Covid-19 causes changes at N-O-W

By SARAH PARKER | County Line Editor

Coping with the Covid-19 pandemic, the Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton Board of Education altogether changed many aspects of school’s spring and summer offerings at its meeting Monday.

Graduation will be Friday, July 24, though the exact nature of the ceremony still is undecided. The school may offer an in-person ceremony or an event consisting of students remaining in their cars, depending on which phase of the Badger Bounce-Back Plan that Wisconsin is in at that time.

Usually put on earlier in the season, summer school is slated to begin Aug. 10 and will be offered half-days for two weeks. The board tabled its decision on the summer recreation program until June and, in the meantime, will look into how other school districts are handling the matter.

School lunch delivery will be offered through June 30, and the board will decide in June whether to further extend the program.

Though students usually receive senior awards at an in-person event, this year staff members will deliver awards to the students Tuesday, May 19.

Next year’s wages approved

After a closed session, the board approved a 1 percent base wage increase for all teaching staff and no raise for the support staff.

Support staff who have volunteered during the Covid-19 shutdown will receive stipends, though. Those who worked at least 2 ½ days each week from March 16 to June 3 will receive $450, and those who will work 2 ½ days each week from May 4 to June 3 will receive $200.

Support staff members, many of whom were not required to work during the shutdown, have continued to receive their regular wages during the shutdown.

The board also approved 1 percent salary increases for Principal Angela Funk, School Psychologist/Director of Special Education Cindy Springborn, Principal Gayle Luebke, and Bus Mechanic Travis Taylor.

Dispute over bleacher project

Newly elected board member Julie Radke objected to Superintendent Kelly Burhop’s decision to move the bleacher replacement project from the 2020-21 budget to the 2019-20 budget without seeking the full board’s approval.

Last month, the board agreed to hire Premier Bleachers to construct new bleachers in the Classic Gymnasium, with the funds for the project coming out of the 2020-21 budget. After that meeting, Burhop determined that money was available in the 2019-20 budget and that Premier Bleachers could do the work before the start of the new budget cycle.

Radke asked, “How can we go ahead with redoing the bleachers when it was approved for the 2020-21 budget? I don’t think it should have gone forward without the board rescinding the motion on the books.”

Burhop responded, “I had to make a quick decision,” noting he had consulted with outgoing board president Kurt Radke and board member Kevin Bauman.

Bauman said he had agreed with Burhop’s request to fund the bleacher project with 2019-20 money, and new board president Justin Arndt noted that the project had been approved and only the budget-cycle selection had changed.

But Radke noted that last month’s minutes still indicated that it would be covered by the 2020-21 budget, and the board needed to rescind the motion and pass a new one.

Burhop responded, “By the time we do that, it would probably end up going into next year’s budget.”

“You can’t do that right now?” Radke replied.

Burhop explained that because the project was not listed as an agenda item at Monday’s meeting, the board could not change the motion at that time.

Adding that the district had taken such measures before, Bauman noted that the cost of buses, for example, had sometimes been switched from one budget to another without full board approval.

“It may be common, but it’s not proper,” Radke replied. She later added, ““This is a legal meeting for the public to know what’s going on. If you guys are doing it behind the scenes, that’s not legal.”

Burhop responded, “It’s not illegal. I don’t think I did anything illegal.”

In the end, the board decided to vote again on the matter at its June meeting and determine if Premier Bleachers could start the project after that date.

Board member Cari Keith said, “In the future, we need to be doing things according to the book, I suppose.”

Other business

• The board elected the following new officers: Justin Arndt, president; Kevin Bauman, vice president; Cari Keith, treasurer; and Matt Muellenberg, secretary.

• The board has approved a $112,500 contract with new superintendent Travis Anderson.

• As of last Friday, the district had served 25,114 delivered meals since the beginning of the Covid-19 shutdown.

• The district’s preliminary budget for 2020–21 is $9,941,548, down $160,839 from last year’s preliminary budget.

• The board accepted the resignation of agriculture education teacher Bailey Hart, who will be replaced by Sarah Schmitz, currently an N-O-W math teacher.

• Mary Sullivan, a fifth-grade teacher, will assume the Title I reading position.

• The board approved teaching contracts for Bridget Ottum, 5-year-old kindergarten; Jacqueline Skaife, special education; and Emily Saner, fifth grade.

• The last assignments for junior and senior high school students were mailed out last week, and the final drop-box collection will be Friday, May 22.

• Jaden Havlik has finished repairing the roof over the 2000 addition of the N-O-W school building. Also, Leon Country Flooring will soon install new carpeting the elementary teachers’ room, and the custodial staff is stripping the main gymnasium floor and is beginning to strip and seal the classroom floors.

• Last week, staff delivered yard signs and gift boxes containing balloons, memories written by their teachers and other items to seniors’ homes last week.

• The board changed the staff handbook’s qualifications for years of teaching experience and how it relates to salary. Now, active military service or work with disadvantaged or disabled youth in a non-school setting count toward years of experience.

• Also, the board changed the athletic handbook. Now, for a level-one, one game suspension, students can do three hours of administration-approved community service, rather than sit out a game.

Comments are closed.

  • Strains of spring 

    March 22nd, 2024
    by

    Brookwood Junior/Senior High School hosted its spring concert Thursday.  Esther Wooten and Drew Powell provide percussion for the senior high […]


    Pretrial conference for Barton yields no updates, more charges possible

    March 22nd, 2024
    by

    Monday’s pretrial conference for former Wilton clerk/treasurer Leigha Barton, who was charged in January with counts related to embezzlement from the village, resulted in no new developments, according to Monroe County District Attorney Kevin Croninger. 


    Royall hires new principal

    March 13th, 2024
    by

    Kole Huth will serve as the new Royall Middle School/High School Principal, the board of education decided at its meeting Monday. 


    Crowd attends meeting on Ontario development projects

    March 13th, 2024
    by

    No one quite expected the crowd of about 25 people to show up at Monday evening’s Ontario’s regular monthly board meeting. What drew so much interest was a hearing held about the new 12-unit apartment building under construction on Church Street.


    Kendall OK’s $2.1 million downtown project

    March 13th, 2024
    by

    Kendall approved a $2.1 million downtown (South Railroad Street) infrastructure project, which will occur in conjunction with the state’s reconstruction of Highway 71, at its regular meeting Monday. 


  • Norwalk police chief resigns

    March 13th, 2024
    by

    After nine years with the village, Police Chief David Jones submitted his resignation to the Norwalk Village Board, which it accepted at its Tuesday meeting. 


    N-O-W School Board approves expenditures, applications for college-credit program

    March 13th, 2024
    by

    The N-O-W School Board approved student applications to Brookwood’s fall college credit program totaling a little over $27,000 in tuition and materials.


    Wilton board candidates take part in reception

    March 8th, 2024
    by

    On Saturday, the Wilton Public Library hosted an open reception with the candidates for the Wilton Village Board.


    Royall boys earn first conference title in 11 years

    February 29th, 2024
    by

    The Royall boys basketball team clinched the Scenic Bluffs Conference title outright with a win over Bangor 53–37 on Feb. 22.


    Royall girls gain first regional title in 47 years

    February 29th, 2024
    by

    The Royall girls basketball team marked history in its program, as the team earned its first regional title since 1977.


    Wilton, N-O-W work out details of softball-field project

    February 29th, 2024
    by

    To refine an agreement allowing the Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School District to use Wilton’s new softball field, school representatives met with the Wilton Village Board on Tuesday. 


  • Archives