Freedom BOE mulls over prospective bond projects and costs
December 12, 2018
Several spectators, including some members of the recently formed bond committee, showed up Monday night to Freedom’s regularly scheduled board of education (BOE) meeting. All five BOE members were present and joined by superintendent James Miller, principal Michelle Shelite and minutes clerk Patricia Dauphin.
The meeting began with the consent agenda (reports and encumbrances on several different funds), which was quickly approved.
The superintendent took the floor to give the rundown on recent happenings. He said no board election would be held since all current members filed without challenge, maintaining their respective seats. Coming up in January, Miller said, is the AASA Legislative Conference, which he will attend. The conference will provide the opportunity for school officials to get a sneak peak at some of the new bills being filed and give an overall sense of what direction the next legislative session will go.
Next, Miller gave a litigation update regarding the Oklahoma Tax Commission Motor Vehicle Fund, which incorrectly apportioned more than $20 million among over 400 school districts during FY 2016-2017. Many school districts were relatively unscathed while others suffered a much greater impact. For the latter, their losses far exceeded the reductions in state aid that school districts all over the state were experiencing at that time. In contrast, some school’s gains more than offset the loss in state aid. Fortunately, Freedom’s school district stands to gain $22,475.66 that will be distributed over a 13-month period starting this January.
Principal Shelite was up next with her report and spoke about upcoming events like semester tests Dec. 18 and 19 and the Christmas program Dec. 20. A career fair will be held as well on Dec. 20 for students in sixth through 12th grades.
Dec. 21 will mark the last day of school before winter break with students returning on Jan. 7. The teachers will return on Jan. 4 for a professional development day.
Lastly, the principal gave praise in her usual fashion for the success of her students, detailing the achievements of the FCCLA Star Event winners and the academic team that has won more than half of their meets.
The next agenda item was categorized under general business and included a presentation of the 2019 bond committee report. Superintendent Miller said the committee has met several times and pored over the needs of the school, prioritizing and trimming down items in order to be cost effective.
Some spreadsheets were presented to the board that detailed the prospective project and its cost, prompting some questions by members. Miller said in no way are the numbers final and agreed with Shan Wilson that many of the numbers seemed high, but reminded the group that these numbers were only estimates given by architects.
Discussion and questions ensued, but no decisions were made (or expected to be made at that time). Three bond committee members commented that their focus was on working together to best serve the school, all the while keeping in mind what members of the community would deem important.
Ultimately it was decided that more public meetings should be held to review contractor costs and make sure bond money was being used appropriately for the right projects. Robert Babcock said he thought it important to get the information out so it was understood by all, thus resulting in a favorable bond outcome.
After bond questions were asked and answered, the board approved a $1,000 professional development stipend for all full-time employees. Members then elected to go into executive session to discuss the annual evaluation of the superintendent and, upon reconvening, the evaluation was approved.
Before the meeting adjourned Shan Wilson requested an itemized statement of a fund because he wasn’t clear what the monies were used for.
There was no new business and the motion to adjourn was entertained.
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