Monday’s Newton Community School Board of Education meeting will be full of firsts. The meeting, which is the first held in a school this school year, will be at Berg Middle School, and it will be the first meeting featuring the new board.
The current board will vote on accepting the election canvass from the Jasper County Board of Supervisors and if they accept, the recently elected members will be sworn in. Sheri Benson and Andy Elbert retained their seats and Travis Padget and Robyn Friedman were newly-elected.
“I am thrilled to be representing my hometown by having a voice on the Newton school board,” Padget said in a previous interview with the Daily News.
Once the new members are sworn in, a vote on board positions will be held. Elbert is the current president of the board and Nat Clark serves as vice-president. The new board will also vote on whether to change the 2013-2014 board meeting calendar as well.
Business Services Director/Board Secretary Gayle Isaac will continue his annual treasurer’s report from the Sept. 9 meeting, which was partially delayed due to the board having to go into closed session.
His report listed the general fund balance end balance at $3,426,278. Student activity balance was $372,820, the management fund was $1,123,839, capitol projects fund was $1,634,515, the physical plant and levy fund was $703,520, the debt service fund was $350,864 and the food service fund was $888,446.
In other business:
• The board will have a second reading on Board Policy 1004.1, which concerns the use of school facilities by the community.
• Superintendent Bob Callaghan will provide an update on the district’s enrollment. In the Sept. 9 meeting he listed enrollment at 3,011 students.
• Each principal in the district will provide a building update.
• The board will vote on allowable growth and supplemental aid for a negative special education balance.
• A vote on whether to allow FFA to take two trips this fall. If approved, the first would be on Oct. 1 to Northwest Missouri State University for a career development event. The second would be the FFA National Convention in Louisville between Oct. 29 and Nov. 2.
The board will also be presented with a check from the Knights of Columbus early into Monday’s meeting.
Staff writer Ty Rushing may be contacted at (641) 792-3121, ext. 426, or at trushing@newtondailynews.com.