The District 241 School Board approved termination and non-renewal of teaching contracts of probationary teachers, unrequested leaves of absence of tenured teachers and staff reductions due to budget reductions at its meeting Monday evening.

Tuesday, March 19, 2002

The District 241 School Board approved termination and non-renewal of teaching contracts of probationary teachers, unrequested leaves of absence of tenured teachers and staff reductions due to budget reductions at its meeting Monday evening.

Secondary teachers James Parlin and Eric Burroughs and elementary teachers Mary Jo Dorman, Stacie Stensrud, Robin Farmer, Laurie Herman and Anne Jerdee were terminated, and secondary teachers Melinda Christian and Wendi Tonder were placed on unrequested leaves of absence due to budget reductions. Gayle Brownlow had her position reduced by .17 as per her request. Jenny Weyers, a math instructor, had her position reduced by .2 and Daniel Harms, a physical education teacher, had his reduced by .4. Both are probationary teachers. Ryan Hillman’s position was reduced by half due to reorganization. He is also a probationary teacher. Pam Soderstrom, a secondary teacher, was also placed on unrequested leave of absence due to reorganization.

District 241 Superintendent David Prescott said there were 2.8 secondary teachers retiring who will not be replaced, as well as one who resigned who will not be replaced, and five retiring elementary teachers retiring who will not be not be replaced. There were a total of 14.47 total licensed staff reductions, according to the budget cuts approved last December.

In addition, 2.5 non-licensed staff positions were terminated, including parking supervisors Lynette Emerson and Roy Kraushaar, and a half-time custodian, to be determined.

Prescott said there will be supervisors in the parking lots, but high school staff will have to be reallocated for this.

The board also approved a proposal from the Albert Lea High School Dance Team for 2002-03.

The Dance Team Boosters offered a donation to cover the cost of continuing the program next year. Prescott said the proposal met the three criteria needed: the full amount of money to keep the program going, a time set when the funds needed to be available, and the understanding that this is a year-to-year decision.

&uot;This does not assure the program continues each year, given our current financial situation,&uot; he said.

Just before approving the boosters’ request, the board approved a policy for accepting gifts and donations which outlined the above criteria.

In other business, the board:

– Approved a capital budget of $396,200 and a health and safety budget of $226,061 for 2002-03.

– Approved the Albert Lea Area Schools 2002-03 calendar, with the first day of school on Sept. 3, 2002, and the last day on June 5, 2003.

– Discussed the district’s driver education program. Board member Bill Leland said a group of students were &uot;left out in the cold&uot; because of the district’s decision to cut the program. After further exploration, however, it doesn’t look like continuing the program into the summer is a possibility.

District Finance and Operations Director Mark Stotts said offering behind-the-wheel sessions in the summer would put the program into the next budget year, and the program was cut at the end of the current year.

&uot;We’re still hopeful we can continue the program through community education. Many take the training privately anyway due to scheduling conflicts,&uot; Stotts said.

– Approved a request from LaRae Strom, a resident of the Alden-Conger School District, for her three children to attend the Albert Lea Area School District effective with the 2001-02 school year.

– Heard from Marci Maier and two students, Matt Morris and Allie Leland, regarding the March 12 Math Fair at Southwest Middle School. Maier said 52 students participated in the event.