Community High School District #71

Central Community High School District #71

7740 Old U.S. 50, Breese, IL 62230
BOARD OF EDUCATION - Regular Meeting
Monday, April 15th, 2024  7:00 PM

AGENDA

The regular meeting of the Board of Education of Central Community High School was held on April 15, 2024 at 7:00PM in the Media Center.

Members present were Mary Lou Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Kori Voss, Laura Jansen, Amy Kruse and Tim Richter. Jeff Kampwerth was absent.  Visitors included Katie Florczyk.

The agenda was approved on a motion by Amy, second by Kori.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

The minutes of the previous meeting were approved on a motion by Tim, second by Laura.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

The financial report and payment of bills were reviewed and accepted on a motion by Kori, second by Tim.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

Dr. Foutch updated the BOE on the current outstanding textbook and activity fees.

The 26th Annual Clinton County Academic Excellence Banquet will be held at 7:00 P.M. on Wednesday, April 24th at the Albers Legion.  Central has fifteen students and their parents who will be recognized at the event.

Dr. Foutch discussed with the BOE the possibility of Mr. Crask taking care of our outside ball fields.  We currently use Grassmasters and Mr. Crask has taken care of Glik Park in Highland for the past couple of years.  The BOE agreed to allow Mr. Crask to facilitate the weeding and seeding of our fields at minimum wage. 

Dr. Foutch gave an update on the Fieldhouse project.  A motion to approve payment application #4 to Millenium Construction for the Fieldhouse project for $300,254.40 was made by Tim, second by Laura. Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

Our current special services contract with M & K bus is scheduled to expire at the end of this school year.  A motion to approve a 1 year extension to their current contract as presented was made by Amy, second by Laura. Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

A motion to employ Sara Loepker as a Spanish Teacher in FY2025  pending all necessary requirements are met was made by Kori, second by Tanya.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

A motion to employ Jon Dierkes as a Special Education Teacher in FY2025  pending all necessary requirements are met was made by Tim, second by Amy.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

A motion to approve an overnight trip for FFA to the State Convention from June 11-13 was made by Kori, second by Tanya.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

A motion to approve an overnight trip for the Girls Basketball team to Branson from June 23-26 was made by Laura, second by Tanya.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT:

Update on the KC NOW online program…after the initial interest of about 15 students, we have 5 students that have decided to move forward with the classes. They will have a KC study hall added to their schedule and they will report to the media center during that time to take their class.

On March 27, with the help of Emily Johnson we had 41 students take the full SAT practice test just as it will be on the actual test day. This is the first time the test has been 100% digital, so this was a great opportunity for students to get comfortable with the format. English and Math classes have been providing practice questions daily for the past two months for all of their students as well.

The CHS Cool School Polar Plunge was a huge success, raising $4.4k for the Special Olympics! A big shout out to the amazing CHS students, staff, families and friends for their generosity!  Also, a big shoutout goes to Gina Benhoff for getting the word out and organizing the event.

The FBLA Chapter traveled to Springfield, IL for the SLC (State Leadership Conference) on April 4-5, 2024. We had a record number of 26 students who competed, 24 presentations and 2 tests. The competitions were in different business categories and chosen by each individual or team.

On April 4, our Lifesavers group along with approximately 70 students and staff participated in a “Prayer at the Pole.” The event was brought to Central years ago by current Central alum, Noah Hollenkamp and it’s grown each year. Suicide Awareness is not an easy topic to talk about and Kris Fulkerson and Andre Izizarry do a tremendous job sharing their story along with giving valuable life saving tips if anyone is struggling with depression and not having a purpose in life.

After a number of students have expressed interest and hounded Mrs. Kohnen enough that she has created an after school Chess Club. Last week, she had 10 students participating.

On April 9, in coordination with Ryan Meyer, Vicky Albers was here to register potential voters. Any student turning 18 years old by November 5, 2024 was eligible. I’m happy to report we had over 100 students register, which is up from just 30 last year!

April 10, all school testing day for the PSAT9, PSAT10 and SAT. Attendance was great, actually incredible with only two students absent. A BIG thank you to Trisha Lohman and Wendy Jones for organizing the day, and making it a success!

April 11, Cougar Academy for our 8th grade students that plan to attend Central. We are expecting 133 students to attend this year. This is a day for students to meet new people from other grade schools and interact in a fun, yet also learning environment. We will have over 80 Central students helping that day as mentors and group leaders. The keynote speaker this year is John Foppe.

A motion to approve the changes to the Student Handbook as presented was made by Kori, second by Tanya.  Roll call vote: Aye – Mary Lou Voss, Laura Jansen, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

The board adjourned the meeting on a motion by Tim, second by Amy at 7:59PM. Roll call vote: Aye –Laura Jansen, Mary Lou Voss, Kori Voss, Tanya Kampwerth, Tim Richter, Amy Kruse.  Nay – None

Mary Lou Voss                    Amy Kruse                  

Board President                                    Board Secretary