Royall postpones referendum

By SARAH PARKER | County Line Editor

Though the Royall School District had considered running a referendum in April 2021, the board of education agreed Thursday to postpone it until at least April 2022.

The board did hire Kramer Construction/FEH Architects, which help the district identify community goals and assist with other aspects of the planning process.

The nature of the referendum remains undefined at this point, though the board has mulled over putting up a new building or enhancing safety measures, such as installing new doorways.

“We need to (learn) what the community wants us to do with this school,” said board president Raye Walz. “We need to take this in measured steps.”

Nalani Bever of Elroy suggested that academics should be the board’s main focus. Also, she noted that working with an outside firm should help the board identify its curricular weaknesses.

“And we have deficiencies. Every district has deficiencies,” she said.

Board member Doug Waterman voiced skepticism that the district needed to further improve its facilities.

“Our buildings are the best they’ve been. They’re in good shape,” he said.

Because of Covid-19, the referendum process was delayed, as the district was unable to hold public meetings on the matter in the spring.

The district is considering a referendum in part because it will make its last big debt payment, about $400,000, in the spring of 2022, said Superintendent Mark Gruen. Moreover, only three payments of $200,000 remain for the district’s energy-upgrade project, which it completed several years ago.

Board agrees to offer fall cross country

Falling in line with almost the rest of the Scenic Bluffs Conference, the board agreed to offer cross country in the fall but postpone football and volleyball to spring.

“Fall sports have become quite a mess, thanks to Covid and the WIAA not making a decision and giving you a choice between fall sports in the fall or fall sports in the spring,” Gruen said.

As of Thursday, Royall had only two meets scheduled, but athletic director Sarah Gruen said she would work to find more meets for the students.

Though the board agreed at the end of discussion to offer cross country, some members expressed reservations about the proposal. Waterman opined that a safe start to school, not sports, should be the district’s priority.

“Sports are extra,” he said. “We run this school to teach our kids.”

Waterman emphasized that kids needed interaction with other kids — “They’re going stir crazy” — but added, “I think you guys have more to worry about than if our kids are going to play sports.”

Gruen said, “We aren’t sure what the right thing is. I don’t think anyone is sure what the right thing is. We know our kids need to become active and do stuff.”

During the public comments portion of the meeting, teacher Jennifer Jefferies said, “When I was in high school, I was all about sports. I get it. I get that kids need to play. But I also feel as if we have other things to concentrate on. The education and the safety of the kids here should be more important. I have a feeling that if we have sports this fall, we’re going to be shut down quicker than we realize.”

If school shuts down due to Covid-19 and the runners are unable to finish their season before the halfway mark, they could resume their season in the spring, Gruen added.

Waterman mentioned that offering only cross country might be unfair to the football and volleyball teams.

Gruen responded, “It isn’t fair, but it does make sense that cross country is less risk than the others.”

Also, the board briefly considered joining the Ridge and Valley Conference and playing football and volleyball in the fall, but decided to remain with the Scenic Bluffs Conference, which will offer those sports in the spring.

Cross country coach Brian Knudtson noted that meet organizers would determine which safety measures are used, but generally, spectators would be kept away from the finish line, each school would have to provide a masked coach to help its athletes at the finish line, and some races would be split up to foster social distancing.

Other business

• The board agreed to postpone opening the fitness center to students for two weeks, saying the district needed to first focus on the start of the school year.

At the fitness center, masks will be required, plus students will be instructed to clean up after themselves.

• About 50 students have enrolled in the district’s virtual-instruction option.

• A parent noted her concerns that students now would take backpacks and jackets, etc., from class to class, rather than store them in their lockers. She cited safety concerns, as illicit items could be stored and transported to the classroom.

“Safety should not be trumped by a virus,” she said.

Principal Scott Uppena said the new practice was put in place to discourage students from congregating at lockers and thus increasing their Covid-19 risk.

“If you’ve ever seen our academic hallway in a passing time, it’s an absolute mess, kids are going any which way, crossing each other and so forth,” Uppena said.

He added, “Most of the kids are pretty good about reporting things that seem out of the ordinary. Anytime I’ve had issues in the past, it seems to have come from the kids.”

The administration conceded that asking students to carry their items from classroom to classroom was less than ideal.

Gruen said, “Great points on the lockers. We discussed that exactly. It feels like all of the thing we talked about in regard to safety have been trumped by corona.”

Elementary students will be able to store their items in their locker rooms, as they do not move from classroom to classroom throughout the day and the lockers are better spaced out.

• The board accepted the retirement of nurse Pat Morris, the resignation of third-grade teacher Marissa Anderson, who is leaving the profession, and library assistant Shelby Witt.

The administration attempted to hire a replacement for Moore but could not come to an agreement on salary. Instead, the district will contract with Gundersen Lutheran at a rate of $43 an hour for nursing services.

• Carissa Huebner was hired as an elementary teacher. She had been an aide for the district and recently got her teaching certification.

• Adult breakfast prices will go up by 10 cents a piece.

• The board updated the policy for its Title 9 requirements, which now call for a male and a female coordinator. The Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School District will serve as Royall’s “neutral observer,” and Royall will do the same for N-O-W.

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