000. Um next school year we're going to have local farm fresh food through a partnership with Sprout and that grant came from Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Um and then our two elementary libraries have gotten a little bit of an update because of these grants. So, we've gotten some um stationary bikes that, you know, they can sit and pedal but also read at the same time and get out those wiggles and our Lincoln library um they are getting new shelving to help support the little readers because they're not going to look at the spine of a book and notice like, hey, I want to read this. They want to see the front cover. And that was
032the intention of those shelves at that age so that they can see and like go through the front covers. um couple of partnerships and events that we've done. Firefest, which is a fabulous event started by um our athletic department two years ago, and we have collaborated with the education foundation this last year to um enhance and try to grow it. We didn't make any more money. I think our expenses were a little higher, but we had a hundred more people at the event this year than we did the previous year. So, um, just that visibility I think really helps, you know, see the need and and the support that is awesome. Um, we did start a Flyer strong 5K event. So, the proceeds for this event really go towards our health services department um and
033to to purchase whatever is needed there. So, that would be more of our nursing department. And one of the things they want to include is a um curriculum that is focused on all of our students. So if it's handwashing month, they can focus on something that is more kindergarten appropriate versus what is a 12th grader appropriate, you know, and really hone in on preventative measures for our students. Um, at that event we did have um 11 booths plus one DJ. And so it was really made to be a family event. It wasn't just about the 5K or the run. Um there was Bell Orthodontics. There was a Lions Club, St. Francis Health and Wellness. Um the Morrison County an animal shelter. Um they brought dogs too so you could adopt them and information about that.
034Um, but it was just a lot of fun. So, all right. And then some more connections that have been built in the last year. Um, CHI partnered with us last year and uh we'll have that discussion to hopefully continue this partnership where they pay for half of the testing of our CNA students when they take that exam because I believe it's about 180 or 200 bucks per student somewhere in there. Um, and we had, I think, 20 students do it last year. So, that was really cool. Um, you know, I just focused on this last year being kind of a connector for individuals and when people didn't know where to go, I would just help guide them along the way and try to partner. Um, I did support registration for new students or families when
035they filled out the form, not online, but on paper, and then they would email it in. So, we had that. Um, Have you guys heard of the take a seat fundraiser for the So we've had a fundraiser for a couple years now where you can purchase a seat at the Charles D. Martin Auditorium for 100 bucks and then they engrave a little sign, put that on that chair and um it becomes yours. I mean, you don't get to like keep it, but you um you kind of get to say that this is the seat I've sponsored, and the proceeds of that go to help provide up upgrades for the auditorium whenever they need them. Um, and this year we took that that was just paper and we were able to digitalize that that with our
036business office. So, that was really neat. And we've already gotten I think three more donations. So hoping to see that grow or just having that opportunity for for families and for our arts. Um we did start a weekly vlog if you haven't watched it. Every Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. we are Mr. Johnson is talking with some students or staff about upcoming events or celebrations that have happened in our school. Um and we will continue doing that every Friday through the summer. And then um we've really worked on ensuring that um we have a good partnership with our local paper. A lot of the other PR individuals that I've met through Minsra or even NPRA have said what a gem it is to have a local paper still alive um in our community. And so
037that partnership is very valuable to us and we look to continue to grow that and we're looking at um maybe more of a monthly cadence of articles that we work on together. So um and then the Lindberg Centennial, you guys all know that's happening. >> Yeah. Okay. So there's a committee. They also have partnered um with the school and I've been kind of that connector piece. Um and so next year in 20 end of yeah 2027 we are going to have some you know fun opportunities for the students to learn more about Charles Lindberg the AB the plight. Um there's some community events and partnerships like the art show in May. Charles Capsner has an art show, but we are going to have some art displays of our students from kindergarten all the way through
03812th grade um to help support the aviation piece of it. And um an inventor's fair with the theme of dreams take flight as that is the 100th year theme for the centennial. All right. anything any questions about this last year before I go looking ahead? Okay. All right. So, looking ahead, we are working on a collaboration with the activities department. Um, you know, really honing in and focusing on the engagement of our school social media pages has helped to see that, you know, our activities pages aren't as robust as they could be. And who loves to cheer more about our students in activities, whether it's band, choir, clubs, or athletics, parents. So, we are working to pilot an parent ambassador program, um, which will have a lot more details later, but it's really allowing parents
039to help tell that story of our teams and not just worry about the scores because that's not where our athletes and our clubs and our musicians, you know, thrive. they thrive on that collaboration, that community, that um ability to just be together and all focus on one goal. Um, another thing that we have to work on over the next two years is meeting ADA requirements on our website. So, the Department of Justice has updated the um accessibility guidelines and so we will be updating our website to meet those guidelines by the spring of 2028. um which I have it spread out what it actually is. Um it is also working on transitioning to infinite campus and I'm helping support that so that the goal is families to have a smooth transition when they start using
040that versus skyward right now. um our activities calendar. We are moving to a school-based calendar, continuing that same partnership with Range, but instead of it just supporting activities, it's going to support the district as a whole. Um so we've been working to fine-tune all the the details of the dates, you know, making sure that we have all the information we need in there and then also being very intentional at registration day that all families get them then. So, um yeah, other than that, again, I would just reiterate, I think you've done an amazing job, Alyssa. I mean, it it was one of the things that came out of some of the communication we had with the community that that we lacked communication >> and I think it's been a significant improvement and and I think
041you've taken it and run with it and and not just done social media or not just done an article here and there. It's it's been very diverse. So, thank you because I appreciate it and it's at least noticeable to me. So, >> thank you. Thank you guys for the opportunity. >> Okay. Anything else from >> second? >> What What do we do when we run out of seats in the auditorium for the >> You're building a new one, right? >> We can move on to the gym seats. >> Yeah. Maybe then it's updated >> or it's bricks on the wall, whatever it may be. So, >> okay. >> Thank you, Melissa. Thank you, Okay, next on our agenda, Mr. Johnson. >> Following up on communications, I do want to thank the board again for recognizing
042that, you know, communications is really everyone's responsibility, but for you folks to take that next step and hire a dedicated person to help us get the word out and improve what we're doing really has made a positive impact. As you've noted, we feel the same way. internally. Want to give a shout out to uh we missed a retiree last month at our retirement uh banquet before the board meeting. We had a person retire mid year, Janine Pansky. Janine had been with the district 36 years, wonderful employee, a large portion of that as the administrative assistant at Dr. Knight and a paraprofessional. So kudos to Janine and our apologies for missing her. Last month we had a few state tournament sendoffs uh last week and even today with boys and girls track and boys and girls
043golf. As Melissa indicated, we had a parent communication that went out right at the end of the school year. And just highlighting some of those dates that August 13th is registration day. just a one-day event from 9 until 6. And with a new student information system, brand new calendars, uh transportation questions, it's always a wonderful time to connect with families. Our open houses, we have the traditional open house for the middle school and high school the Wednesday of workshop week before the school year starts. And then we made a shift for preschool and K through five to go back to something we've done in the past with having open house be the first day of school. So parents will come in typically in small group times to meet with teachers, bring their child with and
044really ease into that transition for the elementary and preschool. That's all I have. Do we have a or what is the target date or the go live date with infinite campus? You know that answer? >> Yeah. >> July 1st. >> So uh July 1st is like um June 30th is the last day that Skyward will be available to do work within. And then starting July 1, the final data conversion happens. And that will about 10 business days. So the first day where people will really be utilizing infinite campus um full time will be July >> mid July. >> Yeah. 6 is 13th roughly 15th somewhere in there. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Y Okay. All right. Next we're on to new business. Um, so we heard um Joey's presentation about the Spanish club Costa Rica
045trip. So, uh, you have in there. We look for an approval of the Spanish club trip. >> Pesky fly, right? >> Oh, it loves me. >> So, I would be looking for a motion to approve the uh, Costa Rica trip. >> So, moved. >> I have a motion by Kelsey. Do I have a second? >> I'll second. I have a second by Dan. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. I. >> Oppos. Same sign. All right. Motion carries. >> All right. Looks like Heidi, you are next. >> I am up. All right. So, this is um the second time that I've presented uh the budget proposal for next school year for all of the major funds. Uh tonight is the presentation that uh myself and Greg and the other directors
046and principles that I've worked with have um come to uh create a budget that we are hopeful that the board will agree with and approve uh later tonight. You want to go next? Um so no uh not very many changes very minimal in fact since I presented in May. Uh just to reiterate uh increase in per pupil funding. MDE set that at 2.69%. Uh so it's an increase of about 201 per pupil. Uh we talked a little bit in depth about our our compensatory funding which is also called basic skills funding. Um, at the time in May, legislation was still in session and they didn't have a final um, report out on how they were going to, if at all, adjust compensatory funding. If you recall, uh, prior year's funding was either on a hold
047harmless from fiscal year 23, meaning that at that time MDE switched how they u calculate families um andor funding for this type of um funding stream. And so we used to have families fill out paper applications or could be online applications uh to become uh deemed eligible for free and reduced um breakfast and lunch meals. And then there's also a category that families are directly certified based on other um state uh funded programs for supporting um family needs. And now we are just funded on those that are directly certified. So no longer are families that are even though may be eligible for free and reduced and still receiving free and reduced meals. Our funding is not calculated based on that. So uh since legislation has wrapped up and finalized what they are doing with compensatory
048funding, uh the Little Falls Community School District did not benefit. There are several schools across the state that are um seeing an increase in their compensatory funding with that that legislation change. However, we are seeing a decrease of $460,000. Um, so just over 2.1 million uh funding for summer unemployment that continues to be reimbursed. The 300,000 is an estimated amount that the district will um pay for non-licensed staff who apply for unemployment benefits and then the state will reimburse us that amount. Our title funding, title one, title two, and title 4 are decreasing by about $126,000 or just over $550,000. Paid Family Medical Leave Act. This is a mandated uh tax that both employer and employee pays uh as of January of this uh calendar year. And so we came into that mandate uh only
049half of the year. And so next year we'll see that double uh and slightly increase but by about $45,000. Uh state special education is uh projected to be about $6 million which is an increase uh compared to what we're receiving this year of about 300,000. Uh federal special education I'm projecting no increase or decrease there. Uh at this point we do not have the specific awards yet. However, I felt it was conservative and reasonable to just project a flat um projection with the special ed federal funds and then special education transportation reimbursement. So, we do report all of our miles that we um uh compile over the course of the school year for transporting students with special needs. uh gen uh in the past we were reimbursed 100% of those miles. Uh this year it's
05095% next year it's reducing by 90%. Uh updates here uh enrollment projections I kept the same. So projected decrease from this year to next year. Um this year we're just under um 2200 students. Next year I'm projecting just over 2100 students and that's mainly due to um a smaller incoming kindergarten class. We're projecting about 125. Uh and we have a large 12th grade and ALC class of about 220 students um enrolling out or graduating. And so that's where the decrease comes in. Uh overall our revenue the majority of our revenue is from the general general education formula. So we will um project and have projected that amount of money based on our enrollment projection. Uh our levy revenue is decreasing. So, the the local levy uh that we that the board approves in December of
051every year is decreasing and again mainly due to enrollment decreasing and then how the long-term facilities maintenance levy and aid are adjusted. So, we're not necessarily receiving less LTFM. It's just the the the difference in how much we receive on aid versus what the local taxpayers pay. And then all other revenues, the majority of those being grants and interest income, I'm projecting that that will be a slight decrease as well. On the expense side, I updated these numbers as I continue to dive through um mostly salaries, wages, and benefits because that is about 75% of our total budget. uh increasing $770,000. And that is um in line with all of the bargained contracts that we negotiated and settled in and all of the um other contracts that um are either um not due yet or
052um settled as well. Purchase services decreasing by $120,000. This is specific to the special education contracted services that we um currently have that we won't have next year. So instead of having an outside organization come in and support us on our special education due process, we've since hired that position, uh which is a cost savings. And in addition to um is it speech >> speech pathology or speech services, we also contract for those services um this year. Next year we've hired that position. And so instead of paying additional costs for outside um support, we have those those individuals in house next year. On the supply side, it's increasing by $160,000 overall. And this is mainly due to the um ELA English language arts curriculum that we're purchasing. Uh and capital is decreasing by about $900,000.
053And this is mainly due to any long-term facilities maintenance uh expenses that we had this year that were highcost items that we hope were a one-time expense for years to come. Uh in addition to we had a lot of facility needs this school year. Um and so at this point projecting a decrease um as we move into the school year, as we learn more about facilities uh and the needs and and what um the district's plan is moving forward, this could be an area where the budget gets revised. Um this is the numbers left to right shows you some historical information as compared to uh the revised budget this year and next year's proposed budget. And then down from top to bottom, the expense categories of each of those and then the general overall revenue.
054Uh this really didn't change much even though I I I did make some, you know, line item adjustments on the budget. What I'm projecting next year is uh just over 35 million in expenditures, which actually is about 80 $80,000 less than the current year's budget. um again due to those differences in um line item budgets and categories and changes there and the revenue I'm projecting is just under $35 million uh which is a decrease of about $690,000. Uh most of that decrease comes in the form of some grants uh but mostly uh enrollment decreasing and then the compensatory funding u decrease as well. So overall, although I'm projecting about 170 $180,000 of more expense than revenue, you'll see on the next slide that this uh does not impact our unassigned fund balance. In fact, our
055unassigned fund balance is is projected to increase slightly. And the reason for that is uh MDE uh provides us funding that is in the form of restricted meaning we can only spend it on certain um expenses and then we have um the opportunity to assign some money and then we also have what's left over unassigned. And so next year I'm projecting to spend down the all of the restricted fund balances with eligible expenses uh to zero if possible and then projecting an unassigned fund balance of just over 3.7 million uh which is a slight increase from this year's projection um of about 3.5 million which will result in about a 10 and a half% unassigned fund balance for next year. So, we're continuing to move in the direction of of um managing and maintaining uh
056a sustainable unassigned fund balance to meet that board policy. Uh and these are just some other considerations that I put up here. Um kindergarten enrollment, we continue to monitor that. Uh I met with Mr. Dobas last week and we were talking about budget and he feels we'll land somewhere between 115 and and 120. Uh we projected 125. Uh we are always interested to see how August plays out because nobody's thinking about school right now because we just got done. But come August, there are families that have potential kindergarteners that haven't yet committed to sending their kids to kindergarten. >> Uh facilities that will be an ongoing topic of discussion across the district as we plan to move forward. Uh student devices. This budget for next year does include uh the purchase or the lease of
057um Apple Neos is uh what um technology director Orians has recommended and these would be devices for all 9th through 10th graders 12th graders I mean transportation. So, I did increase our transportation expense uh a slight amount due to the unknowns of fuel costs and fuel search charges per contract currently. All the while um working to maintain a policy of 10 to 12% for unassigned fund balance. There's a lot of of stuff that goes into creating the budget, but I try to focus on some of those high high cost areas and >> work backwards to ensure that we end with a a fund balance >> within board policy. Any questions on the general fund? uh food service uh based on current year trends and so meeting with uh food service director Mary Bartlett uh we
058feel that this year's uh student meals uh would be a a good representation of what she expects next year. However, lower uh participation uh which um could also be due to lower enrollment on the expense side. Salaries, wages, and benefits are increasing by $15,000, which although seems like a small amount, we have to remember that the food service budget is considerably less than the general fund. Uh purchase services are increasing by about a thousand. Supplies is the biggest um increase uh in the food service budget and that is projected to increase by about 25,000 specifically for food and milk costs. uh capital is decreasing by about $140,000. We have budgeted uh the purchase of two combi combi ovens for next year. However, that's considerably less than the current high school remodel that we're um currently
059in process of uh which is purchasing some freezers. Projected uh fund balance about $768,000. Uh currently MDE still has the target set at six months of of expense which for food service and the projected budget would be about 1 point just under 1.3 million. So we're not meeting the six months. Um $768,000 is it it's I don't know what it's fine. Um, I think we'll see that grow uh over the the next few years uh pending what we do with the facilities for and these are the numbers here again historical left to right uh expense categories uh they're noted out uh overall about 1.9 million in expense uh 1.7 million in revenue which would leave us about $200,000 more in expense next year than revenue. Uh we continue to track that and monitor that and
060we'll make adjustments accordingly as we move in in through the year. >> Any questions on food service? >> We're to the point we have to increase this the cost of our meals. So right now student meals one breakfast and one lunch are free and the state supplements that. So we receive the federal reimbursement rate and then all students receive that one breakfast and one lunch um per the legislation that was enacted few years ago. Um so increasing our rates would only impact students that are purchasing um additional allocart items or second meals which we do not have um high volume on. Um adult prices is directed and dictated by the state. So unfortunately increasing meal prices won't help us at this point. containing costs on the expense side, ensuring that we're aligned with staffing. Those
061are considerations to think about. uh community services budget revenue based on current year trends and we're seeing a decrease in grants and the the biggest grant that that um that we received this year was the deed grant for the little flyers daycare and that was $240,000 that went to purchase um playground and curriculum. On the expense side, salaries, wages, and benefits are decreasing by about $22,000. And that's primarily due to little flyier staffing. Uh um in previous meetings, director Kayla Gruber has shared with all of us the the challenge with maintaining staff and we're working towards aligning Little Flyers daycare needs with the current level of staffing. Purchase services are decreasing by about $15,000. Um I would like to note that the last presentation I had shared with that this um main component stems from
062adults with disabilities. I think I misspoke or there was some misunderstanding but we're not decreasing the adults with disabilities program. What we're doing is we're aligning the funding streams that we receive from the state and from our levy to match the expenses. And so the majority of community service budget is fees for service. So we provide programs, participants in our community and surrounding areas pay to be in those programs. Uh community services needs to be able to sustain each and every one of those programs individually. Otherwise, we're taking money from one and putting it into the other or vice versa. And so the more we can align each of those programs with the funding sources for those programs, we can sustain them. And so that's what I want to share with this specific program. We
063have a wonderful um group of individuals that are putting on and offering opportunities in our community. We just need to make sure that we're our our spending aligns with the funding that we got. Uh supplies are decreasing by by about $3,000 overall. Capital is decreasing by about 327,000. And again, that's specifically from Little Flyers startup costs and the DG grant that we received. Projected fund balance is $96,000, 6% of expenses. We will need to monitor that. Um ultimately if the community services fund balance goes negative, the general fund has to um support that that balance. And so I Kayla I've been working closely with a lot of the the fund balance does have to do with the high cost of starting up a daycare. Um and she shared some of those those details. uh but
064we have resources and content experts in that area and that in that field that are supporting how we move forward. And if you go to the next slide, you can see um historically uh prior to having Little Flyers Daycare fiscal year 24, we had about $62,000 more in revenue than expense. Uh last fiscal year break even. Uh this fiscal year we have we're projecting about the $200,000 more in expense than revenue. Uh and next year we're moving back down. Although we're still projecting $100,000 of more expense than revenue, we're working to like I said align the programs so that the fees and the revenue streams um support those programs individually. So little flyers daycare is on the radar and how we um ensure that in the next few fiscal years we're um providing the services
065and and aligning the fees appropriately. >> Heidi, does this budget for community services reflect the city of Little Falls's $200,000 to help us start up costs? >> No. So um the revised budget, the $200,000 does not include that. So, we've received confirmation. In fact, I believe we've received the 200,000 uh within the past couple of weeks. So, assuming that the revised budget that I recommended and proposed and that you all approved were to be spoton, we would we would shore that up with the 200. Um that doesn't necessarily mean that next year because we won't have those startup costs next year or proceeds next year. But but yeah, any questions on community service? Uh the easy funds next construction fund. Um these are proceeds that have been carried over from year to year since our
0662016 bond. Uh we continue to uh work on projects and utilize these proceeds so that we can zero out the construction fund balance. Uh next year we have about $137,000 to consider using for facility projects. And then the debt service fund uh the revenue that uh we get to pay our debt service obligations comes from the levy and that is set and was set in december uh for next year's uh bond uh expenses and we have three outstanding bonds that we currently are paying on 2016 A 2016B and 2023A which is um the little flyers. What do you call it? Certificate of participation. So, fund balance is regulated by state statute just under 700,000 32% of our total fund seven expenses. That's the detail there. We have uh just over two two million in expense
067and just over 2 million in revenue. And that is it. questions. >> That's a lot of information. It's a lot of numbers. >> Um, I do have one question. I see further down on our agenda, we have a rate increase for little flyers. Is that reflected in there? we assumed uh a slight overall percentage increase and so not specifically however the percentage increase in the fees is much greater than what I put in here for conservative measures. Um, so that really didn't answer your question, but >> Okay, >> alluded to. >> Okay, >> good question. >> I want to give a shout out to Heidi. Um, and with all due respect to previous business managers that I've worked with in this district and other districts, it's rare to have a budget ready and approved by
068June 8th. Typically, it's a special meeting of some sort near the end of the month as we scramble to get things together. So, thank you for your work on this. And then just you know to highlight you know some of the obvious things as people look at our budget when you when you see the trends in our enrollment with although we have a Mary of Lords factor that comes into play with secondary students coming in the mix but that's about 20 to 25 students a year and you look at our numbers in the prekk we have to be responsive to that trend in enrollment and and what it's going to do as we move ahead for the next 8 to 10 years. And then I think just a a shout out to this board and
069the work that you've done, difficult work that you've done in the past three years to make some difficult decisions to cut budgets, to be able to get to a point where we're sitting here today with a 10.5% unassigned fund balance. That's a that's something really to celebrate and I hope the community recognizes that that that happened without an operating levy ask it was difficult decisions made in this room by you folks. Okay. Anything else on budget? Thank you Heidi. Thank you Greg. Okay. Let's see. Where am I? Next looks like a the approval of the Minnesota State High School League membership for 2026 2027. >> You have to approve that, right? >> Oh gosh. Yes. I'm sorry. My apologies. >> Okay. Look for a motion to approve the 207 budget as presented. >> So have
070a motion by Dan. We have a second. >> Second by Mark. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppos same side. >> All right. Motion carries. Thank you. Um all right. Now a motion for the approval of the Minnesota State High School League membership for the 2627 school year. Looking for a motion for that. >> Motion to approve. >> Motion by Mark. Do I have a second? A >> second. A second by Kelsey. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppos. Same sign. Motion carries. Next for the approval of the MSBA Minnesota School Board Association membership for 2026 27. Looks like the membership invoice is attached there. Looking for a motion. >> I have a motion by Kelsey. Do
071you have a second? >> A second by Mark. Any further discussion? >> We're still using them for a lot of our legal or uh when we set policies. >> They provide us with that. And so it's not like we very seldom use them for anything anymore. They're >> no >> they're very important part of our administrative design. >> They are. Yep. and the legislative updates and advocating for public schools >> and I think they have some services too that are available to us. They do >> should we choose to use them >> sample contracts resolutions like that. So >> okay >> trainings board members >> said trainings for us board members. >> Yeah. Yeah. No, I mean yeah it's a good deal. Okay. >> Call for the vote. >> Okay. All right. Any further discussion?
072>> Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppose. Same sign. >> All right. Motion carries. All right. Next, an approval of a memorandum of understanding between Little Falls Community Schools and the EMLF um in regards to letters. Okay. >> Yeah. There are threeus. The first two are are related to the read act um continuing the lettersou training that we have for literacy. And then this year we begin what's called OLA training different than letters but it's geared towards secondary literacy training. So we'd ask your approval of those two. I don't know if you want to do each one separately, Mr. Chair. >> Um I don't know that we need to. Do we? No. And the elevate PD is a continuation of opportunity for teachers to be able to earn credits
073or um a stipen for work outside the reg regular school day. >> Okay. >> And we cover that as a district. >> Those salaries. >> Did you I was going to ask you about your meeting last week. Um there'll be some opportunities to revisit how and yeah how we go about approving elevate PD projects but we the district pays those stipens. >> Gotcha. >> So it is a budget impact >> right or they have the option to take uh lane changes or >> Yeah. majority take the stipens though. Okay. >> I'll make a motion to approve. Okay. I >> have a motion by Mark. Do I have a second? I'll second. All right. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. Oppose. Same sign. >> All right. Motion carries.
074Next, we have the approval of the resolution establishing dates for filing affidavits of candidacy and forms. >> Am I just reading that first one? >> I believe so. Be it resolved this or the school board of independent school district number 482, state of Minnesota as follows. The period for filing affidavits of candidacy for the office of school board member of independent school district number 482 shall begin on July 14th, 2026 and shall close on July 28th, 2026. an affidavit of the of candidacy must be filed in the office of the school district uh clerk and the $2 filing fee paid prior to 5:00 p.m. on July 28th, 2026. The clerk is hereby authorized and directed to cause notice of said filing dates and to be published in the official newspaper of the district at least
075two weeks prior to the first day to file affidavit of candidacy. Publication of said notice prior to the date of adoption of this resolution is hereby ratified and approved in all respects. The clerk is hereby authorized and directed to cause notice of set filing dates to be posted at the administrative offices of the school district at least 10 days prior to the first date to file affidavit candidacy and the notice of said filing dates shall be in substantially the following form see attached. >> Okay, I will second your motion. Is this the same period we've had in the last every year? This seems shorter to me this year. >> Is this a just a roll call or a >> It's a resolution. So, >> okay. >> It's a roll call vote. >> Want to second?
076>> I did second it. Y >> So, Dan, >> yes. >> Doug, >> yes. >> Julie, yes. Mark, >> yes. >> Right. Motion carries. Thank you, Kelsey. All right. Next on your agenda is the approval of the rate increase for the little flyers. Anybody had a chance to look at that? >> I make a motion. >> Okay. I have a motion by Kelsey. Do I have a second? >> Second by Dan. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Opposed. Same sign. >> All right. Motion carries. Next, we have an approved revision of the 2627 school calendar. I think that was sent out. We've all had a chance to look at that. So, so we're looking for a motion to approve the school calendar. All right. I have
077a motion by Dan. Do I have a second? >> Second by Mark. Any further discussion? Okay. Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppos. Same sign. All right. Motion carries. Next in our old and unfinished business, um we have the approval of policies kind of listed there. Art artificial intelligence which was revised. The naming of school district facilities, use of district facilities and equipment, vending machines, and organization of grade levels and staff development. Um, so looking at those, do we have a motion to approve? >> So moved. >> Motion by Kelsey to have a second. >> I'll second. Second by Doug. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppose. Same sign. Motion carries. All right. Reports from board members. Mr. Gerby. Uh
078CC had a nice graduation again this year. >> Fun to watch. All the bright smiling faces >> and a big class too. >> Yeah. >> No, very heartwarming uh experience with the small graduation. They get to spend a lot more time on, you know, the personalities of each student. >> So it's I don't I guess I just enjoy going. It's my only reward. >> Okay. Thank you, Julie. Kelsey. >> Yep. I have nothing to report as well. Dan, >> nothing. School's quiet. >> Okay. All right. Any other business to come before the board? >> All right. Hearing none. Looking for a motion to adjourn. >> So move. >> Mark a second. >> Second. >> All in favor? I opposed. All right. This meeting is adjourned. Thank you everyone.