This portion of the meeting will satisfy our requirements of holding an Annual Truth in Taxation meeting.  Mr. Keller will present information on our current year budget and our proposed school district property taxes for the 2014 tax year. 
Our proposed levy is set to increase by $192,136.36 - or 4.32% after we eliminated our levy for Other Post Employment Benefits levy of $169,333.

Our early learning programs - early childhood special education (ECSE), early childhood family education (ECFE), school readiness (SR) and preschool - have been meeting throughout the fall with the purpose of transitioning our programs to a more seamless model that will better serve students and families.
Representatives from those areas will be present to discuss their proposal with the board.  There are numerous informational documents attached to this agenda item.  Please make every effort to review them prior to the meeting.

I have asked to high school teachers, Allison Jacobson and Justin Johnston, to present information about Schoology to the board.  Schoology is an online learning management system (LMS) for teachers and students that helps to organize homework assignments and other materials online.
Mrs. Jacobson and Mr. Johnston will give an overview of the program and also discuss specific ways that they use the program in their specific classes.

James Ford, auditor with the Eide Bailly auditing firm, will be present to share information about the most recent audit completed of the school district's finances.  This report will be brought forward to the regular December meeting for approval.
When we receive an electronic copy of the audit, it will be added to this agenda item as an attachment.  We expect to receive the full document some time on Monday.

As we explore the possibility of moving toward a 1 to 1 environment within our schools, one of the topics of discussion is a transition from our current textbooks to an online curriculum/textbook that students would have available to them 24/7.  MN Partnership for Collaborative Curriculum is a consortium of Minnesota school districts working on developing electronic textbooks based on the required state standards.
I will present some information about the consortium, the cost & benefits of becoming a member, what projects they are currently working on, etc..

We will review the following policy revisions that have been recommended by MSBA.  The five policies to be reviewed are:  603 - Curriculum Development; 604 - Instructional Curriculum; 605 - Alternative Programs (this is a first reading of this policy); 606 - Textbooks and Instructional Materials; 707 - Transportation of Public School Students.  I have attached copies of the current district policy and the revised version recommended by MSBA.  Let me know if you have any questions regarding these changes.

Discussion regarding Board/Administration Planning session dates.

Monday, Dec 23   -    5:30 Finance Committee Mtg.
                                  6:00 Regular Board Mtg.
Monday, Jan 6     -    6:00 School Board Organizational Meeting
January ?????     -    1:00 p.m. to 8 p.m.  School Board/Administration
                                  Planning Retreat