By Pat Maurer
Correspondent
At the December 16 Clare Board of Education meeting, board members approved a motion to purchase property, 107 E. Wheaton in Clare for $129,285.00
At the November 18 board meeting, the BOE authorized the Superintendent to negotiate details for the potential purchase.
In his report to the board at the December meeting, Superintendent Matt Forsberg said he and Jared Renner “walked through the house at 107 E. Wheaton.” He noted that the purchase of the property will be “best used as property, not structure.”
Forsberg also reported on bond work, saying the RFP (Request For Proposals) for the replacement of sections of the middle school roof and windows in the primary school would be released December 17, with bid openings scheduled to take place on January 8th.
At the regular meeting the board approved the purchase of Primary School Playground Equipment, which is a part of the bond work approved by voters.
As part of the successful bond election on August 6, improvements to the primary school
playground have begun. The district sought design assistance from Play Environment Design, as well as input from primary school administration and staff, to arrive at the final selection of the equipment and its layout. Equipment for this project will be purchased through OMNIA Partners, LLC, a Cooperative Purchasing organization, and installation services will be provided by Play Environmental Design. Demolition of existing structures and installation of new wood chips will be sourced locally, Forsberg said. Cost for the new equipment is $191,542.15.
Forsberg thanked Aaron Grove for his continued support with the bond, saying, “His generosity has saved the district a significant amount of money.”
Forsberg also reported that he received pricing back from both the Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) and Communications by Design about the strategic planning process for the District. “Conversation with the Board and the community will take place in the near future,” he said.
The Superintendent noted that even though legislature is currently in lame duck, he and Business Manager Amber Kruskamp have been keeping an eye on the hard cap increase. He said, “While it would be a good thing for employees, it will likely cost the district $80,000 depending on how things pan out.”
Lastly, Forsberg thanked Ed Hubel and Matt Rodenbo for their time as teachers, administrators, and the last four years as Board members.
The board also approved a new Outdoor Recreation and Education course that will be offered in the High School beginning next fall.
This will be an elective course that will be offered for an entire year (two semesters). Students will participate in outdoor recreation activities while also learning conservation and stewardship skills. This course is intended to educate students in all the opportunities that the outdoors have to offer, while simultaneously learning how to protect and sustain these resources for generations to come. Students will have to complete an application process in order to be considered for the class and must have passed biology. The potential impact for students who decide to take this course can lead to lifetime enjoyment of Michigan’s outdoors & recreational offerings,
Another matter on the agenda for the December meeting was the boards’ approval of the district “Emergency Operations Plan,” which was reviewed by the board at the November meeting.
The purpose of the Clare Public School Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) is to identify and respond
to incidents by outlining the responsibilities and duties of Clare Public School and its employees. Developing, maintaining, and exercising the plan empowers employees in an incident to act quickly and in coordination with emergency response teams.
The Clare Public School EOP outlines the expectation of the faculty and staff, roles and responsibilities, direction and control systems, internal and external communications plans, training and sustainability plans, and authority and references as defined by local, tribal, state, and federal government mandates.
Other business at the December meeting included:
*Approval of payments for November totaling $1,447,688.41;
*Approval of a payment to Gateway Refrigeration for $1,816.12;
*Hearing reports from the Student Body President Addison and administrators;
*Holding the first reading of the Drinking Water Management Plan as required by Michigan Compiled Law;
*Voting to select the Michigan Association of School Boars district leader evaluation tool for Superintendent Forsberg’s evaluation. The first evaluation deadline is January 31.
*Set January 20, 2025 at 6:30 pm as the date and time for the annual Organizational meeting. It will be held in the High School Library Media Center.
Before adjourning the meeting, the board went into a closed session to discuss bargaining negotiations.
