The financial auditor at Monday?s regular meeting for USD 410 encouraged the board of education to be conservative in its spending .
Donna Fadenrecht of Swindoll, Janzen, Hawk & Loyd presented the district?s audit report for 2009-10 and praised the board being fiscally responsible.
?You have maintained your cash balances,? Fadenrecht said about the district?s capital outlay and contingency reserves.
Some of the firm?s school district clients have little to no cash reserves, she said. She anticipates Kansas schools will face increased fiscal challenges in the coming years.
?Hold on to your reserves,? Fadenrecht advised the board.
In the Learning Showcase, Michelle Goldsby, from Hillsboro Elementary, reported on USD 410?s Head Start Preschool program. In addition to reviewing student demographics and their daily schedule, she talked about the challenges of the program as well as the benefits.
Goldsby?s staff has had four different teachers in the past four years, said HES principal Evan Yoder, who commended Goldsby for bringing stability to the program.
?Michelle is doing a wonderful job,? Yoder said.
The program is helping youngsters to be better prepared for kindergarten, he added.
Superintendent Steve Noble introduced the notion of ?virtual education,? which ESSDACK — Educational Services & Staff Development Association of Central Kansas — plans to launch in August 2011.
The program would allow child?ren to enroll in online public-school courses and be educated at home but still obtain the advantages of public education.
?I see it as a possibility to bring students into our school and (offer alternatives) for students at-risk,? Noble said, adding that funding will be channeled through local districts.
Noble then showed a multi-media presentation that introduced the notion of ?thinking divergently,? which promotes spontaneity rather than standardization in educating students.
He also reported on a preliminary meeting with Keith Harder regarding formation of a USD 410 educational foundation board under the auspices of Hillsboro Community Foundation. Noble said he will update the board as he learns more about the possibilities.
The district-office renovation project timeline, Noble said, involves the following:
1. A pre-bid meeting at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 15 at Midway Motors.
2. A deadline for submitting bids to district office — 12:30 p.m. Nov. 30. The bids will be opened at 1 p.m.
3. Vince Jantz will vet the bidders and present his report at a special board meeting at 5 p.m. Dec. 6 in the high school Technology Room. The board will make a decision about the bids at the meeting.
Noble announced that next month?s regular meeting will begin at 5 p.m. Dec. 13 because of a Christ?mas program.
In other business, the board:
— appointed Eddie Weber, board president, as USD 410?s representative to the Dec. 6 meeting of the Kansas Association of School Boards.
— approved the resignation of Jessi Weisbeck as HES library aide.
— approved contracts for Karen Fryhover, Mike Moran and Jordan Funk as Paths to Adventure sponsors; Brenda Kimberly and Eileen Butler as HES aides; and Katie Mount as assistant HHS girls? basketball coach.
— approved Parent as Teacher contracts for Karen Elliot for 12 hours per week and Jamie Norris for 32 hours per week, and PAT contract adjustments for Becky Suderman at 20 hours per week and Lori Soo Hoo at 32 hours per week.
— heard brief updates from the building administrators — Yoder, Greg Brown and Max Heinrichs.
— met in executive session to discuss matters of personnel. No action was taken.