By Sarah Nigbor

ELLSWORTH – The Ellsworth middle and high school classrooms will be getting a much-needed update after ap –

proval by the school board on April 11: New classroom fur niture.

Superintendent Barry Cain estimates the classroom furni – ture in both buildings is at least 20-to-30 years old. To get the furniture this summer, the order must be placed by April 29. "The expectation for that would be that the furniture would arrive in mid-August," Cain said. "Teacher desks and stor – age, student furniture for the majority of the middle and high school classrooms." Middle school classrooms will each get 20 student desks and chairs, three high flip tables, six high stools, one teacher barrel table (with two drawers), one teacher chair, one podi – um, one round rondo lift table and three Hoikki stools. Sixty percent of high school classrooms will see 27 student desks and chairs (26 18-inch chairs and one 20-inch chair), one teacher barrel table (with two drawers), one teacher chair, one podium, one round rondo lift table and one Hoikki stool.

Fund 46, the district's capital improvement project "savings account," will be used to pay for the project at $720,891.62. The total project installation is $772,821.34, but of that amount, $51,939.62 has been paid for through Fund 10 (the cost of the pilot classrooms, which are already installed). The board also approved the following projects, with time in mind as contractors must be secured.

• EMS carpeting, $19,425, in the choir room, practice room, related ovces and Rise Room.

• EHS roofing, 1998 sections over kitchen/cafeteria areas and doorway, front entrance overhang; $115,780 (rock ballast, adhered rubber)

• EHS athletic entrance carpeting, $4,527

• EES: Add walk-ou carpet to stairway, $681.

• Replacing two buses, $190,000

• Toolcat with sweeper (trade-in), $30,000

• Asphalt, estimate at $30,000 to $40,000 total for EMS main lot (chip seal, stripe, spray patch), EHS south lot (chip seal, stripe), EHS front lot (seal, crack fill, stripe), playgrounds at EMS and EES (seal, crack fill) Personnel report

The school board approved the following personnel chang –

es:

Hires: Olivia Bonlander, EHS/EMS art teacher begin – ning with the 2022-2023 school year; Danielle Goodier, EES teaching assistant/PKC stau; Joseph Rodgers, EHS/EES cus – todian; Ruby Straub, EES teaching assistant; Steve Straub, long-term substitute teacher. Resignations: Dianne Albarado, district-wide full-time substitute teacher; Rebecca Hanestad, EES special education teacher; Nicholas Junker, EHS band teacher; Joe Larson, EHS science teacher/EMS Spanish teacher; Taylor Sharratt, EHS/ EMS English teacher; Bailey Wilson, EHS Spanish teacher. Retirement: Annie Walz, EHS food service stau.

Transfers: Kim Meier, from EES teaching assistant to EMS administrative assistant; Rodriguez Colon, from EES/ EHS custodian to EES custodian; Andrew Borner, from EHS custodian to facilities director/district-wide lead custodian. Other business

• The board approved School Board Policy Vol. 31, which outlined mainly language changes. One notable change is that the district is now required to post on its website when an incumbent either fails to file a declaration of candidacy on time or files a notice that they are not seeking re-elec –

tion. Also, the school board chose to retain control of vot –

ing on open enrollment applications.

• The board approved the facilities director/lead custodian job description, for which Andrew Borner has been hired. Cain has served as the facilities director for the past four years since Denny Langer left. The position has been re structured.

• New board members were sworn in, including incumbents Susan Beck and Julie Lundstrom, and newcomer Michael Petersen.