December 8, 2025 at 7:00 PM - December 2025 Regular Board Meeting

Public Content:  I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Public Content:  In order that the board may focus the majority of its time upon those items which deal with the educational endeavors of the school district and/or policy level decisions, but with recognition of its legal requirement to be
responsible for those aspects of governance and management required by statute and regulation, the board will consider the approval of a number of routine items listed on the consent agenda with a consolidated motion. Board members have the opportunity to review these items prior to each meeting and specific questions can be answered at that time. Any board member who wishes to discuss one of the items on the consent agenda may request it be scheduled as a discussion item and it will be discussed during its regularly scheduled time on the agenda.

Public Content:  Minutes are submitted for any special, linkage or regular meeting that has taken place since the last regular meeting.

Public Content:  Minutes are submitted for any special, linkage or regular meeting that has taken place since the last regular meeting.

Public Content:  Minutes are submitted for any special, linkage or regular meeting that has taken place since the last regular meeting.

Public Content: 

NEW HIRE/CONTRACT
NAME	ASSIGNMENT	BUILDING	EFFECTIVE DATE	STATUS
Burris, Steve	Bus Driver - Reg. Route	District-Wide	12/15/2025	New Hire
Burton, Dawson	Head Softball Coach	BHS	1/5/2026	New Hire
Glover, Emma	243 Paraprofessional	WES	1/6/2026	New Hire
Gunlock, Kaydence	243 Paraprofessional	Lebo HS	1/6/2026	New Hire
Whitworth, Charlie	Asst. Baseball Coach	BHS	3/3/2026	New Hire
TRANSFERS
NAME	ASSIGNMENT	BUILDING	EFFECTIVE DATE	STATUS
Henson, Michelle	Paraprofessional to BELC Instructor	BHS to BELC	12/1/2025	Transfer
RESIGNATIONS
NAME	ASSIGNMENT	BUILDING	EFFECTIVE DATE	STATUS
Hegwald, Sydney	244 Paraprofessional	BES	11/25/2025	Resignation
Laird, Andrew	244 Paraprofessional	BHS	12/19/2025	Resignation
TERMINATIONS
NAME	ASSIGNMENT	BUILDING	EFFECTIVE DATE	STATUS
Bechtel, Alice	244 Paraprofessional	BES	11/11/2025	Termination
BOE APPROVED and WITHDRAWL
NAME	ASSIGNMENT	BUILDING	EFFECTIVE DATE	STATUS

Public Content: 

DONATIONS
DONOR	AMOUNT/ITEM	DESIGNATION
Coffey County Commissioners	$                       15,000.00	Burlington Early Learning Center

Public Content:  The Board of Education wishes to be responsive to the community and welcomes patrons at all meetings.  Requests to speak may be made when the board president asks if any visitors have items to bring to the attention of the board. Speakers are asked to limit their remarks to five (5) minutes or less and groups with the same special interest may be asked to appoint a spokesperson. 

Public Content:  A "Thank You" card was received from BMS for the meat and cheese trays, and the coffee bar provided to staff during American Education Appreciation Week.

A note of appreciation was received from Paul Rust for the treat provided to staff during American Education Appreciation Week.

Public Content:  Results policy R-1 deals with the board’s expectations of students concerning academic skills.  The indicators for measuring progress toward meeting this end are noted in colored font.  This policy and indicators state:

Academic Skills  R-1
All students will demonstrate a strong foundation in academic skills by working toward excellence in:

• Mathematics (KS Assessments, MAP Math total and subtests, ACT trends in Math, advanced math enrollment)
• Reading  (KS Assessments, MAP Reading total and subtests, ACT trends in Reading)
• Writing  (KS Writing Assessment, MAP Language Arts total and subtests, ACT trends in English)
• Science (KS Assessments, advanced science enrollment)
• Social Studies (KS Assessments)
• Communication Skills (KS Assessment, MAP Language Arts total and subtests)

To ensure academic success of our students, students must take responsibility for their own learning, evaluate personal progress toward learning goals, effectively solve problems, and apply academic knowledge to practical situations.

The administrative team will present information to the board concerning our current status in the above area.  Their presentation will include results from the state assessments of reading, writing and communication achievement and the ACT test at BHS.

Public Content:  Board members may share information at this time.

Public Content:  The Board is working with KASB to finalize interview questions and the schedule for each interview day. Important event dates include the following:

DATES	EVENTS
10/13/2025	The board approved the retirement request of Superintendent Craig Marshall, effective June 30, 2026
11/5/2025	The board publicly announced its intention to conduct a Superintendent Search with the help of KASB.
11/5/2025	Marketing materials were developed collaboratively with the district to announce the opening officially and to provide details about the application process. Job listings were posted with the National Association of Superintendent Searches, the School Superintendent Association, K12JobSpot and on the KASB website.
11/10-11/20/2025	An online survey was distributed to stakeholders before the characteristics committee meetings.
11/20/2025	KASB met with "superintendent characteristics committee(s)" to identify suggested characteristics of the new superintendent. The search consultant met with the board to gather their input regarding desired characteristics.
1/19/2026	Completed applications are due to KASB.
1/22/2026	The board will meet to hear the screening committee's report. KASB’s practice is to present three to five names and one alternate to the board. After the board has deliberated on the finalists, the board president should call the candidates to schedule an interview. (A suggested interview schedule will be provided.)  - Special BOE Meeting - Executive Session
1/26-1/30/2026	The board will schedule interviews. KASB strongly recommends that no more than one candidate be interviewed daily. Interviews should be scheduled as soon after the screening as possible.

Public Content:  Annually, we study the program costs and projected revenues from the state. Below is the study of the program that was used to determine the costs for the program:

1. Instructor Preparation (14 hours- parent letters, parent meeting, DE99 forms,

physical forms, driving schedule, vehicle schedule, and lesson plans)

2. Classroom Instruction- (30 hours/student; this is a mandate)
   1. Two instructors will be used because of the volume of students. One is full-time time and then two are part-time. This model may need to be adjusted due to staffing challenges.  This makes the total FTE of teachers 2.
3. Driving Time- (10 hours/student) Some students could demonstrate that they are proficient and test out around the 3-5 hours. Six hours of drive time and four hours of ride time instruction would be the maximum. If a student cannot demonstrate the ability to pass the skills after 10 hours, he/she will not pass the course.
4. Fuel, maintenance, labor costs- the bus barn staff must maintain the vehicles that we use for driver's education. Fuel costs could increase or decrease by the time we start in May.

In the summer of 2025, our student numbers were 36. In the previous years, we have averaged about 35 to 45 students/year. Annually, the state retains half of the funds generated by a fee associated with Kansas drivers’ licenses. The district received $5760.00 in 2025.  The District received this payment from the state in October.

Our staff places a lot of emphasis on students practicing prior to enrolling in the program with our parents at a mandatory parent meeting. This practice has helped decrease the amount of drive time each student needs to complete the course successfully. The instructors open the student sign-up in January, and parent meetings will begin in April.
 

Est. Summer 2026 Program Costs	Cost/Student
Instructor Prep - 14 hrs. x $30/hr. = $420/35	$                12.00
Classroom Instruction - 60 hrs. x $30/hr. = $1,800 plus benefits = $2,897/35 students	$                87.22
Drive Time - 10 hrs. x $30	$                   3.00
Classroom Aides - $100/35 students	$                   2.86
Fuel/Maintenance/Insurance - $2000/35 students	$                57.14
TOTAL Est. 2026 OPERATING COST per STUDENT	$              454.77
State Revenue per Student	$            (160.00)
Difference (2026 in-district student fee)	$              294.77

Currently, the district has $22,653.83 in the Driver Training Fund. Driver Education, like our 21st Century After School Program, is offered as a supplemental service to district patrons. Since planning for the summer 2026 program will begin early in the second semester, the board is asked to approve the fees. Based on the potential revenues versus the expenses and the efficiency of our staff, the recommendation is $140 per resident student and $340 for non-resident students for the summer of 2026, which is an increase of $20/student.
 

Public Content:  USD #244 received two bids for the summer 2026 concrete projects.  Bids were submitted by Burlington Construction Inc. and Koehn Construction, LLC out of Fredonia, Kansas.  The projects were bid according to the information below:

PROJECT	Burlington Construction	Koehn Construction
1	$                             6,770.56	$                          10,235.00
2	$                                 749.76	$                             4,455.00
3	$                             1,908.48	$                             6,730.00
4	$                             1,431.36	$                             6,312.00
5	$                           15,336.00	$                          16,797.00
6	$                           16,294.50	$                          15,967.00
7	$                             6,645.60	$                             8,364.00
8	$                             2,556.00	$                          14,089.00
9	$                             1,661.40	$                             7,360.00
10	$                           17,968.68	$                          14,829.00
11	$                             8,153.64	$                             8,499.00
12	$                           17,099.64	$                          13,857.00
13	$                             2,185.38	$                             6,953.00
14	$                             4,242.96	$                             9,357.00
15	$                         129,218.44	$                        113,840.00
16	$                           65,925.56	$                          45,926.00
TOTAL	$                         298,147.96	$                        303,570.00

 

Public Content:  BHS Principal Lee Baldwin presented the proposed changes to the Board in his October 2025 Board Report.  The changes will go into effect at the beginning of the second semester, January 5, 2026.

Public Content:  The following language will be added to the BELC Parent Handbook:

Tuition Payment Policy
If a family’s account balance reaches a past-due amount equivalent to two weeks of tuition and payment has not been received by the due date, a written notice of delinquency will be issued. Families will be granted one week from the date of notice to remit payment in full and restore their account to a zero balance. Failure to satisfy the outstanding balance within the specified time frame may result in termination of childcare services until the account is paid in full. To avoid interruption of services, families are strongly encouraged to enroll in autopay through Brightwheel.
 

Public Content:  What portions of the meeting were especially meaningful to the board?

What portions could benefit from change or modification in the future to allow the board to retain its focus on board's results?