Cook County Independent School District 166 will have some new faces this fall. School Counselor Bryan Hackbarth submitted his resignation this summer and has taken a job as assistant principal at the Cass Lake-Bena Area Learning Center in Cass Lake. Whether he will be replaced by a fulltime school counselor is unknown.
This spring, the school board had considered eliminating the school counselor position, but after a huge showing of support for Hackbarth which included testimonies regarding how he had helped students and kept them engaged in school, his job was retained.
On June 20, 2013, the school board gave Superintendent Beth Schwarz the go-ahead to work with Cook County Higher Education and the Human Development Center on providing services to ISD 166, possibly in combination with a part-time school counselor.
Superintendent Schwarz told the Cook County News-Herald that Cook County Higher Education could help Cook County High School students with things such as preparing for ACTs, college coursework through the state’s Post Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO), and entering the work force.
The Human Development Center (HDC) may be available to provide mental health services for district students and their families at the school. This last school year, HDC employee Jade Woltmann provided social-skill-building lessons in elementary classrooms and worked with individual students having behavioral issues at school. In addition, therapists were available to meet with students at the school. Superintendent Schwarz said HDC has not been able to say for sure what they would be able to provide for the district this next school year.
Hackbarth was qualified for the new 6-12 principal position but did not apply for it.
In the meantime, ISD 166 is advertising for a licensed school counselor but is open to applications from professionals qualified in other related areas. “We’re really investigating our options,” Schwarz said. She said the district would be trying to get the best services they can get at the best possible price.
Other staff changes are taking place as well. Sixth grade math and science teacher and girls’ basketball coach Todd Toulouse resigned to take a job as dean of students at Little Falls Community Middle School. His position has not yet been filled.
Filling the vacancies left by the retirement of teachers Dena Schliep and Joan Ege will be Lacey Smith, teaching kindergarten, and Karen Obinger, teaching second grade.
A posting by Gwen Carman on the ISD 166 facebook page states that Obinger taught second grade in Eden Prairie for over 25 years and has been spending summers in Lutsen where she and her husband have a home.
Smith is a Cook County High School graduate and has been teaching early grades for six years in Arizona and Minnesota. “She is our first teacher who is nationally board certified,” Carman wrote. “This is a very rigorous process which enables her to be licensed in all states.”
The new district office administrative assistant is Erika Ternes, who will continue to coordinate student testing as the district’s data coordinator. A test proctor will be hired so she can be in the district office full-time. Her new position will take the place of the one vacated by Lori Backlund, who is now the district finance administrative assistant.
With the district going back to two principals, Principal Gwen Carman will return to her previous job as PreK-5 principal, and Adam Nelson will be moving up from Red Wing to fill the 6-12 principal position.
Melissa Oberg has been hired as a middle school special education teacher. Special ed teacher Larry Dean is moving down to the elementary level. Also continuing as special ed teachers are Monica Schnobrich and Bruce Johnson.
Due to small class sizes and financial constraints, Spanish teacher Kristen Carlsgaard’s position was reduced to a .69 FTE, or 69 percent of full-time.
The board approved the resignation of maintenance worker Kay Groth with appreciation. Part-time maintenance workers have been hired for summer projects, but in the fall either one or two full-time positions will be advertised to replace Groth and Nick Lundgren, who resigned in late spring. Superintendent Schwarz was not yet sure what would be needed now that the YMCA will be occupying the new facility that used to be the west wing of the school.
Other summer help includes Community Education’s summer kids camp assistants Sarah Fagerman and Julie Nelson and summertime credit recovery supervisor Jill Erickson.
Community Education programs
In response to a question regarding what programs Community Education will retain as the Cook County Community YMCA rolls out its programming, Superintendent Schwarz said indoor recreational programs such as indoor adult open-gym volleyball, basketball, and tennis may switch over to the YMCA. She expects Early Childhood Family Education (ECFE) to continue as a Community Education program, as well as outdoor recreational programs such as kids’ baseball and soccer.
Schwarz said the district and the Y would be working out a user agreement that will outline which entity will run which programs. The agreement could allow Community Ed to schedule a certain number of hours of facility use, she said.
Who will be running the indoor adult open gym activities is unknown at this time. “We did have security issues with open gym and are looking at the program in its entirety at this time,” Schwarz said.
School renovations
As of July 1, Superintendent Schwarz was waiting for one more quote to come in for renovations to the high school, which will include some classroom soundproofing, subdivision of the Upper Shore Center for Athletics & Fitness area into classroom spaces, and changes to the high school office area to accommodate both district and PreK- 12 offices.
The project was not big enough to require a formal bidding process.
The Upper Shore Center for Athletics & Fitness is now under YMCA auspices and will be housed in the Arrowhead Center for the Arts until the YMCA facility is complete.
Taconite funds
Extra funds for 15 Arrowhead school districts resulting from an increase in taconite production have been frozen pending legislative review. This year, the state legislature authorized the funding for districts within taconite relief or assistance areas to be used for “building projects, such as energy efficiency, technology, infrastructure, health, safety, and maintenance improvements,” according to HF677, which authorizes the Iron Range Resource & Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) to issue $38,000,000 in bonds to cover the grants to schools.
Superintendent Schwarz met June 12 with other superintendents and the IRRRB. “It was clear at the meeting that the intent of the bill was meant to focus on technology infrastructure and addressing needs for districts which would potentially increase taxes,” she wrote in a memo to the school board. “The funding is meant to keep northeast Minnesota schools strong while preventing excessive taxing of local property owners.”
The affected school districts came to agreement over how much each district should get, but legislators have not. ISD 166 was slated to receive $1,321,866.
Athletic schedules
The Supplemental Activities Team consisting of faculty, administration, and community members has been re-assembled to address a concern that was raised regarding the scheduling of athletic practices and games.
According to Superintendent Schwarz, a community member wrote a letter to some of the school board members saying athletic scheduling has caused difficulties related to transportation on four-day school weeks and traditions such as church youth group on Wednesday evenings.
Social studies curriculum
The board approved a new social studies curriculum recommended by the Social Studies Curriculum Committee. Mitch Dorr and David Lichty’s classes will use mainly computerized versions of their new textbooks, although a set of regular textbooks will be available for students who need them.
The elementary classrooms will use a combination of regular textbooks and e-books.
The new format will enable information to be updated. It will also make some backpacks quite a bit lighter.
New school board location
The school board will now be meeting in the Arrowhead Center for the Arts. Its next meeting will be at 4:45 p.m. Thursday, August 1.
Getting ready for the new school year
. 2013-14 class lists will be posted online and at school on Friday, August 23.
. Back-to-school orientation and open house will be held late afternoon on Thursday, August 29 (time yet to be determined).
. Suggested elementary school supply lists are under the Sawtooth Elementary link on the district website at www.cookcountyschools.org.
Leave a Reply