School board looks at growth projections

The Tea board of education met March 13 and heard from high school staff about the district’s honors program.

High school English teacher Allison Bertram and counselor Kara Spieler explained to the board how the high school honors program worked. Bertram said their goal is to challenge students academically and prepare them for success in a college setting.

Honors classes for freshmen include honors English I literature and composition, honors biology, math (algebra or geometry), honors world history and geography, multimedia or IT exploration and PE.

Honors courses for sophomores include honors composition II and speech, honors chemistry, math (geometry, algebra II, precalculus) and AP U.S. history.

Juniors can take honors English III American literature and composition, math (algebra II, precalculus, trigonometry) and physics. Seniors can take college English, math (trigonometry, calculus), upper level science (anatomy, biomedical science), personal finance/economics, government and senior experience or internship.

They said 233 dual credit courses are being taken this year and none have failed.

Staff noted they speak with incoming freshmen and their parents before they sign up for classes.

High school graduation coach Mike Bullis talked about Titan Hour. Titan Hour helps students who are struggling in some of the core classes and helps them catch up.

Superintendent Jennifer Lowery presented projections for growth in the school district over the next 13 years. Projections show the need for more classroom space. She plans to have public input sessions at the high school March 27 and 30 both from 7-8 p.m. Look for more information in next week’s newspaper.

The board approve the minutes from the Feb. 13 school board meeting, Feb. 3 special meeting about construction manager interviews and Feb. 6 special meeting about architect interviews. They also approved the receipt of financials and bills. Business manager Chris Esping noted they received a payment from Lennox for $80,443.05.

Esping also noted the final audit has been submitted and accepted by the state. Copies are available and it has been posted to the district’s website. She also said they received their yearly state public lands apportionment payment and it was $6,000 higher than last year and about $9,800 more than what they budgeted.