MONROE — As the calendar year winds down, the School District of Monroe Board of Education (BOE) continues chugging along. At their latest meeting on Nov. 27, the BOE picked an HVAC contractor for its Abraham Lincoln Elementary School project, as well as received updates on academics, the high school project, and staff and student performance honors.
Three board members were also reminded of the upcoming election on April 2, 2024. Jim Curran, Teresa Keehn and Phil Vosberg are all up for re-election. They have until 5 p.m. on Dec. 22 to file written notification if they are not seeking re-election. Any School District of Monroe resident choosing to run for a seat on the BOE must file their candidacy papers by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024. Candidacy papers can be picked up and turned in at the District Administrative Center, located on the third floor of the Monroe Public Library (925 16th Ave).
The board unanimously picked North American Mechanical, Inc. (NAMI) out of Windsor, near DeForest, for the Abe Lincoln HVAC project. The other contractor debated was 1901 Inc. out of Madison, but the up front and potential costs were too high for the board to consider further. NAMI gave the board three potential options: Good, better and best.
The total costs of both the “better” and “best” came in higher than the $3.4 million allotted to the entire project — and didn’t include costs for other portions of the project, like ADA-compliant restrooms, new lighting and ceiling work. Replacing the gym floor is also in the long-term maintenance budget. The “good” option allowed for all parts of the project to be completed within budget — potentially even the gym floor. The point/counterpoint and Devil’s Advocate debate between board members was rousing. Ultimately, the amount of money that could be saved to the district each year due to efficiency — about $3,000-$4,000 a year — would take several decades to come close to the return on investment of the costs of the “better” or “best” projects.
“We would also like to address new lights, new ceilings, re-do all the bathrooms,” said Ron Olson, Monroe Business Administrator. “The base HVAC system allows us to accomplish all of those things. If we go with one of the more expensive options, then the question then becomes, ‘What don’t we do, or where do we come up with the additional funds?’”
The high school project updates were less interesting. User groups are meeting with designers, contractors and administration for the second and third rounds, though most of the project is still in the conceptualization phase. The 70-acres was annexed into the city the week prior, and the DNR permitting process is ongoing for the frontage road from County KK to the northeast corner of the campus. The raw data from the core sampling has been completed, but the final report won’t be ready for another week or two. Club Earth, a student organization with a focus on renewable energy, was set to give a presentation to the designers, contractors and administration on Nov. 30, according to Ruby Sheaffer, student liaison to the board.
Todd Paradis, Director of Curriculum & Instruction, gave the board an update on the recent Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) report cards that came out earlier this month.
“We saw some good progress, but we’re really excited about this year’s work,” Paradis said. “Last year was about setting up the system for this year.”
Four of Monroe’s five buildings saw growth from the previous year, and the district’s report card on a whole rose moderately. However, the real positivity came from the growth of its target group — the bottom 25% of students.
“Reading the district comparison data is striking. To go from the 10th percentile and the 13th percentile to the 35th and 40th — that is a massive jump. Congratulations, number one. I would have to imagine that would put us in the top districts for how much we improved, at least relative to other districts in these two categories,” Curran said.
“I agree with you, Jim. Those numbers are huge,” said board member Terri Montgomery, Paradis’ predecessor from 2014-21.
The district this year has expanded its efforts to target students at risk of falling behind.
“It is a big jump in both of those areas, and we are pretty excited about it. I feel like there are some things that we are just getting in place this year that I think will have a big impact in both of those areas in next year’s report cards,” Paradis said. “We’re serving a lot more students with ELA and math in comparison to last year. A lot more kids are getting support in those areas, and there is some really good work happening.”
“I’m just struck,” Curran added. “Every district is experiencing the same thing that we’re experiencing, and to jump from the third percentile two years ago in our target group to almost the 50th percentile, that is a significant jump. … The rate of improvement, specifically for our bottom 25%, who else is growing at that rate? I would guess there are very few districts that could have grown more over the past two years.”
Other information items presented to the board included:
● Amy Garwell, special education instructor, and Bryan Rundhaug, Northside physical education, were nominated for the Most Valuable Educator Award by TDS and the Green Bay Packers.
● The Monroe High School’s one-act play won several awards at the Nov. 17 state performance, including the third-straight Critics Choice Gold, which is the top honor in the state. Other awards from the competition: Outstanding Ensemble, Outstanding Technical Theater, Outstanding Direction (Jennifer Bochar), Outstanding Acting (Megan Deprez), Outstanding Acting Individual (Lian Truong), Outstanding Acting Individual (Sam Wolf).