ELLSWORTH — The Ellsworth School Board heard a presentation on the changes coming to the middle school based on the referendum funding during the March 10 meeting.

A month ago, the board dove into the lengthy list of changes to courses, building layout and opportunities at the high school. While the middle school’s list of changes was not as large, significant changes to the building are coming.

The most notable change is the shift from the tall locker bay lanes to a group learning space. The lockers surround areas where there are tables, whiteboards and televisions.

“This is going to be a big bang for the buck,” Board President Julie Lundstrom said.

The science rooms will see some change to assist in the process of increased focus on lab-based, hands-on learning.

Other projects include altering the CTE rooms, exterior doors and windows, new lighting, paint and flooring, security doors and HVAC. No room in the entire building is going untouched by the projects, and the new paint, lighting and flooring will alter the atmosphere.

“The entire interior is just going to look brand new,” Middle School Principal Olin Morrison said. “It’s going to look like a brand-new building and really change the feel of the building overall.”

Due to having some money left over, $442,000 worth of referendum projects were pulled back into the construction. Still, over $800,000 in projects did not make the cut and many of them will be slashed from the list entirely. The board is considering holding a public meeting to determine which items should be included in the project.

Because of construction, this year’s summer school will take place at the elementary school.

Policy Review

The board took on four policy review items, including the first reading to rescind a nondiscrimination on the basis of sex in education programs or activities policy in favor of a previous policy.

Back in July, the board approved changes to the Title IX policy to comply with federal regulations that needed to be met by Aug. 1. To comply, the board made policy 2266 no longer govern Title IX starting Aug. 1, and made policy 2264 do so instead.

Superintendent Brian Nadeau said changes at the top of the federal government have trickled down, and current executive orders and federal legislation led to the recommendation to rescind policy 2264 and return to policy 2266.

Next month’s meeting will have a second reading for the potential final approval.

“If we recall, when we went through that process, we said worst case scenario, if we go back and rescind and change, then that’s what we do,” Nadeau said. “That’s kind of where we found ourselves.”

According to USA Today, the Biden administration was applying further protections for LGBTQ+ students that were to go into effect Aug. 1. In January, a federal judge overturned this ruling, and President Donald Trump has since reverted the regulations.

Updates to the Education Department General Administrative Regulations were approved unanimously. Many of the changes cover grant funding and awards and were largely changes out of the district’s hands to comply with laws and regulations. A policy on district organization, ethics and more also saw some changes, including restrictions on administration.

“Administrative employees shall not directly supervise a relative employed by the District or employed in a position contracted for by the District,” an added piece to the policy reads.

Another addition is allowing parents to inspect instruments used to collect personal information.

The board approved technical changes to the summer or interim session school and attendance policies.

Acknowledgements

The board made five acknowledgements during the meeting. The Ellsworth dance team was recognized for their season, making it to State after winning a Regional championship.

Ellsworth’s four individual State wrestlers were recognized for their hard work, as Austin Peterson, Noah Walker, Blake Nelson and Henry Penn all made the trip to Madison.

The Middle School musical, “The Little Mermaid Jr.,” made just shy of $10,000 excluding cash sales, including a sold-out Sunday show. About 150 students auditioned to be a part of the musical with 75 of them being involved in the final product.

Ellsworth Elementary Parents’ Club was recognized for sponsoring the Ellsworth Elementary Carnival. The next event is March 29 for the second annual Dueling Pianos at The Bluffs with tickets currently on sale.

High School Counselor Jessica Wiskow was acknowledged for presenting at the National Career Pathways Network Conference in Austin.

Other business

• Approved the Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA) #11 services contract. The contract allows the district to select specific services from CESA that it would like to pay to receive over the coming year. The lone significant change according to Nadeau was the removal of innovative teaching and learning consortium for $1,750 because they felt the district no longer needed those services.
• Nadeau discussed the future of the Trenton Town Hall property. He said the district loaned the town the property under the requirement that it was used as a town hall space. Now that Trenton is looking to build a new town hall elsewhere, they are exploring options to come to an agreement on the sale of the property and where the proceeds will go.
• Approved citizens Raynee Farrell, Tracey Hines and board Clerk Kurt Buckner to canvass the School Board election results. The approved date is 4 p.m. April 7 at the elementary school community room.
• Lundstrom and Treasurer Michael Petersen will attend the Wisconsin Association of School Boards’ Day at the Capital to talk to lawmakers about the story of Ellsworth’s district and what changes they would like to see made. The primary issue for the district, as well as many others throughout the state, is the school funding model.

Personnel

The board approved the following personnel changes:

Hires: Amanda Harris, Elementary Food Service; Brittney Thompson Kinneman, middle school counselor; Traci Lewis, Finance Specialist.

Resignations: Lexi Dvorak, Elementary Third Grade Teacher; Steph Jensen, Middle School Assistant Track Coach; Michelle Prissel, Elementary School Special Education Paraprofessional; Haley Schmidt, Elementary Speech Language Pathologist.

Retirees: Loni Johnson, Elementary Teaching Assistant; Nancy O’Neill, Elementary Fourth Grade Teacher; Stacie Robey, High School Teaching Assistant.