Possible plans for donated church property

The Staunton School Board met in regular session on Mon- day, Sept. 26, and discussed the use of the church property and parsonage on North Frank- lin Street. The property was donated to the school district

earlier this year.

In order to use the buildings

safely, asbestos abatement will be necessary. The district will not be selling the property as of yet, as they may be able to utilize the land for the construc- tion of a pre-K campus.

In other business, the board recognized two students, Lucy Taylor and Riley Kessler, for their recent accomplishments. Lucy Taylor, a junior at SHS, was awarded national recogni- tion for her outstanding perfor- mance on the PSAT/NMSQT. Riley Kessler, an SHS senior and Staunton FFA chapter pres- ident, was elected by her peers in Section 15, which consists of delegates from 13 schools in Madison, Macoupin, and Montgomery counties, to serve as Section 15 FFA president. She was also elected as one of five FFA student directors in Il- linois, representing students en- rolled in Agriculture Education classes at 76 regional schools. This is the first time since 1992 that an SHS student has served as Section 15 president and the first time that an SHS student has served as District 3 student director.

Superintendent Brett Allen announced that the district had received a donation from Phil- lips 66 for repairs to the track; a donation from El Indio for the soccer program; and donations of school supplies and art supplies.

Allen gave the board updates on several financial matters, including grant proposals. He is currently finalizing numbers to apply for an early childhood education grant of up to $10 million. The district would be required to match up to $300,000. Allen did state that this grant is open to all early childhood education programs in the state of Illinois, so the prospects of receiving the grant are somewhat reduced. He also is applying for a maintenance grant of up to $50,000 in order to complete some Heath-Life- Safety projects. The district would be required to match any funds received from the grant.

Allen also addressed ques- tions from the public regarding free meals being provided to students in other districts. Dur- ing the COVID-19 pandemic, all students in Illinois received free meals from a state grant. As the health crisis continues to be resolved, that grant has expired and school districts are not all receiving that fund- ing. In order to receive that support, districts must have a certain percentage of students living below the poverty line. Staunton School District does not meet that requirement.

Elementary Principal Rachel Davis delivered her report to the board. She reported that The district needs at least 80 percent of students to test as proficient in reading, math and English language arts, which the students have exceeded. She hopes to see those numbers improve by another 3 percent. She also announced that the 3rd through 8th graders tested above the state average in math and English lan- guage arts.

In new business, the board passed the budget for FY 2023 as presented.

They approved Burn and Jones for resurfacing and repairs to the track.

They approved the volunteer application and approval process. Currently volunteers and substi- tute teachers submit an applica- tion, agree to a background check, and receive training with Principal Davis before being approved to work within the district. This process enables volunteers to be hired without the board having to convene in special session to ap- prove each individual application.

In the final order of new busi- ness, the board reviewed the facil- ity use policy.

Following closed session, the board accepted the resignations with thanks for their service of paraprofessional Abigail Pollard and bus driver Patricia Willmon. Custodian Mary Griffith was honorably dismissed with thanks for service. Both James Johnson and Richard Strauss were hired as part-time bus drivers for the school district. Clint Mansholt was hired as a full-time bus driver. And, Margie Barrett transitioned to a full-time bus driver/cafeteria cashier.

The Board of Education ap- proved salary increases, FSLA employee exemption statuses, and updated job descriptions for the executive secretary/food service coordinator, payroll/hu- man resources coordinator, and bookkeeper/financial coordinator. Additionally, action was taken on a Memorandum of Understand- ing to place school nurse Alisa Hughes on the certified staff sal- ary schedule after earning her professional educator license.

Present were Superintendent Brett Allen, High School Princi- pal Carrie Griffith, Elementary Principal Rachel Davis, Educa- tional Services Administrator Michael Kelly, and board mem- bers Jain, Legendre, Rhodes, Green, and Best. John Renner was absent.