The Dolores RE-4A school board on Dec. 8 celebrated the accreditation of Teddy Bear Preschool, heard from multiple students about recent accomplishments and discussed hiring processes.
To kick off the meeting, secondary math teacher Donna Hobbs told the board about the University of Northern Colorado math contest in which students are participating. Last year, one student, Neveah Settles, qualified. This year, four students qualified.
Settles told the board about her experience taking the test, saying there were 10 questions and three essay questions, all of which were very difficult.
“It was extremely humbling,” she said, laughing.
In business items, the board heard from Artaic Group and the architect design team for December updates on the BEST grant construction project.
Matt Prinster of Artaic Group gave an overview of recent progress, saying the next step is pouring the concrete slab for the new high school. The structural steel for the building is being fabricated and should arrive in January.
He added that they are supporting the local economy as much as possible by purchasing supplies and other items locally.
In the design presentation with Max McCloskie, the board learned that permit documents for the middle school were submitted before Thanksgiving, in what would be the “last major step” and final design permits of the project.
The Bear Hands Lego Robotics team also presented.
In their presentation, the Lego Robotics team and their coaches, Brody and Chantel Otteson, said they placed second overall at regionals and first in one division. They also showed the board how their robot worked and explained what is required in competitions.
In her superintendent report, Superintendent Alesa Reed said Teddy Bear Preschool recently received accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The board was told that only about 3% of preschools in the U.S. have this accreditation. The next renewal attempt will be in five years.
Reed added that it was a yearlong process for the preschool to submit all required documents.
The board then discussed the new cellphone policy in the works and the number of students leaving the district to homeschool.
Reed gave a brief update on the cellphone policy, saying phones are put away all day in the elementary and middle schools, so the focus is now shifting to the high school.
When the discussion turned to students opting for online schooling, Reed said the district lost five students in November to online schooling. The students who left were in middle and high school, bringing the district’s total enrollment to 590.
The board expressed concern that students who move to online schooling may not receive the education they need and discussed working with parents to ensure they know about programs that provide structure and a “solid education.”
The board also asked about exit surveys for the students who left to identify potential trends.
“This was alarming to me. We’ve never had an exodus like this before at this time,” Reed said.
Before action items, the board discussed the new superintendent evaluation tool and procedures for approving new staff hires. The board expressed trust in school administration to recommend qualified individuals but said they wanted more details about staff being hired so they could be knowledgeable about who is working in the schools.
In action items, the board approved the mill levy certification and approved new staff hires. The district hired Quaylan Lambson and Rebekah Robindale as K-12 substitutes, Tylee Mikkelson as a K-8 substitute, Alexander Westfall as a third- through 12th-grade substitute, Ben Doss as head high school wrestling coach, and Josh Edwards and David Hansen as assistant high school wrestling coaches.
The next Dolores school board meeting will be Monday, Jan. 12, at 6 p.m.
