On May 13, the Monroe School Board:
● Recognized Lamp of Learning Student Excellence Award and staff award recipients for April.
● Approved support staff retirement of Zonagale Schafer, a Northside Elementary School aide, and Beverly Steffes, a Parkside Elementary School custodian.
● Accepted the hiring of support staff, MHS custodians Brooke Foley and Andrew Campbell.
● Acknowledged the resignation of professional staff, including: Monroe Middle School physical education and health teacher Lisa Wunder; Monroe High School social studies teacher Matt Davis; Northside speech language and pathologist Melissa Durst; and Abraham Lincoln Elementary School Title 1 reading teacher Lisa Skeway.
● Accepted a $200 Washington D.C. trip scholarship from Brandt Construction, a $50 donation from Monroe United Methodist Church and a $500 donation from Monroe Noon Optimists and a $1,000 donation from Alliant Energy for the Backpack Buddies program, as well as a $300 Walmart gift card donated to an Abe Lincoln Elementary student in need of clothes and hygiene supplies.
● Authorized Phase 1 alternatives submitted by CG Schmidt for work at Parkside Elementary School for nearly $55,000 to include pendant lights, upgrades to ceiling tile for sound, exposure of the gymnasium ceilings and exposure of the east wall of the school cafeteria.
● Heard a report from Elementary Consolidation Committee members Theresa Robertson, Lisa Beach, Stephane Fletcher and Chris Soukup. They said the consensus of the group was to consolidate elementary schools; only two people voted to stay the same.
● Approved the replacement of interior locks in all school buildings for easy and quick lockdown of all rooms off of main corridors and hallways with nearly $72,000 in safety grant funding and roughly $13,000 in funds from the Long Term Maintenance Budget. Locks would be implemented over the summer months, installed by lowest proposed offer from LaForce Inc., a Madison-based door supplier and security integration company.
● Agreed to allow nearly $16,000 be used from the Long Term Maintenance Budget to replace a divider curtain in the auxiliary gymnasium at MHS which is difficult to raise and lower. H&B Specialized Products of Eden Prairie was chosen as the company to replace the curtain.
● Entered into a memorandum of understanding with the CESA 3 Carl Perkins Consortium to allow the district to receive nearly $16,000 in grant funding from the program.
● Accepted a $7,000 grant from Berbee Derby Foundation for the purchase of four 3D printers for elementary school makerspaces.
● Approved a proposal from masonry contractor B&B Quality Building Restoration of Fitchburg for $154,000 to clean up the outside of MMS, including caulk and paint on the exterior with washing of the limestone and other surfaces as well as replacement of the window sealants. The project, currently underway, should be completed by June 30.
● Authorized the purchase of a new pickup truck from Alphorn Ford for nearly $22,000 as recommended by the Finance Committee. Funds will be taken from the Long Term Maintenance Budget.
● Accepted the open enrollment students in for the 2019-20 school year, with the exception of one due to a lack of special education resources. Board members also accepted the outgoing open enrollments.
● Heard a proposal from District Administrator Rick Waski to hire a full-time library aide for Abe Lincoln Elementary, a part-time aide for the MHS library and reconfigure Performing Arts Center Director Jen Bochar’s position in light of the resignation of the former full-time Ave Lincoln aide and added stressors to Bochar’s job as both director and 20-hour library aide. Waski requested the decision on staffing be made June 3 to ensure vendor contracts are ready to start July 1.
— Bridget Cooke