Facility Improvements Set At HHS And Hulet School

“At the high school we are looking to remove some of the damaged sidewalk in the quad area. The sidewalks have deteriorated over the years due to standing water as a result of poor drainage and limited sun exposure,” he noted.

“We are currently working with a civil engineer to improve the drainage so that new sidewalks won’t experience the same fate. In addition, we are rerouting water that runs off the north side of the roofs with gutters to the south side of the building to reduce water flow to the area, which will assist in the proper drainage. The north sides of the buildings have a hard time thawing out in the winter, too, so this will also fix a safety concern of ice in the quad area,” he stated, noting that in addition to the cement repairs, the school will be bringing one of the ramps to a classroom into Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliancy.

According to Jacobs, the total estimated cost for that project will be approximately $25,000, all paid by the SFB through a building renewal grant.

A second project that will be addressed is at Hulet Elementary School, where the district is working with engineers to replace six coolers that service six classrooms, as well as four units servicing the multi-purpose/cafeteria building.

“The current evaporative cooling units have deteriorated over time and the water basins have completely corroded,” explained Jacobs. “Additionally, the existing Trane units were incredibly hard to maintain, requiring near complete dismantling to access the working components. The six classroom units will be custom built and fabricated by a metal works company in the Valley, and will be fitted to work with the remaining heat side of the Trane units.”

The four units on the multi-purpose room will be replaced entirely and before replacement, some repairs will be made to the roof where the units are mounted. Jacobs estimates that the total cost for that project will be $100,000, again all paid by the SFB through a building renewal grant.

In other business Feb. 10, the board:

* Approved for 60-day review several books for use in the Holbrook Junior High School English Department, including Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne, The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells, Baree: The Story of a Wolf Dog by James Oliver Curwood, Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain, Moby Dick by Herman Melville and Scorpions by Walter Dean Myers. All these books will be used in the HJHS Pre-AP English courses to help students read at higher lexile levels.

* Approved for 60-day review an online careers program called The Real Game for the HJHS Career Department. This curriculum allows students to navigate through personal and career choices to better prepare for post-secondary readiness.

* Approved for 60-day review Spalding Phonics- The Writing Road to Reading, a supplemental phonics program for grades K-3 at Indian Wells Elementary School.

* Approved the revised 2014 annual financial report.

* Authorized the board president to sign the letter of declaration for a line of credit with Wells Fargo.

* Authorized acceptance of the Building Communities that Support Children’s Reading (BCSCR) grant offered through Three River Education Foundations to Park Elementary School. This is a two-year, federally funded project to improve literacy for children in grades K-12 in low socioeconomic school districts. Park School will receive 32 books of various titles at the value of $628.69. These books will be added to the school’s library inventory. There will be no cost to the school.

* Authorized acceptance of a $700 Target Field Trip grant to be used by Kristen Tremonti’s fifth grade class to visit the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff on Feb. 13.

* Approved the resignation of Daphne Augustine as an HJHS Careers teacher, including the assessment of $2,500 liquidated damage charges. * Approved the IWES 2015-16 and 2016-17 school calendars, and the preschool calendar for the 2014-15 school year.

* Approved renewal of the policies pertaining to the return to work program and the administrative procedure for the post retirement employment option.

* Held the first reading of policy revisions pertaining to sick leave.

* Held the first reading of policies pertaining to support staff evaluations. The revisions update the evaluation tool to include a numerical rating based on the employee’s performance.

* Approved an update of job descriptions.

* Approved out of state travel for Tim Newton-Pender and Jeff Meeks to attend teacher recruitment fairs in Utah at Brigham Young University and Utah State from March 18-20; as well as Robbie Koerperich, Jeri McKinnon and Lance Phaturos to attend the Oregon Recruitment Fair in Portland, Ore., from April 6-8. Expenses will be paid from Title II funding for recruitment of highly qualified teachers.

* Authorized Koerperich as the Arizona Impact Aid Association president-elect to attend the National Association of Federally Impacted Schools 2015 conference scheduled March 21-24 in Washington, D.C., to advocate for the continuation of Impact Aid funding on behalf of the district and the state. Expenses will be paid through Impact Aid funding.

* Approved the support staff employment of Maria Teresa Luna as a night custodian.

* Approved the support staff resignation of Javier Quintana as a grounds worker; Claude Bakurza, HHS head softball coach; Lucindia Baloo, custodian; Coltin Dickson, IWES monitor/cafeteria; and Melissa John, Indian education.

* Approved the certified employment of Bryan Max Gibbons as a substitute teacher; and David Jensen, Education Services Inc. short-term teacher.

* Approved extra duty for Gretchen Madison, HJHS Project Skilz; Donna Campbell and Jeremy Madison, HHS Roadrunner Roost managers; Cheri Grau, writing presenter; and Scott Baker and Tim Yazzie, HJHS game officials.

* Approved volunteers John Smith and David Shumway, HHS Choir Disneyland Trip.

* Approved gifts and donations from the Wells Fargo Foundation Educational Matching Gift Program in the amount of $134.61 and the book Never Again by Martha Larsen of Joseph City.

* Approved professional leave for Robin Stradling to attend the Arizona Explore Program held Jan. 15 in Phoenix at an estimated cost of $212.30; Virginia Pond and Sarah Meeks, Arizona Music Educators Association, Feb. 5-7 in Mesa at an estimated cost of $653, plus use of a district vehicle; Beth Baloo and Taylor Lee, Arizona Public Service Stem Focus, Feb. 6 and 7 in Flagstaff at an estimated cost of $214, plus use of a district vehicle; and Robbie Koerperich, Arizona School Administrators Superintendent Professional Day Conference, Jan. 29 in Glendale at an estimated cost of $199, plus use of a district vehicle.

Also, Dr. Charles Haussman, Northern Arizona Vocational Institute of Technology Administrators Meeting, Jan. 21 in Taylor at an estimated cost of use of a district vehicle; Julie Fields, Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Meeting, Jan. 26 in Snowflake at an estimated cost of use of a district vehicle; Keith Wheeler, Multi-Tier Behavior Support Training, Jan. 28 in Phoenix at an estimated cost of $195; and Connie McPherson, Northern Arizona University Career Fair, April 16 in Flagstaff at an estimated cost of use of a district vehicle.

Also, Teri Tafoya, Arizona School Boards Association Board Operations and Leadership Training Seminar Workshop, Jan. 30 in Flagstaff at an estimated cost of use of a district vehicle; Jim Mendell, Design Drafting Workshop, Feb. 20 in Surprise at an estimated cost of $232.13; Alfred Clark, 2015 National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth Conference Planning, Feb. 6 in Phoenix at an estimated cost of $249.80; and Charles Haussman, Arizona Department of Education Local Directors Meeting, Feb 5 and 6 in Prescott at an estimated cost of $437, plus use of a district vehicle.

Also, Keith Wheeler, Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Coaches Training, Feb.10 in Phoenix at an estimated cost of $206; Julie Fields, Empowerment Scholarship Accounts meeting, Feb. 11 in Show Low at an estimated cost of use of a district vehicle; Julie Fields, 2015 Title I Spring Coordinator’s Meeting, March 5 in Phoenix at an estimated cost of $319.80; Julie Fields, Association of Christian Schools International Leaders Conference, Feb. 8-10 in Sedona at an estimated cost of $645.12; and Janelle Chee, Flagstaff, Johnson O’Malley Subcontractors Regional meeting, Feb. 18 and 19 in Flagstaff at an estimated cost of $160.

* Approved expense and revolving fund vouchers totaling $357,344.15, and payroll and expense vouchers totaling $1,216,077.84.

* Approved expenses for Write Tools Professional Development totaling $12,400.

* Approved fundraisers to benefit the HHS Wrestlerettes, including selling T-shirts from Jan. 19-Feb. 7 for estimated earnings of $48, selling seat cushions from Jan. 19-Feb. 14 for estimated earnings of $230 and selling spicy barbecue sauce for estimated earnings of $75; for the HHS Class of 2016, including a car wash at Gillespie Park on March 21 for estimated earnings of $200, selling Coke products from Feb. 15-March 15 for estimated earnings of $500 and a taco sale on March 20 for estimated earnings of $500; for the HHS Outdoor Club selling T-shirts from Feb. 18-March 13 for estimated earnings of $325; and for HHS baseball selling jerky and cookie dough from Feb. 12-June 15 for estimated earnings of $2,000.

* Approved for final reading the revision to the policy pertaining to part-time and substitute professional staff employment. Last spring the governing board approved an increase in the long-term substitute rate from $150 to $155 per day and this will now be reflected in the policy.