School Board April 26, Meeting Recap

The school board meeting on April 26 began with a presentation by CHS principal Elia Ala'ilima-Daley of new curricular materials for the art, music, health, PE and STEM departments. Every year the district budget supports both new curricular materials and recurring curricular subscriptions.

The total budget for new materials for these departments was $63,772.46, with the largest needs for K-5 grade music, band (6 -12), K-5 P.E. and STEM classes (6 -12). This covers a range of items, including new music, instruments, equipment, TVs to display P.E. videos, snowshoes, and magazine and software subscriptions.

Each department is on a unique six-year curriculum adoption cycle. Last year new materials were purchased for social studies and next year the same will occur for math.

The school board approved the new curricular materials with a motion.

Ala’ilima-Daley also shared the good news that some popular spring traditions are returning in ways adapted for health safety. Mr. Kodiak will be held in the Festhalle in mid-May, the Grizzled Old Men basketball game will be held on an outdoor court, allowing spectators, and graduation will somewhat resemble ceremonies of the past. It will be held at the PD field as usual, with family in attendance and fireworks.

As for personnel, the board approved the hire of several new staff, including Eric Merriman for a new full-time position of math intervention specialist at IRMS. Merriman’s intervention will help students recover from learning gaps in math that occurred due to the challenges of remote education.

The hiring of Ala'ilima-Daley as summer school coordinator was necessary as the district will be offering summer school in August for eligible K-8 grade students. The program costs are covered by federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds.

The school board also approved an inclusive diversity analysis tool. The district’s learning recovery plan that they submit to the Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) must include an equity tool. This tool will help administrators reference the district’s strategic planning values around diversity, equity and inclusion as they plan. Superintendent Tracey Beckendorf-Edou explained that this will enable continuous reflection and avoid blind spots. The summer school program is a prime example where the tool will assist the planning process so it can target those with the highest needs.

The board also approved CHS’s switch from DECA to FBLA in terms of extracurricular organization affiliation in the area of business leadership and competition. CTE director Kirk Sunitsch and computer science teacher Tammy Murphy led a comparison of the programs and found FBLA to better match the courses offered at CHS, so students will have more options for competition.

Beckendorf-Edou shared a letter from the North Central Washington Activities Association (WIAA District 6) recognizing Dominique Coffin as a high school athletic director who has made a “significant contribution at the school, league, regional or state level.” Coffin was instrumental in developing the temporary North Central Region for athletic competition during the various COVID-19 recovery phases. Coffin is also involved with the WIAA with leadership and committee memberships at many levels. The school board commended Coffin for his work which allows kids to compete while staying safe.

Finally, Beckendorf-Edou shared that school nurses Shelly Zehm and Keisha Smith received a “Friends of Children” award from the North Central Education Services District and that high school sports medicine students have been volunteering to help with the vaccination clinic at Cascade Medical.