MONROE - At a meeting Monday, the Monroe school board:
• Approved the addition of Orangeville to the hockey co-op next year with Monroe, Albany, Belleville, Beloit Turner, Darlington, Freeport, Freeport Aquin, Lena-Winslow, New Glarus, Parkview and Pecatonica. Monroe Athletic Director Dave Hirsbrunner said two Orangeville students will likely join the team next year and more the following year. The team had 11 members this year. After Monroe and Orangeville school boards approve the addition, the Badger Conference has to approve and submit the change to the WIAA.
• Recognized Lisa Schumacher, LMC specialist at Abraham Lincoln Accelerated Learning Center, as the winner of the February Lamp of Learning Staff Excellence Award.
• Accepted the resignations of support staff member John Burdick, Northside Elementary custodian, and instructional staff members Laurie Plourde, Monroe High School counselor, and Mike Jones, Abe Lincoln special education teacher.
• Received an update on the Fab Four/Instructional Priorities. Director of Curriculum and Instruction Terri Montgomery said the district lumped November, December and January together in its goal of having administrators observe each teacher at least once per month in a "quick visit" because those months were heavy with Educator Effectiveness duties, which left them with less time to visit classrooms. "Quick visits" reached 76 percent for the three months, Montgomery said. All of the Fab Four instructional priorities were above their 60 percent goal, she said, and all except for one improved since the last update.
• Heard an update about the Monroe Public Library from Director Suzann Holland. Holland said she has gotten "tremendously positive comments" about the recent renovations. The library is planning further renovations, Holland said, including work on the staircase and bathrooms. As for current projects, she noted the new youth services director, who replaced Kris Ault when she retired last year, has allowed the library to expand its bilingual offerings.
"We're very happy with out selection," Holland said of the youth director.
She also said the Book A Tech Tutor service is helping to fill a need in the community for basic computer and tech education. The appointments are one-on-one and usually last about an hour. In its first month, the program gave 26 tutoring sessions, according to Holland.
• Chose Custofoam Corporation, as the lowest bidder, to complete the Parkside Elementary roof project for a total of $90,000. The project was budgeted through long-term maintenance.
• Awarded board member Michael Boehme with a Wisconsin Association of School Boards Recognition. For his participation in certain WASB activities, he attained a Level 1 recognition.
• Accepted donations of $1,000 from Colony Brands for the Monroe Middle School math team; a $1,000 grant from the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation and other donations from Voegeli Landscaping, Mark and Katie Dickson and an anonymous donor, all for the Abe Lincoln Garden Project; and $500 from Olin Oil Company for math and science materials at Northside.
• Went into closed session.
School board member Amy Bazley was absent.
MONROE - At a meeting Monday, the Monroe school board's finance committee:
• Approved the purchase of Forecast5 Analytics, a data analysis tool, for $7,000. The tool "will save a considerable amount of staff time," according to District Business Administrator Ron Olson.
- Susan Endres
• Approved the addition of Orangeville to the hockey co-op next year with Monroe, Albany, Belleville, Beloit Turner, Darlington, Freeport, Freeport Aquin, Lena-Winslow, New Glarus, Parkview and Pecatonica. Monroe Athletic Director Dave Hirsbrunner said two Orangeville students will likely join the team next year and more the following year. The team had 11 members this year. After Monroe and Orangeville school boards approve the addition, the Badger Conference has to approve and submit the change to the WIAA.
• Recognized Lisa Schumacher, LMC specialist at Abraham Lincoln Accelerated Learning Center, as the winner of the February Lamp of Learning Staff Excellence Award.
• Accepted the resignations of support staff member John Burdick, Northside Elementary custodian, and instructional staff members Laurie Plourde, Monroe High School counselor, and Mike Jones, Abe Lincoln special education teacher.
• Received an update on the Fab Four/Instructional Priorities. Director of Curriculum and Instruction Terri Montgomery said the district lumped November, December and January together in its goal of having administrators observe each teacher at least once per month in a "quick visit" because those months were heavy with Educator Effectiveness duties, which left them with less time to visit classrooms. "Quick visits" reached 76 percent for the three months, Montgomery said. All of the Fab Four instructional priorities were above their 60 percent goal, she said, and all except for one improved since the last update.
• Heard an update about the Monroe Public Library from Director Suzann Holland. Holland said she has gotten "tremendously positive comments" about the recent renovations. The library is planning further renovations, Holland said, including work on the staircase and bathrooms. As for current projects, she noted the new youth services director, who replaced Kris Ault when she retired last year, has allowed the library to expand its bilingual offerings.
"We're very happy with out selection," Holland said of the youth director.
She also said the Book A Tech Tutor service is helping to fill a need in the community for basic computer and tech education. The appointments are one-on-one and usually last about an hour. In its first month, the program gave 26 tutoring sessions, according to Holland.
• Chose Custofoam Corporation, as the lowest bidder, to complete the Parkside Elementary roof project for a total of $90,000. The project was budgeted through long-term maintenance.
• Awarded board member Michael Boehme with a Wisconsin Association of School Boards Recognition. For his participation in certain WASB activities, he attained a Level 1 recognition.
• Accepted donations of $1,000 from Colony Brands for the Monroe Middle School math team; a $1,000 grant from the Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation and other donations from Voegeli Landscaping, Mark and Katie Dickson and an anonymous donor, all for the Abe Lincoln Garden Project; and $500 from Olin Oil Company for math and science materials at Northside.
• Went into closed session.
School board member Amy Bazley was absent.
MONROE - At a meeting Monday, the Monroe school board's finance committee:
• Approved the purchase of Forecast5 Analytics, a data analysis tool, for $7,000. The tool "will save a considerable amount of staff time," according to District Business Administrator Ron Olson.
- Susan Endres