CorpusRecord 125672

2025-09-22 LFCS School Board Meeting for September 2025

A searchable transcript preserved as part of the Discourse Corpus. Passage numbers provide stable references within this record; verify quotations against the original recording when available.

Source
YouTube / LFCStv
Date
2025-09-23
Location
Morrison County, MN
Material
Transcript
Extent
10,327 words · about 58 min
Collected
2026-06-20

Transcript

Verbatim source text

001All [Music] right. The district's mission statement is that Little Falls Community Schools will work together for each learner to achieve academic and personal growth in a collaborative, safe, and engaging environment. Kelly, do we have any public comments? >> We do not. >> No public comments tonight. Um, so next board members, I'm looking for an approval of the agenda. >> So moved. >> Okay. Okay. I have a motion by Kelsey, a second by Sharon. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppose. Same sign. >> Motion carries. Next item, we have the consent agenda, which looks like it has uh three different items on there. Um, assuming you had a chance to look at it, I would be looking for a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented.

002>> So moved. >> Have a motion by Kelsey. Have a second. >> Second. >> A second by Sharon. Any further discussion hearing? None. All in favor signify by saying I. I. >> Oppose. Same sign. Motion carries. The resolution for acceptance of gifts. Sharon. >> Whereas the following have generously offered to donate to Little Falls Community Schools. Therefore, be it resolved by the Little Falls Community School Board of Education to gratefully accept the following gifts. National FFA Foundation donation of $4,300 to the Little Falls Community Schools High School ACT department. Faith Lutheran Church, donation of $500 to Little Falls Community Schools Care Closet. Pine Country Bank, donation of $429 to Little Falls Community Schools to cover the cost of four All-Star trophies. Rose Alrech, donation of a vintage typewriter valued at $150 to the Little Falls

003Community Schools drama department. Rose Albrech, a donation of craft and school supplies valued at $200 to Little Falls Community Schools Heart Department. Golf, which is golfers organized for Little Falls, donation of $500 to Little Falls Community Services Youth Golf Program. FAB, donation of $8,000 to the Little Falls Community Schools athletic departments for HUDL software. Lyall James, donation of $3,000 to the Little Falls Community Schools Blanch and Avery Charitable Fund. Shane Cole, donation of Domino's Pizza for 332 or 332 Little Falls Community School staff for the workshop week. And that was from Shane, not from Domino's itself. Minnesota Heist Minnesota Deer Hunters Association donation of $27,570 to Little Falls Community Services Clay Target League KA which is Knight Elementary Association donation of $14,7834 to the Little Falls Community Schools Randall Area Scholarship Fund. I need a

004second for the acceptance. >> I'll second. >> Thank you, Doug. We have a motion and a second on the floor. Roll call. This one. Well, this doesn't need a roll call, does it? All those in favor signify by saying. >> No, I think it's a roll. Okay. >> Okay. Doug, >> yes. >> Myself is yes. Julie, >> yes. >> And Kelsey, >> yes. >> Okay. Then the following all voted for yes. So, the resolution is approved on the 22nd day of September, 2025. >> Okay. Thank you, Sharon. Um, next flyer pride cards. Um, Jules, you want to start out? Thank you. >> Okay. Mark Deal, director of operations. Uh, thank you Mark for your involvement and guidance with the renovation project and new playground at Lindberg Elementary. I appreciate all that you do. Larry Edton,

005Lisa Capsner, Beth Overton, Lindseaylair, elementary teachers, thank you for teaching summer school and supporting our students. Your time and dedication make a big difference. Christo Jan Reer, CEC's sped teacher. Jan has stepped into a new teaching position at the CEC this year and is doing a great job building relationships and supporting incoming students. Carol Potter, Matt Bomb, assistant business manager. Thank you, Matt, for always stepping in to help and make every transition in the business office run smoothly. Your support makes a big difference. Thank you, Chelsea Robinson. And Nicole Ridland, a transition teacher. Nikki has joined Little Falls Community Schools as our new transition teacher. She is learning quickly and building relationships with both students and staff. Carol Potter. >> Thank you. Yes. >> Um Sharon Barber, an element uh Lincoln secretary. Shout out to

006Sharon for her hard work and dedication with registration open house and the start of the school year. Thank you for all you do. Chris Dobis, Chelsea Robinson, human resources. Chelsea is always willing to listen, brainstorm, and help execute day-to-day things at the district level. I appreciate her hard work, listening ears, and poker face when I say something crazy. I appreciate you, Chelsea, Kayla Guber. And this is for the kindergarten team. Um, Brenda CE, Kelly Dolas, Maya Jordan, Emily Nebau, Gloss to Cheryl Moore, and Caitlyn Annette. Thank you for a successful kinder camp. Thank you for helping our youngest flyers get off to a great start. Chris Jobs and then Christopher Maj Majerus, uh, Lincoln head custodian. Chris is beyond helpful at Lincoln. He is always ready to hop into a project, lend a hand, or

007find a solution to a problem. Chris gets so much done behind the scenes to keep things rolling and is super positive colleague, Scott or >> Okay. Thank you to the Lindberg custodial crew which is Cody Pelzer, Loel Banick, Neil Bjorn Bjordsman, Rose Czech, Jolene Leblah, and Jacob Henry who is a student cleaner. They did an outstanding job of getting Lindberg in order and ready for the school year from Larry Edgarton. Michelle Schult Schultz, special ed teacher. Michelle has had an incredibly positive attitude over the last few weeks after receiving a new teaching assignment at the very last minute. Her gracious nature during this transition was amazing. Throughout the process, she showed respect to all of her team members and has provided a safe environment for students these first few days. Emiline uses Brittany Benson, early

008childhood parah. Brittney always has a great attitude, a smile on her face, and makes every makes great connections with students. Thank you so much for all you do. It is appreciated. Miranda Mertens, Stephanie Copinsky, Lincoln Secretary. Shout out to Stephanie for all of her preparation to kick off the school year and for being a friendly, welcoming face for all the families at the window. Chris Dopus, >> I have Bonnie Sari Tholan, the head cook at the high school. Bonnie and her staff displayed a tremendous flyer pride while preparing and serving meals for students and staff. Thank you for the awesome treats during workshop. The staff greatly appreciates it. Mr. Bjorgi, Chris Golden, childc care attendant. I'm so thankful to have Christine on board as our child care coordinator for Little Flyers. Her previous experience and

009hard work make our center so great and does not go unnoticed. Thank you, Christine, for all you do. Kayla Gruber and Lisa Sber, MTSS coordinator. Thank you for your leadership in guiding our district with MTSS and our literacy pilot. Your direction and support are making a difference for staff and students. Chris Stoopes. Okay, next we have looks like our first presentation will be the Little Falls Anglers. Um Darren, why don't you step up to the mic and bring your fishers with you or your fisher people with you? >> They bring fish food. >> Yeah. >> Have a seat, guys. One more chair. Thank you. Um, my name is Darren Arber. Um, Landon Normary, Gracie Normy, Wesley Norbury, London Normary. It's kind of a family deal. Um, this is the team of Wesley and Lundy has

010been our top placing team now for probably the last two, three years. They have won the most scholarship money. Um, overall total the Little Falls Anglers have won 30,750 bucks in scholarship. >> Wow. >> That's been since 2020. Um, they are a good portion of that with the London contingency money. Um and then the team of Isaac Durich and Austin Sakorski were probably second place. Um they are both now graduated seniors. Lond two is in that group. Um Gracie, one of our longest running members this year got big bass for women's angler twice for another thousand. um and so forth. Um this year's second place state team by one point, right? You guys missed by one point being first in state. Um and then they won the state uh championship. How much did you guys

011win this year? >> 125 12,500 split between them. Um this scholarship money goes towards any after high schooling they wish to do in a form of whether they want to be linemen, doctors, whatever it'll cover, laptops, books, whatever they want, whatever they need to use it for in a form of schooling. Um, let's see here. You guys, the team of Lond or Gracie and Landon Armory got uh 13th this year in the state championship and then as overall, Little Falls took third in state team championship. >> So, >> is there different classes like there are with other sports or is it or is it just fishing is just >> amongst our team? We have our team local derbies that we put on and the kids compete in a points program for that. Um, but most

012of this scholarship money and stuff comes from chasing the state league of the SAT which is um comparable to a uh varsity level fishing. They're competing on tournaments in tournaments where there's on average 180 boats >> of two kids per boat. So, >> when's the season? >> Uh, we generally start right away in June. Um, and then it goes I think we just had our last team tournament here last weekend. >> Um, so overall the high school tournament is most of the summer. Uh there is a lot of angst to begin with to that oh we can't wait to get started to now the bittersweet part where oh god our last tournament's done with you know >> um I I see that in my team and other teams too. So >> how many students do

013you have participating? >> I believe we are at like 20 kids in our team. around there. >> 30, excuse me. >> 30. >> That's the boss. >> Yeah. >> And how I mean, how is it funded? I'm assuming I mean, does this all come out of your pocket or is >> um sponsors, fundraisers, um different events like that? FAB is a big help with that. Um our sponsors go a long ways. Uh different fundraisers. Right now, we're going to be at the FFA meet at the county fairgrounds. Uh we do the Reeds Gun Fair in the in the spring of the year to help out with that. Um checking people in. >> Okay. And that money you raise, I'm assuming, covers gas, covers. >> Yep. It goes out in the form of gas cards and

014then amongst our own team derby prizes and stuff like that. We give the kids gear. Um each second year returning student gets a nice set of rain gear. Okay. >> Um and so forth. >> Sure. >> Tackle and >> Okay. >> So, >> where are the the lakes that you fish? Are they all around the state? Where's the farthest you go? >> Still pretty much from top to bottom and east to west. Depends on the year. >> This year around Vermillion. Uh pools four and five which is in Lake City. Um Mohammed, it's a Alexandria train. >> Skull Lake. Last year on Bigstone, so it's pretty much from >> every end of the state. There's a lot. We're We're lucky because we are a centrallylo team >> because I mean it does make a big

015help >> on that traveling cost. >> We fish there's six tournaments in a year. So it starts off with a a regional and then it'll go into four opens tournaments which out of those tournaments you got to place in the top 10 to qualify for the the TOC which is the tournament of champions at the end of the year. >> Okay. So that's pretty much what season they're all >> and that season it revolves around is >> so basically a couple a month, couple tournaments a month roughly. >> Every other weekend. >> Okay. >> This year have a weekend off and then it'll be on and then you'll have one off and then >> y >> and then there's some virtual ones in there too that are kind of tied in with the same deal

016and that's kind of up to the kids if they want to fish that. Um >> we did send four of our teams this year to state again. Um, last year I think we sent five. This year the SAT now the last two years has started a senior program thing where the top seniors top nine seniors get to fish for a chance to go into a the champions tour and after you know the next step up and we sent three seniors this year to that. Um, and we were the highest amount of seniors I think at that rate. Yeah, most from most of them from from any tick one team. >> So, >> are the tournaments based similar to like a pro tournament where it's the amount of the weight of the fish that you catch

017or how does that work? >> Um, ours is all virtual. So, there's no So, it's catch and release so you're not carrying fish around your live, but it'll it's based off measurement. So they give us rulers at the beginning of the year so everybody's on a fair playing field >> and they just convert it from the DNR the DNR's weight conversion >> and uh it goes up your seven best. >> I see. >> So they use the ruler for the weight. >> Yep. It goes by measurement. And the nice thing about that is that like you said the fish aren't traveling. >> The fish get dumped back in right away. >> Um you know so it does help definitely help limit the amount of Fish skill. >> Sure. >> Other than your coach, what's the

018biggest reason for your success? >> Answer, right? >> Yeah. >> Sounds like with all the Norbergs on the team, not a lot of work, right? >> It's there's a lot of time that goes into it. >> How many teams do you have? >> 15 teams. >> And two two on a team. >> Yeah. Yep. >> There's there's eight of us that actually run >> the SAT side of things and then the other ones is just our local team derbies that are just based on lakes right around the area. So it's a little more it's easier it's easier step into it. >> Sure. So it sound more like kind of like a varsity JB type. >> Yeah. So do you like lakes like Lake Alexander Fish just closer lakes weekly? How many teams can you have

019in the SAT? Can you have as many as you want? >> As many as you want. >> You can. Okay. >> The tournaments overall, I think, are limited to right around 200 boats per lake. >> Okay. >> Um, depending on the size of the lake. Max can definitely handle more, so can go, you know, and then you get to the Hamadoo chain, not quite as many. >> So, how many of you are interested in winter fishing? >> We are. You are. >> Yes. amongst our team. We did last year start a little bit of a a team ice fishing derbies to try and keep the kids involved through the winter. >> Um it's kind of like our local derby is just kind of a volunteer thing. >> Sure. >> Okay. If somebody sees this now

020and they watch the the school board um and they're interested in getting involved or joining, how do they contact you? You have to be one of our more silent team sports that we don't know a lot about. Um, a lot of that has to do with the the layout of the SAT being on Sundays and not necessarily being a high school recognized sport. >> Um, but they can contact us. I think most of our info is at community services. >> Okay. >> Uh, or through either Froggy's pad, they can get hold of them. Normally stealing trailer, the fishing hole um, and get a hold of us. We're on Facebook, of course. >> There's an Instagram. >> Yeah. Instagram page at Lers. >> And of course, I know a fair portion of the school board, too.

021>> So, >> do you guys practice then throughout the week? Do you have practices or do you just go to the meets? >> Um, for the local derbies, it's usually just to have fun >> type laidback. Most of the time there's no pre-ishing. For high school tournaments, usually >> we like to do at least two or three days before. Mhm. >> So in our pre and during the winter season when we do start up sign up of our team, we do have people come in and speak to the kids, try and teach them some fishing lessons, you know, what they use, how they use it, vice versa. Um, we try to we've been trying to get people on electronics and stuff like that. Uh, Keith Tuma is one of our our regulars. He fishes the

022opens the bass series. Other than that, I mean, it's pretty much after the end of our tournaments, I started something called the what worked, what didn't work, ask teams on our team reach page to, hey, you know, what did you use, how did you win this, or how did you do in the local derby, um what type of lure, where were you fishing, >> you know, to try and get everybody caught up on the same page. >> Sure. >> It's interesting. Any other questions for Darren or the Nornbergs? Well, >> I feel like we should have the fish story. Like, how big are we? Like, what's the biggest catch, guys? >> Yeah. What was your biggest fish when you won the biggest >> female bass? A bass, I'm assuming, right? That's what it is, right?

023>> 19 and a half. >> Okay. >> Wow. >> One was on the river down on pools four. >> Okay. >> And then one was on the holiday. >> Okay. Same lure. Yeah, green pumping, too. >> Well, congratulations on a great season. >> Yeah, well done. >> Well done. >> We've been steadily improving. >> Good. >> Thanks for coming in. >> Thank you guys. >> Okay. Thank you guys. >> Okay. Next we have uh teaching and learning updates. Lisa, >> thank you for having me. >> Of course. >> So, do you want to connect? >> Sure. >> Yeah, for sure. >> Yeah. Hopefully I can cooperate. So, >> all right. Well, thank you again for having me. I'm excited to share all of the um teaching and learning updates as well as some MCA results.

024So ultimately the presentation that you'll see tonight is very centered around our strategic plan priority number one. Um goal one is implementing a consistent and aligned framework and we've been working really hard as a district to make some moves in that area and I'm excited to share some of those accomplishments with you tonight. So, as we look at all of the amazing things that have happened in Little Falls Community Schools from years past, there's been a million um that's obviously it might feel like a million, but there's been a lot of really great initiatives that have been happening, but we've really struggled to get those initiatives working together for the good of our school and move us forward. And so, not that any of those initiatives weren't worth it, it's just we didn't have the

025framework set up so that we were making strides in the right direction together. And so, similar to this analogy, we had things going in all different directions and kind of siloed initiatives. And so, really now we're trying to get all of our initiatives working in the same direction so that we can really see some great outcomes from that. So, with uh MTSS, that's the framework that we're using to get all of those initiatives on the same page. And similar to the gears moving on the screen, we want all of them working consistently together so that we aren't having um we aren't having pieces that are falling by the wayside or that are falling off and that people don't understand what's going on with them anymore because we haven't talked about them. And so once they

026become part of our system and part of our handbook that I shared with you, then that's a way for staff to continually understand how we want things operated in Little Falls Community Schools. So really trying to build a framework where staff know what to expect when they walk in the doors um and what's expected of them because sometimes that's hard if you don't know what people want from you. It's hard to know what that output is. So So tonight I'm going to share with you some MCA results for reading and math and then we'll talk a little bit about next steps from that. We'll go through workshop week review a little bit or reflection and then we'll talk about MTSS at the Little Falls Community Schools. So this graph shows Little Falls Community Schools in

027relation to the statewide average. So right now for reading in grades 3 through 8 and 10th grade, we're scoring at about 41% proficient. Um and the state average is at 49.5%. So this is all of those grades together. We have some pockets of really great success as well. Um, some strides that we've made in reading have been the letters professional development, which has been a huge lift for teachers. And so I just want to give them a shout out for the amazing dedication they've shown through that. But research shows that no matter how much we spend on resources, the teacher is what makes the difference for students. And so really being able to invest in our teachers and giving them that professional development development has been huge. We've also implemented functional phonics and morphology which

028ties really closely to letters. So, it's been fun for them to be able to take their learning and apply it in the classroom as well. And then we've really tried to create some um smooth transitions for students. So, if they're struggling in the classroom, we have additional resources in tier 2. And if they're struggling with tier 2, we have additional resources in tier three to try and help um help them master skills that they need to become proficient readers. Some growth opportunities that we have right now, we're piloting knowledge building resources. So functional phonics talks about the code of reading, like knowing that B says B and A says Ah, and putting those together um to make a word. But we also know that for reading comprehension, students have to have really great background knowledge.

029And so the knowledge building component is really important as well. And so right now we're piloting four of them. Um, another shout out to teachers because it's a lot of work to pilot, but we're wanting to make sure that we really look at these different resources that were on the RedAx highly aligned or partially aligned list um to see which one is best fitting for our students and our staff. So, we'll be doing a halfyear pilot. Because of cost, we weren't able to do a full year pilot. So, we'll end in about January and have further discussion about which one we'd like to move forward with. We're also looking at um doing some secondary resource review in the future to try and get them on the same page. We want to make sure that we're

030providing those tools to teachers so that it takes the guesswork out of it for them and they're not wondering if they're picking the right resources and it takes away the inconsistencies between classrooms if you have a similar resource to use. And then with that also continuing that same model that we're seeing at the elementary school and providing resources for students who are struggling in middle school and high school. And so this year we actually are trying a resource called Power Up. So students who maybe have foundational gaps in their reading can get some support through that that tool that we'll be starting at the middle school and the high school. And then ultimately while those resources are great if we're not using them the way they're intended, we really need to um it's hard to

031know what's what's the working piece, right? And so we'll be doing some fidelity checks more this year to make sure that we're using the tool the way we planned and then we can have some more discussions about the data and those pieces. And then ultimately in standards work we have new ELA standards as well. So we'll dive into those this year too. So this is a five-year trend a slight trend up we're seeing. So Minnesota is actually the blue line here trending down and then we're trending up. It is slight but still moving in the right direction. So third grade this year um had a 9 percentage point growth. So that is a huge jump. And then sixth and seventh grade also had a 5% increase from last year. So math results the state proficiency

032average proficiency level was at 45%. And Little Falls was at 36.1. The grades taking that would be 3rd through 8th and then 11th grade. So, we did implement core curriculums K through 12 um three years ago. Our opportunities for growth are the fidelity of that. Making sure that we're using them the way we intended to use them. Making sure that teachers have the training and understanding on how to use them as well. Um using some more formative assessments. So, a curriculum is really great, but that doesn't necessarily tell me what my students already know or what they're struggling with after I teach. And so then using assessments to help us plan to maybe retach or provide different instruction based on what our students need as well. And then that tiered support with MTSS. So providing

033for those students who just need extra um of that instruction standards alignment and then professional development. So we've been diving really deep into literacy over the last couple of years, but math could use the same support as well. And last year we did have we were seeing a positive trend up and a little bit of a dip last year. Uh a really exciting performance piece is third grade is usually uh we're not usually seeing them quite as high in their performance but last year they scored at this almost the 60th percentile or 60th percent proficient. Sorry I said that wrong. We had about 60% of our students proficient in third grade. um which is a huge celebration and one that I think is really um showing us the important of foundation. So they had I

034ready math in second grade and then third grade and those teachers really bought in and were really working hard to use it the way it was intended and so I think that is a huge celebration and I'm excited to see what years to come will look like too having that same routines and vocabulary that come with a curriculum for those students. Seventh grade also saw an increase of 5% last year. Science results are not in yet. We had new science standards last year and um the that creates a new science test and so they're waiting on those results right now and they are embargoed until October 1st. So I can get those to you once they come out. So, I apologize on the black on black there, but really, while the testing scores might not

035capture the whole picture of what a student experiences in Little Falls, right? There are a ton of other things that you can see that show great potential for our district, um, show student success, and that's a one-time snapshot. It is a systems check on how we're doing. And so, we have work to do. Um, the thing that I will say that I'm really excited about is I think staff agree that we have work to do and they're all in. I feel like we have really amazing staff that are willing to put in the work to see changes for student outcomes. But again, that's just one data point. Um, one piece of MTSS with that that we look at is we look at the data um, and then we plan with that data and we make

036that plan. We act on that plan. So, for example, fidelity checks. Right now, we're really planning for fidelity checks at the elementary level. We'll start implementing those within the next month and then we'll bring that data back to the table and study how that went and then we'll continue that cycle. So we'll plan, study, act. And so as we continue to do that, we continue to get better. So even the the initiatives that we've been doing in the past, none of those go by the wayside. There's things that we have taken from those to make us better today. And so continuing to spiral up and using those resources and those um those different cycles to help us improve overall as a district. So our next steps as I mentioned is MTSS framework. Obviously we have

037a need to improve some systemwide pieces. Um it's not going to just happen in isolation. So we really have to move the whole system. So really creating consistency and alignment and using data to help drive some of the decisions we're making. So ensuring that strong tier one. So I want to thank you for um leaning into those resources that teachers need to be able to have that consistency and alignment conversation. That's really important and important part of tier of MTSS. And if we wouldn't have had that, it would be really hard to move this forward. So I want to say thank you for that. And then tier two and tier three, we also um continue to refine those so that once our tier one gets really good, we have a small pocket of students who

038are going to need more regardless of how amazing tier one is. And we have things to help support them. And then ultimately making sure that we're not just giving the teachers a resource, but implementing the resource and ensuring that we're implementing it the way we had planned. So using those fidelity checks to help support that. Any questions about those pieces? >> So I do. Yeah. >> Um, so one of my questions is, and I see you the data is taken from 3 through eight and then either 10 or 11, but >> the bigger question that I have and maybe you know the answer, maybe you don't, is >> when when we have kids coming into the district starting in kindergarten, >> how many of those are already behind the eightball a little bit? You know

039what I mean? If we were to put a exceed standards, meet standards is behind, I mean, what would we find there? Cuz I mean, part of it is I see these numbers and and yeah, there's there's definitely room for improvement, but I wondering we're not all starting at the same level either. You know, we have some kids that are probably really far behind when they're starting, and that's a that's a big leap to try to catch up. So, that that's what I'm just curious about. So we do um local screeners that give us some of that data on kindergarten to see like where kindergarters are coming in at. We actually are just finishing those up and have data meetings tomorrow at Lincoln to discuss that further. Um that is a challenge that we have. Research

040shows that the more that students quickly can name letter sounds and letter names, the better reader they will be. That's a predictor of reading success. And that is an area that we struggle to get the fluency piece of that. Um, one thing that we can continue to try to do, we do family engagement nights to try and help families understand the importance of working with students at home, how important reading is at home and exposure to books. Um, but that is something that unfortunately is just out of our control, too. And so, taking every kid where they're at and using data to help drive those decisions can help us move faster than if we were just going to try and teach them all as the same. And so, I think MTSS will really help us

041with that as well. >> Thank you. Yeah. Any other questions? Okay. So, then workshop week, we really dove into MTSS. We've had a district-wide team that's been meeting since January, but we really haven't shared out with staff much about it until workshop week. So, we have an MTSS handbook that was shared with you. We went over that a little bit and did an overview. Um, and then we had Dr. Mario Costa come and speak on a webinar to our staff and explain a little bit more about MTSS. Sometimes if you're um if you're a parent and you're talking to your kids, my kids, I can say it to them three times, but if my husband says it, they remember it and he gets all the credit, right? And so um sometimes they just need to

042hear it from somebody else, too. And so I think that it was really great to have Dr. A. Costa come in and speak to that a little bit, too. And it was fun to hear how staff were talking about that we're already doing some of those things and acknowledging that. And so MTSS isn't necessarily something that's new to our district. It's just us really calling attention to it and tightening up that ship. Um, we also did some initial trainings for tier one resources because we want to make sure that we're not just handing them the resources, but making sure they know how to use them. And we did some fidelity training as well, talking about the resources that we have, how we're going to to look for fidelity within those and what that might look

043like in their different areas because that is relatively new to our district. We haven't done a lot of fidelity checks in the past because we haven't, to be honest, had many tools to look for consistency on. So that will be a little bit of a shift, but I think it's really important to make sure that we're using them using our investments wisely. So, so for reading, MTSS really focuses on reading, math, and science or I'm sorry, reading, math, and SEAL and behavior. And so I'm just going to kind of talk about within MTSS. And some of this I'll skip over a little bit faster because we've talked about it through the assessment one. But in reading, um, again, letters training has been really great and really important for staff to have that background knowledge of

044how students learn to read. Tier 2 and tier three resources will continue to do some fidelity checks around and making sure that we're using them the way we they are intended to be used in the way that they've been researched. Um, and as well with functional phonics. And then this year with the new ELA standards, we'll be um trying to look for common threads within there and looking for more critical concepts so that teachers can lump some of those standards together or bundle them together to make it a little bit more manageable because as Dr. A Costa mentioned, there are enough standards to last us 22 years of education and we only have 12. And so really trying to be more efficient with that. Um and again that literacy pilot which has been really huge

045for our elementarymentaries once we adopt a resource we'll be really in a great place with resources in our elementarymentaries after next year. So that will be exciting to see that we're um it's been a long road coming and so I think teachers are excited to get to that point too. And then secondary um continuing to expand on some of the use with common lit resources and assessments. And then again the ELA standards using Power App this year will be really exciting because sometimes we would hear teachers talk about how students were struggling but we didn't have a tool to help support them. And those teachers will tell you they're not reading teachers and so they were struggling with how to help as well. And so this will be a really great resource to be able

046to offer students and staff at the middle school and high school. And then the read act actually has professional development coming out for secondary teachers as well and that will be coming out October 1st. So next year they will get their turn to really understand the nuts and bolts of the student and how they learn to read. So for math again focusing on fidelity of I ready. Um my path is our two tier or tier 2 resource and then we're also doing some piloting with tier two resources in small groups. So my path happens in the classroom and then we have amazing teachers who pull students for extra support who are still struggling after what they've received in the classroom or still needing more support I should say. And so we're piloting Ready Set Math

047in those areas. And then we also have big ideas math this year that we'll be looking for some fidelity checks on and additional training was happening during workshop week to to try and provide that support. SEAL and behavior has been a really fun one. So fire pride is alive and well I think in every building I go into. Um so that's exciting to see that that is a piece that has been surviving the test of time. Character Strong has been super fun to hear about from principles and um teachers, my own children going through it. That's been a really welcomed resource and I think user friendly. The training was great. Staff were pretty excited about that as well. So, and because of with Dr. Night closing, we had bought a license because at the time

048we didn't know where things were going to land and they were able to put that license into a tier 2 resource. So now staff who work with in special education or in small groups with students who just maybe need friendship groups and those kinds of things have that resource as well. So that's been nice. And that also we have that as well at the middle school. They got a reboot this year just to kind of focus on that fidelity. And then we're exploring options at the high school as well through their their individual MTSS team. So for data and assessment that's another huge piece of MTSS. So I mentioned earlier we have Fastbridge, Ire Capy, ReadBasic is a new assessment that will be happening this year as part of the readact. Um we're having preK12

049data meetings. So now we're collecting the data and we're having discussions about it to really help move our work forward and then using standard alignment to help create a more manageable way of moving forward with the standards and bundling them together. And then using formative assessments within the classroom to after we teach something, assess how it's going so we know if students got it. if we need to retach or if just maybe a small group needs some reteing and I forgot to edit my slide so I apologize this part is not really relevant um but other highlights MTSS team at the high school they've been doing a lot of work since March and they have been using data to really drive an action plan there so they've done some work this summer with doing a

050retake policy and attendance policy and then looking for fidelity with that but then also going to the next level of some bigger changes that will help support all students. Northstar accountability, we just went to Sourcewell last week to get some support from the state. Um, in the CC and the linked, the high school was linked because it's here in Little Falls and we have over 30% of the population at CC is Little Falls students. So, we were automatically linked in that, but they were identified for their graduation rate of four years. Um, and so we'll be looking forward to exploring ways that we can improve that system as well. And then one goal for this year is to get MTSS site teams at each building. So we have our big district team and making those

051action plans, but then the site teams carrying out those action plans in their buildings. So I'll just leave you with that teaching is like um teaching and learning is like a garden. So we have lots of different things growing at different rates. Some bloom faster than others and some might need more shade or more water, less water. And so trying to make sure that our system is set up to give every student what they need so that they can grow. So I'm really excited to see all that MTSS will bring for our district. >> Good. Any questions? Very good presentation. >> Yeah, very thorough. >> Thank you. >> No questions for Lisa. >> All right. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. >> Thank you, Lisa. forgot to start my timer. Did very well. >>

052Okay, looks like next we have the superintendence report. >> Like to start off by introducing Heidi Hagen, our new business manager. I know all of you have met her, but officially at her first school board meeting, Heidi's made an immediate positive impact in our district, helping us navigate the transition with her to the district and helping us uh continue to improve in the area of business and finance. So, welcome Heidi. >> Thank you for having me. It's been a great two plus weeks so far. Lisa did a great job of uh summarizing the work that we're doing in teaching and learning and it's a it's a the most important work that we do in a really heavy lift um work that takes time and I I really want to reiterate the hard work that our

053teachers are doing under the umbrella of collaboration working together buying into a system with MTSS that we believe in many believe works and will help us get there. Um, I want to thank you for creating those opportunities for us to be able to implement, purchase, and have curriculum to support our teachers because this year, this spring, we're going to ask you for probably the biggest investment in a curriculum for some time in Little Falls, and that's looking at a new elementary reading curriculum. And again, like Lisa said, we have a incredible number of teachers who are invested in trying out these four resources. And we'll through the schoolboard teaching and learning committee as well, we'll make the best decision possible and have a tool in the hands of our teachers next year, which will be

054a really important part. Next month, October 20th, I hope to have at least two people, two students sitting over here >> to my left. The applications for student representatives to the school board are due Friday. Based on the emails that I've received from both juniors and seniors, I think we'll have four to six applications to consider and land on either two or three applications for next year. And I hope in this process this year, I mean, I hope for next year that we could we might have a junior or two that are interested that could then carry on into their senior year. Just a really light update about some of the work that's taking place in the district related to the secondary school planning that we've talked about through our finances and facilities. We have

055a a heavy lift, a lot of work to do in that area and that work continues. And I I want you to know that one of the things we're looking at doing is having a schoolboard work session on October 14th at 5:00. It's a Tuesday night. Dan Schilling is out of town that Monday. So if it works for you, we would have Witsth here to share pretty specific information about what it would look like if we transition to a 7 through 12 secondary school. They've been in the district quite a bit um looking at our facilities. They've met with high school staff. They've met with middle school staff. We are likely going to have a community meeting throughout this process some probably sometime in November to talk more about what these plans look like, but

056really want to get that information in front of you at that work session. and then a followup the following week at the regular school board meeting on October 20th. Mark, anything want to add to that? >> Um, just the tours. >> Yeah. So, um, today, uh, a few staff members from the high school and myself and Mr. Yorgi and staff member from the middle school toured Brainard High School. And you might Brainer. That's a 912 building. What do they have to offer? Um, the core academic portion of the Brainer building was designed much the same way as the as our current high school is. And um, in fact, the architects believe that it was the same firm that did both buildings. They were both built at the same time. And so to see how they

057went in and were able to make the space more accommodating for a 21st century approach and adding natural daylight in and and some various pieces was very beneficial for staff today to go in and see um to see how they change their media center, you know, what that looks like and to see how they handle um student services and look at We look at a variety of different spaces today. We have another group of people that are going to be going up to Rock Ridge High School next week on Tuesday afternoon. Uh Rock Ridge is a was a brand new school built about three years ago that um is a 712 facility where they intentionally integrated 7th through 12th grade all together. It's it's not like a separate um part of the building. It's just

058seventh and eighth grade. They're they're all intermixed. And so we're going to go take a peek at that building uh next week. >> One of the I think most successful things that we did during the grade level banding discussion was to get staff out into other buildings that are experiencing the changes that we were thinking about. And so we hope through having our middle school and high school staff and administration get out and see some facilities that will really help us >> move conversations forward. >> At our upcoming meeting work session, we continue to um plug away with work on our school district properties, the Habitat property, the 40 acres on the west side, Dr. Knight facility and then the land swap are all in process right now. So we'll have updates I hope at

059the work session in October. Want to highlight that Dr. Knight has an event this weekend on Sunday, September 28th. It's called the lasting legacy of Dr. SG night and it will be held out there with a time capsule ceremony taking place at 300 p.m. People planning to attend are encouraged to RSVP on the Facebook page so that they can plan accordingly. And then we're still planning for a school district sale of obsolete equipment and supplies out at Dr. Knight on October 9th. That would be a garage sale type format where the public is welcome to come in. We have file cabinets, we have tables, we have chairs, other miscellaneous things that people may find of interest. That's from 4 to 7 on October 9th. Flyer Fest, it's October 30th. Keep that on your radar that

060evening. Another great way to support our Ed Foundation and flyer activities. And then September is schoolboard appreciation month and would like to recognize the uh countless hours and work that you folks do in planning, research, etc. to support the district and support our students. Um, I don't think any of you do this to seek the spotlight, but you know the critical, crucial civic role that you play in being a school board member by helping us shape our vision, shaping our educational priorities, and making some tough decisions that I know you you've all had to make over the years. Uh, this month and every month, we encourage our community to say thank you to our dedicated school board members. Their service makes local control of public education possible and their leadership helps shape the future of

061our schools and communities. So, happy school board appreciation month. You have a certificate that I know you'll hang in your office or home and a nice little notebook to go along with that. And then Mark, if you want to come up or stay there, it's up to you. A couple of highlights related to the property east of our high school. Some cleanup going up there going on there. And then the very successful evacuation drill that was held last week. >> So let's start with the property to the east of the high school. So, you know that that's that school forest and um the um Morrison County Soil and Water Conservation District approached the board about some funds that they had access to to help clean up some of the buckthornne that's in that space. And

062so um we we were they applied for and were we were chosen as one of the sites that they will be doing Buckthornne cleanup bin. So the grant itself is about $125,000 grant that's not payable to the district. is um payable uh great river green and um and they in partnership with the soil and water conservation district will go about the process of bringing in the appropriate personnel to go in and clean up that the cost to the district in all of this is that we have to put up a sign stating that we worked on this in partnership with the Morrison County Soil and Water Conservation District and Great River Greening um utilizing funds from the Minnesota Heritage Foundation or Heritage Fund. So, there's minimal uh requirements for the district. Um the process itself

063will take several years to complete. That's about a 13 acre parcel give or take that they're going to work on. And so um it's a really good it's a great opportunity for us. Our egg students um who are interested in natural resources will get to be a part of part of that process as well and learning how they go about controlling and managing um the buckthornne in that area. And then we'll have to uh work to once it's eradicated of the buckthornne then we'll have to work for a minimum of 10 years to keep that area clear of the buckthornne. And we hope that that that's going to become part of the curriculum process. um in addition to kind of clearing the trails that are back there and keeping those open um that the forestry

064classes can practice some of what they're learning in that space. So that's that. Any questions on that grant opportunity? >> When would start? >> Um I I think that they're just waiting for a couple of signatures from us and they're ready to go. >> Okay. from what I understand. All right. So then, um, Mr. Johnson asked me to talk a little bit about the evacuation drill that we did with the high school last week. So, um, first of all, um, I want to say that this was a very successful event from the district standpoint and I think from the high school standpoint. Um we had three objectives or we had six objectives that revolved around three areas. One was communication, one was count, second was accountability and the third was relocation. So could we communicate

065effectively with staff? Could we make sure that all of our kids and staff were accounted for and could we successfully get them out to Camp Ripley? and we were able to achieve all of our objectives um very very well. I would say that um our biggest takeaway from the event is how quickly we can do what's called a roster event. So it's a way for us to go in in our crisis go emergency app and take attendance basically is what it comes down to. and um and then the kids that show up as not accounted for. How quickly can you account for them? Um I'm going to give a lot of credit to the high school staff here. Um the week of September 8th, we we ran this roster event and we accounted for 38%

066of our kids, which was really low on the first round, right? And that but we started on the eth because we were practicing with them. We were getting them used to it. By the time we uh were ready to do the event itself, their last practice event, they were at 99.97%. Right? They had one kid that that they knew where he was, but they just didn't get it accounted for before they hit the end button on the roster event. Um when we ran the roster event uh the morning of the 17th, we were able to account for all the kids on one of them on one of the roster events because we ran three. We ran one as soon as we got up the kids outside the building. We ran a second one when we

067had the kids at at the park on the east side of St. Mary's Church and we ran a third one out at Camp Ripley, the one that we ran at the uh St. at the park next to St. Mary's Church that we were able to complete in just over five minutes. Was 5 minutes and like 11 seconds. It was not very long at all. So, it was very quick. Um, which is extremely helpful because um when you're when you're trying to Well, first of all, you're accounting for about a thousand people. So, to get that many people accounted for that quickly was um really good. But you're trying to make sure that you know where everybody is at as quickly as you can because if you need to get if in the event there was

068a real fire, we would have had to have gotten bodies back in um and be able to try to tell them where to go and look for these people. So um we were really thrilled with that with that time of of when getting them uh accounted for. Um after we got the kids out to camp, we were uh the students got to um after we completed the last roster event, the kids got to go on a bus tour of Camp Ripley and learn about camp and the various aspects and functions of camp and they also got to do a tour of the military museum in that that area of camp. So that was very uh good for those. I heard a lot of positive feedback about the bus tours. We also took the time then

069to plan, take our district office staff and our building principles and lead secretaries and put them in a room and work through this is the reunification plan. We walked them through the whole plan, including walking them through the spaces where these events would take place so that everybody had a visual picture in their mind of what that would look like. That was an extremely productive um process so that we could take what we have in a draft form right now as a plan and say is everybody good with this? Does anybody see anywhere with this plan is not going to work? And I think that um we were able to come away from that meeting and everybody feels comfortable with with the reunification plan. So there's just a few minor details that we have to

070fill out in terms of exactly which rooms and which buildings we want to use for for Camp Ripley's purposes. Um once we have that done, we'll be able to submit that back to camp as a final plan. Um, we were joined up there by representatives from the Pier School District and Villinger School District and uh, Royaltton Police Department was there as well as Crowing County's emergency management because they wanted to see how this would work at camp. What what had I mean, we've been leading the way on this. So, they wanted to understand what this potentially look like for their district, excuse me, for their district, too. So, it was really good. It was a really good morning. Um, we could not have done it without the the partnership of the Little Falls Police Department,

071the Little Falls Fire Department, um, Morrison County Sheriff's Office, Morrison County Health and Human Services, Palmer Bus, Stro Bus, and of course, Camp Ripley. um without their engagement and willingness to be partners in this um we couldn't have done it on our own. So I as the emer the guy who's kind of in charge of emergency management for the district, I feel really good right now about where we're at and what what we can do at camp and and how a process, god forbid an event ever happens, but if we ever have to use it, I feel good about our plan and our and what we will do. So anything you want to add? >> Well, kudos to you, Mark, and the planning that went into that. It is really a good place to be

072for for our district right now. >> And I heard that from the sheriff, too, that he did a really nice job. So, >> kudos. >> Um, one question I have, though. >> So, you knew it was coming. You got to practice it. You got to do whatever. >> Any concerns about Okay. So, now something live does happen. >> What happens? >> Yeah. So, you you're trying to create muscle memory, right? >> That's what you're really trying to do. trying to create muscle memory so that when people when the real event happens, people go, "Oh, yeah. This is what I had to do." >> You're you're absolutely right, Doug. Everybody knew what time the drill was starting. Everybody knew where they were going, >> right? We told them you can't go until you're told you can

073go, but they knew where they were going. Everybody knew they were ending up at Camp Ripley. >> The bus companies did not know where the rally point was. That was intentional. Um, so we had told the bus companies, operate as normal. If your drivers goes back to the garage, have them come back to the garage. And then we I called them at 8:20 and said, "This is the rally point." And we instructed them how to line up. It's It's interesting when you look at the feedback. People said, "Well, it sure felt like there was just a lot of downtime. If there was a this was a real event, there would have been a lot of downtime. there just would have been um the other comment that we heard was from Cam Ripley. You guys got

074out here way too fast, right? We weren't we weren't ready for you. And and that's true because we had I mean we had kind of scripted out a plan and we had times estimated times next to it and we were out to camp Ripley probably 20 to 25 minutes ahead of schedule that we were sending the first. >> That's good for you. It's great for us, but but it points to exactly what you're saying, Doug. >> There's If it were the real thing, would we have gotten everybody there? >> Probably not. Not that quickly. >> Mhm. >> You know, we probably would have been cycling buses and everything else. And so, do you run do you run an event do you run a drill like this, but have it be unannounced? Um maybe that's a

075conversation that we need to have. >> But um >> do you have plans to do it then annually? I mean even if not necessarily what you just said unplanned but like a planned event annually to help create that muscle memory. >> I think we have a planned event. Well, we have to do five fire drills per year, right? And the muscle memory comes for our teachers needs to be in how do I get my how do I recognize what that message is telling me in crisis go and how do I get my kids to the safest spot how do I interpret those messages right and then do the roster event we have to do five fire drills a year and we have to do five lockdown drills a year so we start to build that

076muscle memory in that to say that we're going to go to camp with every school >> right >> once a year no I think we'll probably plan to go to camp with a school once a year. And as we um as we do this, we'll add we'll add some uh some elements to the drill. Like we'll add the element of we may not call and get 16 buses lined up to to transport us the next time. We may call Joe and we may let Joe know and Heidi know, hey, we're going to run a drill. But um I can't tell you how many buses we're going to need. And we just ask them to get us the correct get us whoever you can. Right. So let's say we doing the middle school and you've got

077500 kids and we can only get four buses. Well, the buses are going to have to run in cycles, right? Camp Ripley's got to get to a point where they can take those kids that that are coming off the bus and get them to the correct location within their education center building. We didn't use the education center this time. So, there are steps that we can add to in the process, but I think it's going to be a building >> a year and it'll be a four-year kind of rotation, >> but a great first start. >> It's a great first start and and kudos to the high school staff for letting us use them first. Great. Um the the high school teachers really for the most part thought it was a really good event. Um

078it was a it was a learning opportunity for them. It was a learning opportunity for the students and you never know. >> So >> any other questions for Mark? >> Thank you. Good work. Anything more for you? No sir. Okay. Next we have certify the maximum 2026 property tax levy and authorize signatory for same. Um is this you or Heidi or >> Heidi any comments you want to make? >> Do you want me to comment from here or go up there? >> No, you're fine right there. >> Thank you. >> Um and then one more question. Do you want it up on the screen? So, as I talk through it, >> do you want it up or down? >> I have it. >> Okay. So, the first document uh I'm looking at is the 25

079payable 26 levy certification, the preliminary with the 9225 date. It's the the the form that I compiled with the information received from MDE on the most recent levy certification report. And so it's the colorful one-page summary uh looking back at final 24 and 25 and then what we're seeing on the preliminary uh 25k 26 levy which will result in district revenue in our fiscal year 27. So the levy almost spans three different uh years in total when it's all said and done. Uh so this form is the same information that uh the previous business manager had provided in uh past levy uh certification meetings. It just looks a little bit different, but um you can see there in the 26 preliminary column that's highlighted in bright yellow at the top uh the general fund uh

080and then this middle part is community service fund and then the bottom uh portion is debt service fund. And then the far column to the right of that shows you the change from uh the final 2025 levy uh with uh the changes in the preliminary 26 information uh uh published by MDE. So, the big points to reference are uh our long-term facilities maintenance revenue under the general fund is about a $450,000 $457,000 decrease from the previous years. There's a few reasons for that. uh last levy uh the 2025 levy, there was an additional $135,000 as a pay as you go levy for an asbestous uh project. And so you take that off of the the prior year's uh top. The second component is our estimated adjusted pupil units or enrollment if you will for fiscal

081year 27 is projected to decline and so you see a reduction in some of the levy categories due to a decrease in enrollment. Uh the third component which you don't see here but uh in working with um MDE and also financial consultants uh a part of our levy uh for long-term facilities maintenance and some other categories but more importantly the the change in LTFM uh has to do with a levy component that our taxpayers are taxed on and then a portion of that depending on certain variables uh within in the levy calculations. A portion of that is also state aid, which is an advantage uh for a school district where you have a a component of levy and you have a component of state aid because it reduces the tax impact uh for our uh

082taxpayers. And so that's what we're seeing here in long-term facilities maintenance in the general fund as well. uh a portion of the $490ome thousand LTFM uh levy in the general fund. Uh half of it is levy and half of it is state aid. So that's where you're seeing the biggest uh change in the general fund levy. A very small change in community service levy. And then the debt service, you're seeing an increase and that also has uh ties to do with the aid and levy component of uh the voter approved and other debt service uh levies that fall underneath that category. So overall in short uh the levy can be confusing to most people. So, uh, we are looking at about a decrease of 300,000 as compared to the the final levy in 2025, uh,

083which equates to about a 5.24% reduction in the district's levy revenue. I want to make sure that, uh, everyone understands that that doesn't necessarily mean our taxpayers are going to see their school portion of their tax levy decrease. all that is is is portraying is a reduction in the revenue that we're receiving from the previous uh levy year. Um and so and then I also shared uh some history uh back uh all the way to pay 2013 and you can see over the years uh the district's levy uh fluctuates um up and down. I think if I remember right when I averaged it out it was like a 4% increase over the last 10 plus years uh in general. So um currently that's where the preliminary levy sits today uh between uh now and the

084end of the month which the board is required to certify a preliminary levy oftentimes is done so at the max maximum because we can't increase it we can always decrease it. So that's a sure way to ensure that everything um is included uh in the preliminary levy. And then the other factor is uh in the last week or so working with uh Superintendent Johnson uh Sarah Miller at uh MDE, she oversees the facilities department at the department of education. Um, it was brought to my attention that at some point the board may have or intended to levy for another pay as you go project for a roof project. Uh, now legislation since has passed that roofing projects can be levied and I believe that was around $225,000 that is not included in this preliminary levy.

085And so working back and forth with Sarah Miller, uh our financial consultants, with uh Superintendent Johnson to determine what if anything can we do if that's the intent or that was the intent uh the notes that MDE has on record as originally it was submitted in our application in July for revenue and expense on the LTFM side and then for whatever reason uh it was taken off due to potentially having more conversations ations at an August board meeting. We're still trying to figure out um what that intent was. So, if the intent was to have a $225,000 roof LTFM project in this levy, uh we have some work to do between now and the end of the month. >> Mhm. >> So, that was a lot in a very short amount of time. Questions or

086directions for moving forward? So just to make sure I'm understanding this correctly. So if I break this down just how you have it with general fund community services and the in the three things. So >> yes >> um what we're showing is we will have a decrease in the general fund of roughly 490. >> Correct. >> That's correct. >> Okay. and then community services of and then an increase in our debt service, >> right? >> 189. Okay. Okay. Just want to make sure I was reading that correctly. >> That is correct. And the general fund and the debt service components of uh increase and decrease have a lot to do with that state aid component, right? Levy component >> and our enrollment and enrollment, right? Okay. Okay. Any other questions for Heidi? >> No. >>

087Okay. So then I believe we this is an action item. So we need to make a motion to approve the um levy the maximum levy at um the 20 I guess the 2026 property tax levy. And then you need that stating that we're going to do the max. >> Uh yes. >> Okay. Then also move that for stating to be the max knowing we can reduce it later. >> Mhm. All right. I have a motion by Sharon. Do I have a second? >> I'll second. >> Kelsey. All right. Any further discussion? All right. Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> Oppose. Same sign. All right. Motion carries. Now, is there uh Oh, authorize sign. Is this where part of this is the signature for Heidi or is that a different one coming?

088Oh, that's coming down the line. Yep. Okay. Sorry. >> Okay. Next, um, and along those lines, um, we need to set or approve the truth and taxation meeting, which has been set for 6 p.m. on Monday, December 8th, which is a regular board meeting date. Um, that will be at 6 PM. So, I would look for a motion that we have approval for that. >> So, moved. >> Have a motion by Kelsey. Second. I I a second by Sharon. Any further discussion? >> Okay. Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. >> Oppos. Same sign. >> Motion carries. >> Uh, is this a resolution for you, Sharon? >> Okay, take it away. >> Little Falls Community Schools resolution for signatures for the Toma trust account. Whereas the Little Falls Community Schools has

089transferred and established the Toma Trust account with and whereas it's necessary to authorize individuals to sign on behalf of the district regarding transactions related to the TOMA trust account. Now therefore, be it resolved that Independent School District 482, Little Falls Community School Board of Education hereby authorizes the superintendent and business manager to be signatures on the Toma Trust account held at Superintendent being Greg Johnson, business office manager being Heidi Hagen. Be it further resolved that the above named individuals are hereby authorized to execute and deliver all documents, instruments and agreements related to the trust account and to perform all acts necessary for the operation and management of the account as required by the bank. It is further resolved that this resolution will be effective immediately and remain in effect until amended or revoked by a

090sub subsequent resolution. This is a roll call vote being taken. Doug, >> uh, yes. >> Uh, Mark, myself is yes. Julie, >> yes. >> And Kelsey, >> yes. And Dan is not here. The following the following have all voted in favor. Therefore, the foregoing resolution was approved and adopted on the 22nd day of September, 2025. >> Okay. Thank you. Um, next we have the e-learning plan. Um, I'm assuming that's the same as last year, just different dates. Yeah, approve. Correct. >> Okay. So, I would be uh looking for a motion to approve the e-learning plan as presented. >> So, moved. >> All right. Have a motion by Kelsey. I will second the motion. Any further discussion? Hearing none. All in favor signify by saying I. >> I. I. >> Oppos. Same sign. Motion carries. All

091right. Now, I'm up to my signature. So, um, looks like we need to change the, um, signatures at Pine Country Bank, remove previous authorized signatures and change them to our new ones here. So, um, so essentially that's removing the previous business manager and adding Heidi to the signature. So, I would look for a motion to approve that. >> So, moved. >> All right, Kelsey. >> Second. >> And a second by Sharon. Any further discussion hearing? None. All in favor signify by saying I. I. >> I. Oppose. Same sign. >> Motion carries. Snow removal. Um, looks like the district wants would like to explore the options and costs for contracting with an outside agency for snow removal. Should we have done in the past? >> Yeah. >> Okay. Um, one question I would have and you

092know what, we'll get to the discussion here in a minute. So, I would look for a motion to approve that. >> So, move a motion by Sharon. Second, I will second it. Um, further discussion. My question would be is this request for proposals. I'm assuming it would include Randall at this point, but if Randall should be sold that maybe that price is adjusted or just that plan is made aware of in that in those proposals. >> Excellent point. So, >> okay, any other questions or discussion hearing? None. All in favor signify by saying I. >> Oppose. Same sign. >> Motion carries. No old or unfinished business reports from board members. Sharon, >> um just a couple short I I attended this morning um a meeting at the chamber office which the school is a member

093of the chamber and it was a vision planning meeting that they're going to meet with three different groups that were invited to come in for it of how uh the chamber can help us. I brought up the fact that I think the biggest thing that I see that they do positive for us is happened like this last month where Sarah was employee of the month and the recognition we get from that and we discussed different things that they could maybe help the school with and the school in return can can help with the chamber. Uh Saturday I attended the family fun day that Rose that you met here. Uh was that just last week? >> Um seems like a long time ago. Who um puts that together and seen a lot of our kids there

094having a a great time. It was I was very impressed by what she sets up. This is the third fundraising event at Labor Day Park and it was very well done. And but I in my report I do have a question. How are we sitting on the volunteer program plan that we were going to start implementing this year? >> Sarah is going to present at the October meeting. >> Okay. >> She'll have an update for the board regarding phase one of the volunteer program. >> Okay. Because that was mentioned this morning at the chamber meeting, too. >> Yeah. >> Kids with significant amount of potential for that program. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Okay, Kelsey. Yeah, I was able to meet with Mr. Dovvis last week and I forgot all my notes, but um uh

095he's very excited about how the school year has started. Staff um are doing wonderful there. Uh it sounds like the kids are all getting into their routines and learning the rules and all the things again. Um he also mentioned that they are seeing a nice increase in enrollment um from families, you know, outside of Dr. that are coming in to the the district as well. So, um and assessments are underway. >> So, yeah. Way to go. >> Thank you, >> Julie. >> Uh yeah, I spoke with Mr. Was the principal at the middle school and they're off to a great start with the middle school also just getting routines down and >> getting ready to >> Well, he's very happy with how this year is starting. >> Okay, good. And I heard the same feedback

096at the high school. Um, homecoming was last week and I think now, as you both have said, now they can get into routine again because that's a pretty I know my own daughter was pretty overwhelmed by the end of the week with all the activities and volleyball matches, >> but that's what the memories are going to be. >> Yep. Exactly. So, so it'll be good for I think both students and staff to to get back into it. So, all right. At that point, um, now we need to close our session to discuss negotiations. Um, now we don't close the meeting, right? We just close the it's just closed to to board members. So, um, are we going to stay here or go in the room? We'll go in the room next door. Okay. >> All

097right. >> So, is your first one the one that I need to fix? Stay on. >> Yeah. >> You know what? No, let's start with the others. That'll be easier to manage for you, >> Sharon. >> Yeah. Doug, >> we need a motion to close it. >> Yeah, I thought we did. >> I'll make a motion to close for negotiations. >> Okay. And I will second it. >> Okay. >> All in favor? >> I say it. >> Yeah. We don't >> just quickly sit here. No, please sit here. They're gonna go into there and discuss the negotiations and then they'll come back and then >> you can cost >> I don't attend this. >> If you want to, you can. Oh, normally if they have casting questions, I'm involved, but I don't need to. >>

098Yeah. >> Good. Then I'll stay right here. >> Okay. >> See if you don't >> And they know they have to record it. >> Yes. I already made sure that a little detached. There was one time we didn't record it. >> Oh, you can talk. I should be playing music. Yeah, it's so silent. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat up here. Heat. Heat. N. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Everything. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey, [Music] hey, [Music] hey. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat.

099Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. [Music] Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey. [Music] Hey. Hey. [Music] Heat. Hey, Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] down. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] I have lots of questions. Well, you can do that. That's your expertise. >> It's usually me. >> Yeah. Well, that's Well, that's your expertise. Yeah. >> All right. So, we need to open the meeting back up at 6:55. Okay. Any further business to come before the board? Hearing none. I'd like a motion to adjurnn. >> So move. >> Motion by Sharon. Second. I

100will second. Any further discussion? All in favor? >> I opposed. Motion carries. Thank you everyone. >> I saw you peeking at your calendars about October 14th.

This transcript may contain errors introduced by automated or source-provided captioning. Bracketed descriptions such as [Music] are retained from the source. Passage divisions are editorial aids and do not alter the wording.