Calendar for 2024-25 approved

Student trip requests get nod

RE-1 Valley School District’s calendar for next year is set after receiving approval from the school board at a regular meeting on Tuesday.

The district’s Calendar Committee came up with two potential calendars, which were submitted to staff and parents for feedback using a survey. There is only one major difference between the calendars: proposal A has Monday, March 10 as a school day and spring break beginning on Friday, March 14, whereas proposal B has March 10 as a red day (no school) and spring break beginning on Monday, March 17. Of the 143 staff responses and 143 parent/community responses, the overwhelming majority of both staff and parents preferred option A.

The approved calendar proposal has students beginning school on Wednesday, Aug. 14; allows staff two days of planning and preparation before students begin; allows elementary schools to have their back-toschool nights on separate evenings; provides three days for Thanksgiving break; includes a longer winter break for staff and students (Dec. 20-Jan. 3); has room for six snow days should the district need them; has an equal number of student contact days/ staff workdays; aligns with Northeastern Junior College’s calendar; and puts the students’ last day of school as an early dismissal on Thursday, May 22.

In other business, the board approved trip requests presented by advisor Scott Walker for 13 Sterling High School DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) students to attend the state conference Feb. 24-27, at the Broadmoor Resort, in Colorado Springs; and 45-50 FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) students to attend the state leadership conference April 1-3, at the Gaylord of the Rockies Resort, in Aurora.

Gwendalynn Ertle and Aadan Meraz, who are in both clubs, spoke about the clubs and plans for the conferences. They will be competing in events related to

marketing and business and Ertle also plans to run for state office.

Walker requested the district’s help with transportation costs, which are $571 for the DECA conference and $3,300 for FBLA. Dr. Foster told the board he will work with SHS Principal Jeff Hoff on that and noted that there is district money set aside for this kind of thing and they will also see what SHS has left in its building fund.

Later, the board also approved policies DBG, budget adoption process; DD,

funding proposals/grants and special projects; EF, school nutrition program; EFC, free and reduced-price food services; EF-E-1, school meal payments; EF-E-2, civil rights complaint procedure for school nutrition program; and EFEA, nutritious food choices, on second reading.

Previously policy EFEA included an addition, recommended by the Colorado School Boards Association, stating that the board prohibits the sale of diet soda on high school campuses. The board has never prohibited that and the statement was struck from the policy at Superintendent Dr. Martin Foster’s direction because he didn’t feel it necessary.

Policy DD-R, funding proposals/grants and special projects — regulation, was tabled. Ronda Monheiser questioned the part of the policy that states that when seeking districtwide grants they will be discussed with the appropriate subcommittee(s) including the content committee, general curriculum committee and technology committee. The district no longer has those committees. Dr. Foster said he would talk to the administrative team about

what they want to do regarding that.

Earlier in the meeting, the board had the first reading of policies JFABE, students in foster care; JFABE-R, students in foster care-regulation; KDBA, parent notification of employee criminal charges; and KDBA-E, parent notification of employee criminal charges — exhibit, which are all new policies.

Policy JFABE is a new policy that states that it is the board’s intent to promote the educational stability of students in foster care in accordance with state and federal law and that the district will coordinate with other districts and with local child welfare agencies and other agencies or programs providing services to students in foster care as needed. It also states that at least one staff member shall be designated to serve as the child welfare education liaison and fulfill duties set forth in state and federal law.

Policy JFABE-R replaces policy JF-R, admission and denial of admission. It provides information about the child welfare education liaison, enrollment determinations, transfer of education records, enrollment in

a new school, transfer of credits and transportation.

Policy KDBA states that the district will notify students’ parents when a district employee or former district employee is charged with a specific criminal offense, as required by state law. The notification will happen within two school days after the employee’s preliminary hearing for a specific criminal offense is held, waived, or deemed waived by the employee. If the specific criminal offense is not eligible for a preliminary hearing, the district will notify parents within two school days after the date on which the employee is charged with a specific criminal offense. If the district cannot determine whether a preliminary hearing will be held or has been held or waived, the district will notify parents within two school days of learning that the employee has been charged with a specific criminal offense.

Alternatively, the district may provide the parent notification required by this policy upon learning of the employee’s arrest for a specific criminal offense from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

Exhibit KDBA-E is a sample of the notice that will be sent to parents.