Two county commissioners, three ISD 166 school board members, and five Grand Marais city councilors along with numerous public employees and interested community members met at City Hall Thursday, August 26, 2010 for their quarterly meeting of the minds. A few updates on city and county business were given, but the bulk of the meeting focused on issues related to the school.
School referendum
The school’s financial situation is “pretty bleak,” Superintendent Schwarz said. “We’re trying hard to live within our means.” The school’s budget is $886,000 less this year than it was four years ago. “We have made significant reductions over the last several years,” Schwarz said.
The state has begun delaying school funding instead of sending it at the beginning of the school year and is telling schools to plan on $1,000 less per pupil unit this year. Thestate budget is in big trouble, Schwarz said. “It’s very, very scary right now,” she said.
More than 300 Minnesota school districts have operating referenda right now, Schwarz said. Only about 40 do not. ISD166 is proposing a five-year operating levy. “We’re talking about survival here,” Schwarz said. “We’re talking about sustaining our current programming.”
The superintendent addressed the question of whether the school should continue to budget for athletics. A lot of community groups are underwriting the costs, such as the Cook County Ski & Run Club, the Cook County Tennis Association, the Booster Club, and even the Class of 1960, which paid for watering the football field this summer. Athletics cost no more than $112,000 a year, Schwarz said, and to lose athletics would be to lose students.
Achievement scores
Schwarz brought up a concern regarding a gap in student performance on Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) tests between two sets of students in the district. Countywide, 70% of students whose family incomes either do not qualify for the free or reduced lunch program or do not fill out the paperwork that would identify them as qualifying pass the math MCAs. Only 40% of those who do qualify and whose families fill out the paperwork pass the tests. This achievement gap is not unique to Cook County, however, Schwarz said.
The gap between the two groups on the reading tests was 22% this year, with a passing rate of about 80% among those who don’t qualify for free or reduced lunch and a passing rate of about 60% among those who do qualify.
Schwarz said she would like to engage the entire community in narrowing this gap. “We really, really want to address this collaboratively,” she said.
State officials want to see these gaps closed by third grade. To do this, Schwarz would like “quality” preschool programs for all kids under age five. Birch Grove is moving toward a four-day-a-week allday preschool, she said, and she believes Grand Marais and Grand Portage need this, too.
Schwarz would also like to have a coordinator who could diagnose learning challenges with individual students and identify strategies that school personnel could implement.
Another intervention Schwarz envisions is a two-week summer program incorporating reading, math, and science in an outdoor adventure format.
“There’s a segment of the population that we are not reaching,” Schwarz said. Putting them in a classroom and doing the same thing as always is not working, she said.
Commissioner Jim Johnson said he would like to see creative ideas that could make use of readily available resources such as peer tutors and cooperative learning. During his 10 years as a schoolteacher, he allowed his students to have open discussions during tests, enabling them to help each other learn.
Involving children in enrichment activities can help them do better in school, Schwarz said, but finding the money, time, and motivation to do this is difficult for some parents. “This county is becoming a county of haves and have nots,” she said.
Community Center director Diane Booth said she has worked at the Community Center for 17 years and has never seen so many kids get dropped off there with a lunch every day. Parents cannot afford to send their kids to kids’ programs and daycare while they work, she said, and they might be lacking transportation for their kids as well.
Bullying
An update on the issue of bullying in the schools turned into a discussion on public civility. Superintendent Schwarz expressed frustration that community members have called their county commissioners with concerns about bullying in the school rather than calling her. “If people have an issue with the schools, please, please, please bring it to me,” she said.
Diane Booth said that at the July Cook County Extension meeting, the issue of respect and role modeling came up in regard to the adult community. “Sometimes we’re not as polite as we could be,” she said. She suggested that bullying in the schools might be a symptom of broader issues.
“Retaliation” is much more violent in entertainment media, said Commissioner Fritz Sobanja, than it was when they watched Woody Woodpecker cartoons. He suggested that they consider holding community meetings to discuss the issue.
City councilor Kay Costello said she’s attended a lot of meetings in the last year and a half in which adults have not treated each other civilly.
“We can all try to lead by example in the best ways we can,” said Mayor Sue Hakes.
Commissioner Sobanja suggested utilizing forgiveness and knowing when to “quit and let it go.”
Other topics discussed at the joint meeting attended by elected officials and employees of the county, the
City of Grand Marais, and ISD166 on August 26 included the following:
City burn pile
Mayor Sue Hakes reported that the city has conducted at least a half dozen brush pile burns this year. Because of some complaints about the smoke and healthrelated effects on people such as those in the hospital and care center, a public hearing is being planned. “We try to be really careful,” City Councilor Tim Kennedy said. “We try to burn when the weather conditions are right.”
Commissioner Fritz Sobanja said he has been keeping records for a couple of years on the amount of brush in the city pile so that it could be used in determining possible fuel sources for a biomass-fueled heat and electrical plant. Mayor Sue Hakes said the pile gets big “really fast.”
“We welcome your ideas,” Hakes said to the other officials, “because we’re looking for a solution.”
1% tax projects
Mayor Hakes said the community center committee is moving toward hiring a company to manage the construction project. They still don’t know exactly what they will build and where it will be, although they do know it will be somewhere between the present community center and the school. They are not sure what their maintenance budget will be, but they know the community must be able to afford operating costs, she said.
ISD 166 superintendent Beth Schwarz said the school is open to the possibility of attaching the new facility to the school.
School board member Leonard Sobanja expressed concern over ongoing operating costs and pointed out that the school district doesn’t have any extra money to help fund a community center. “I look at the building as a resource for the community,” City Councilor Bill Lenz said. The school building was built for 800 students, he said, and enrollment is now down to about 460.
Schwarz said the committee is trying to hire local contractors whenever possible. Mayor Hakes said, “We have this gift of 1%. Let’s try to keep it here.” Current community center director Diane Booth said she is making a list of local contractors and trades people. She is interested in getting input on people who could be added to that list.
“It’s really exciting,” said Mayor Hakes.
City councilor Kay Costello reported that the library is going over bids from architectural firms for the library addition. Commissioner Fritz Sobanja said the addition they are considering now is half the cost of the addition recommended by a consultant.
Commissioner Jim Johnson reported that the city, county, and EDA would be meeting to discuss management of Superior National golf course in Lutsen. He also said a grant is being pursued for a feasibility study regarding a biomass-fueled heating plant in Grand Marais.
Fritz Sobanja summed up the discussion by saying that $29 million worth of projects have been identified for the county sales and use tax, which by statute can collect $20 million plus the cost of bonding. They need to figure out where the rest of the money will come from.
Commissioner Jim Johnson said 1% tax project consultant Mike Fischer believed the 1% could be leveraged to get the rest of the money needed. Matching funds could be one source of additional funding, he said.
Leave a Reply