ELLSWORTH — The Ellsworth Community School District Board approved the maintenance project list for the 2026-27 year at the May 13 meeting that features about $362,000 in work to be completed. Superintendent Brian Nadeau said the list of items is shorter than other years, and that they dug into each category to ensure it was the immediate needs that got the green light.

Approved projects were: Two used minivan replacements ($35,000 each), a replacement for a route bus ($150,931), two bus garage door replacements ($2,769), refoaming and concrete lifting at the elementary school playground ($34,366), $9,630 in concrete projects throughout the district, $2,000 to extend the life of the high school north gym scoreboards 1-5 years, $3-4,000 for a middle school football storage shed, nearly $66,000 in technology costs including Chromebooks, classroom projectors and a wireless renewal, $30,467 for a diving board installation, $6,000 to convert an elementary school room into a padded reset room and $360 in ELA curriculum.

Of the projects that were mentioned but not approved, the district will face the growing need to do maintenance on the track as well as replace scoreboards for which there are no longer available parts.

Staff Compensation

The board approved a 2.63% increase to staff compensation, the number with which the Consumer Price Index came up. Nadeau said there are districts in the area that are doing 3%, others that are sticking to the 2.63% and some that are landing between.

“In discussions with the committees and in talking to [School Board President Julie Lundstrom], discussing the value of modeling that compensation and making our folks aware of what they’re coming back into next year, I think the consensus has been that we put that 2.63% out there and that we move forward on that so that people are aware of what that means for them next year.”

Nadeau said if something drastically changes at the state level as they make decisions on what to do with the surplus, the board could bolster the compensation increase in the fall.

Referendum Survey

Nadeau was authorized by the board to proceed with gathering information and completing surveys to inform the community of what the next referendum would entail.

“Right now, the general consensus is that we do not go back in November, and that we come back, let the dust settle, let the circumstances surrounding us that are out of our control come to terms with that and hopefully improve, and then consider options moving forward to next April.”

Other Business

• Acknowledged Carly Girdeen as the Class of 2026 valedictorian and Jenna Early as the salutatorian.
• Approved all but one open enrollment application, with the lone denial coming because the student was seeking enrollment into a slot that was already full of students residing inside of the district.
• Approved the Pierce County Journal as the district’s official newspaper, CCF Bank as the official bank and a series of official investment agencies.
• Heard official drill reports from recent lockdown drills at each school. Also heard updates on building level goals from each of the schools.

Personnel

The board approved the following personnel changes:

Hires: Anastasiia Bundy, elementary school special education teacher; Darren Georgakas, middle school football coach; Nicholas Mohrhauser, high school math teacher; Alicia Schwalbe, elementary school teaching assistant/PKC staff; Marissa Woletz, middle school choir teacher.

Transfers: Olivia Carlson, from 1.0 FTE school social worker to 0.5 FTE school social worker and 0.5 FTE middle school dean of students; Isabella Devereaux Hanson, from middle school choir teacher to high school choir teacher.

Resignations: Riley Black, fifth grade elementary teacher; Karen Capper, high school English teacher; Olivia Klund, elementary school speech language assistant; Nicole VandeBerg, high school math teacher.

Retirements: Jennifer Kieren, high school English teacher; Lisa Maier, elementary food service staff.

Reorganization

During a special reorganizational board meeting prior to the regular meeting, the board approved the following appointments and nominations:

President: Julie Lundstrom

Vice President: Kurt Buckner

Treasurer: Michael Petersen

Clerk: Charlie Kummer

EHS Liaisons: Dave Beck and Julie Lundstrom

EMS Liaisons: Jay Acker and Julie Lundstrom

EES Liaisons: Charlie Kummer and Michael Petersen

Bus Garage Liaisons: Steven Mark and Kurt Buckner

Budget and Finance Committee: Chair Michael Petersen, Jay Acker and Charlie Kummer

Buildings, Grounds and Transportation Committee: Chair Kurt Buckner, Steven Mark and Julie Lundstrom

Curriculum Committee: Chair Steven Mark, Charlie Kummer and Jay Acker

Personnel and Negotiations Committee: Chair Dave Beck, Julie Lundstrom and Michael Petersen

CESA Annual Convention Delegate: Kurt Buckner

WASB Convention Delegate: Kurt Buckner