WACO directors approve school fees for upcoming year

WAYLAND ? July not only brought the start of a new fiscal year to the WACO Community School District, but a new leader.

Superintendent Jeff Dicks, whom WACO is sharing with the Washington Community School District, and the school board faced a light agenda Monday night in Dicks? first official meeting.

School board members handled routine business in preparation for the 2016-17 school year ? approving fees, the purchase of computers and music room filing carts and set Iowa Association of School Boards? (IASB) legislative policies.

Board members kept school fees much the same as the 2015-16 school year, with the exception of raising the driver?s education cost from $225 to $235.

Dicks advised the board to hold the line on school fees, relating that he would be disappointed if a student decided to attend school elsewhere due to high fees.

?I hate to come in and raise fees without knowing the history, but I see you haven?t raised fees for a while,? Dicks said. ?I would like to hold the line on fees because if you lose one kid because of raising fees, that?s a loss of $6,400 (state funding per student). I think you should raise driver?s education because you are a little low there. Fees are not going to be a huge source of revenue, but they will help.?

Dicks said he and Carrie Coble, school business manager, did a study of driver?s education fees and found the district had a net loss of $1,373 over the last three years on the driver?s education program. ?That?s (loss) not bad, I have seen a lot worse,? he stated.

Other fees in the district for the 2016-17 school year are as follows: registration (pre-kindergarten), $35; book fees (K-8), $40, (9-12), $45; student season athletic tickets, $50; adult season athletic tickets, $100; family season athletic tickets, $100; family plus college student season athletic tickets, $225; music performance apparel cleaning, $8; first-year instrument fee, $10; instrument fee, $25; family instrument fee (two or more students), $40; summer instrument fee, $10.

Directors approved the purchase of 119 Chromebooks, 10 computer batteries and 20 teacher replacement laptop computers at a price not to exceed $40,000.

Dicks said the technology committee had recommended the purchase but the recommendation never made it to the board. The funding will come from the school local option tax account.

The purchase of new filing carts for the music room were also approved. Dicks said staff members thought the carts had been approved but approval could not be found in looking back through past board minutes. The cabinets will be purchased from L.J. Roth Restoration Service at a cost of $8,653.20.

While school board members did select their top four legislative priorities from a list supplied by the IASB, Dicks thought the selection may be an exercise in futility. ?Does it really matter what we tell them (the Iowa Legislature)? However, I think it is better that we do it because we can say we did it.?

Selected priorities include the following:

? Benefits: Supports allowing school districts to voluntarily enroll their employees in the state?s health, dental and life/long-term disability insurance pools.

? School funding policy: Supports a school foundation formula that provides adequate and timely funding; provides a mechanism for transportation costs that reduces the pressure on the general budget and addresses inequities between school districts; includes factors based on changes in demographics including socio-economic status, remedial programming and enrollment challenges; equalizes per pupil funding; incorporates categorical funding in the formula within three years; and includes a mix of property taxes and state aid.

? Supplemental state aid: Supports setting supplemental state aid for fiscal year 2017 by Jan. 29, 2016; for fiscal year 2018 and future budget years within 400 days (or 14 months) prior to the certification of the school?s district budget; and at a rate that adequately supports local districts? efforts to plan, create and sustain world-class schools.

? State penny: Supports preserving the integrity of the statewide penny sales tax for school infrastructure, including the tax equity provisions. Supports repeal of the Dec. 31, 2029, sunset clause.

A personnel matter had the board approving the contract of Bailey Graber as girls? varsity volleyball coach.

Dicks, in his report, said that a couple of water leaks surfaced in the music room following the recent roof project. He said a damage claim had been filed with the school insurance company.

The superintendent is working on filling the nursing vacancies at the school and said something may be worked out with the Washington Community School District to fill the positions.

Board members, Dicks said, will receive some proposals for vehicles for the school district during its August meeting.

WACO?s School Board will meet again in regular session Monday, Aug. 15, at 6:30 p.m., in the media center at the secondary building in Wayland.