Herr, Brown appointed to school board

Holyoke School District Board of Education welcomed two new board members at its Tuesday, Aug. 2, meeting.

Jill Herr and Michael Brown were both approved to serve as board directors until the November 2023 election.

Board president Dusty Sprague administered the oath of office to the newly appointed board members.

Herr and Brown are filling vacant seats due to the resignation of board members Summer Kreider and Brady Ring earlier this year.

Handbook changes made for absences

JR/SR high school Principal Angie Powell reported on handbook changes at the Aug. 2 meeting. She pointed out that the only major change was clearly outlining the definitions of absences, which was developed after getting input from staff.

Students are allowed to have 10 absences, but this year, circumstances such as illnesses with a doctor’s note, a death in the family, court appearances and the need to translate for a family member won’t be part of that number.

“We don’t want to punish kids for things that are out of their control,” said Powell. “Not every situation is black and white.”

“Documentation is key,” said board member Jessica Koch.

Powell also said a closed campus 10-minute break was added to the JR/SR high morning schedule, and start and end times were tweaked slightly for both the JR/SR high and the elementary school.

Athletic/Activities Director Corey Koberstein also updated the athletic and coaches handbooks. “There were some cobwebs I had to shake off this thing,” he said.

Koberstein’s report on the coaches handbook led to discussion about how coaches are not covered with liability if they attend camps or have open gym in the off-season.

Koberstein pointed out that coaches with memberships in the Colorado High School Coaches Association do have some coverage.

Board members asked if the CHSCA membership should be a requirement or if the school should pay for the membership.

“I think it needs to be a requirement,” said Koch.

No action was taken on the topic.

District rethinks graduation date

The school will be gathering input to see if graduation, which is currently set for Sunday, May 21, 2023, could be bumped up one week to Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 14, 2023.

The original date could have potential conflicts with spring sports.

Superintendent Kyle Stumpf said that in future years, the school would like to consider holding graduation on a different day of the week than Sunday.

Other business

In other business at the Aug. 2 meeting, the board:

— Approved David Mauler as the head boys golf coach, Johana Nevarez as a JR/SR high building secretary and Bailey White as a special education paraprofessional.

— Approved resignations from Stormi Alberts as an elementary paraprofessional effective immediately and Stacy Krogmeier as a JR/SR high secretary effective July 28.

— Heard a report from Heather Tanner, director of dining services for Chartwells.

— Saw a presentation from FBLA students who attended the national convention this summer.

— Approved meal prices for the 2022-23 school year, noting the only prices that changed were for adult meals.