Board Minutes - 2026.10.19

Board Minutes - 2026.10.19

Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont Community School District
Board Meeting Minutes
October 19, 2026

The Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont Community School District Board of Directors met at the District Offices in Eddyville on Monday, October 19, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. for a regular board meeting which included a public hearing on a categorical funds transfer resolution. Visitors in attendance: Ann Ohms, Dianna Daly-Hustad, Brenda Schmalzried, Mike DeWild, Cindy DeWild, and others who did not sign in.

Call to Order: President Judy called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Roll call: Ed Glenn – present; Eric Klyn – present; Brianne Batterson – present; Micah Van Mersbergen – present; Kyle Teach – present; Tyrone Lobberecht – present; Tom Judy – present. Quorum established.

Public Hearing-Categorical Funds Transfer Resolution: President Judy opened the public hearing at 6:00 pm.  There were no public comments.  Public hearing closed at 6:01 pm. 

Public Forum: None

Correspondence: Thank you received from Cathy Ray.  

Approve Agenda: Lobberecht moved, and Glenn seconded, to approve the agenda. Motion carried unanimously.

Reports & Presentations: Superintendent Scott Williamson, Jr/Sr High Principal Jordan Buell and Blakesburg Elementary Principal, Kayeleigh Rook each presented their board reports. Other reports submitted, but not read, were from the Curriculum Director and Director of Special Services. All reports are linked to the published agenda at https://rocketsk12.iowaschoolfinance.com/policy/board-meeting-agendas.

Consent Items: Van Mersbergen moved, and Teach seconded, to approve consent items 7a through 7c(vi), including the September 10, 2026, and September 21, 2026, board meeting minutes; account balances as of September 30, 2026; October bills list; review of board policies 429 – Employee Use of Cell Phones; 430 – Employee Use of Social Media; 431 – Employee Travel Compensation; 500 – Objectives for Equal Educational Opportunities for Students; and 501 – Resident Students; and the first reading of revised board policy 631 – Technology and Instructional Materials. Motion carried unanimously.

 

Van Mersbergen moved, and Glenn seconded, to approve item 7c(vii)1, the first reading of new board policy 105A – Equal Educational Opportunity – Notice of Section 504 Student and Parental Rights. Following discussion regarding the policy's title, Van Mersbergen moved, and Batterson seconded, to amend the original motion by changing the policy title to Equal Educational Opportunity – Section 504 Student and Parental Rights. The amendment carried unanimously. The original motion, as amended, carried unanimously.

 

Van Mersbergen moved, and Glenn seconded, to approve items 7c(vii)2–4, the first readings of new board policies 114 – Religious Expression; 733 – Fiscal Management; and 733A – Fiscal Management – Financial Metrics. Motion carried unanimously.

Personnel: Teach moved, and Klyn seconded, to approve the following personnel recommendations: hiring Mark Oglevie as Night Custodian at the Jr./Sr. High and Ashlyn Sheets as Assistant Softball Coach; approving Sarah Dalbey and Dane Francis as volunteer Archery Coaches and Madysen Wade as a volunteer Softball Coach; and accepting the resignation of Madysen Wade as paid Assistant Softball Coach. Motion carried unanimously.

 

Action Items:

  • Glenn moved, and Lobberecht seconded, to approve the Central College Student Teacher Agreement for 2026-27; the St. Ambrose Student Nurse Agreement for 2026-27 and the William Penn Student Nurse Clinical Affiliation Agreement for 2026-2029.  Motion carried unanimously.   
  • Van Mersbergen moved, and Lobberecht seconded, to accept the FY2024 Audit.  Motion carried unanimously.
  • Glenn moved, and Lobberecht seconded, to accept the FY2025 Audit.  Motion carried unanimously.
  • Glenn moved, and Van Mersbergen seconded, to approve the EBF Lau Plan 2026-27. Motion carried unanimously.
  • Glenn moved, and Teach seconded, to approve the Personnel Restructuring of District Office Positions appointing Jennifer Helm as School Business Official-Finance and assigning registrar duties to Molly Judy.  This restructuring will result in an overall reduction of 1.0 FTE. President Judy recused himself from the vote. Motion carried unanimously by the six voting board members.
  • Teach moved, and Lobberecht seconded, to approve Board Resolution FY27-01, authorizing a $40,000.00 Flexibility Funds Transfer from Professional Development funds. Following discussion, a roll call vote was taken: Glenn – yes, Klyn – yes, Batterson – yes, Van Mersbergen – yes, Teach – yes, Lobberecht – yes, and Judy – yes. Motion carried unanimously.
  • Glenn moved, and Lobberecht seconded, to approve the building transfer request for the DeWitt family from Blakesburg Elementary to Eddyville Elementary. Motion carried on a 4–3 vote. Voting in favor: Glenn, Teach, Lobberecht, and Judy. Voting against: Klyn, Batterson, and Van Mersbergen.

Discussion Items: Superintendent Williamson reviewed the FY2027 PPEL and SAVE projected revenues and expenditures and presented recommendations from the Focus Group's final meeting. The top five recommendations were:

  1. Consolidate PK–6 students into one elementary building.
  2. Establish a minimum enrollment standard for maintaining a class section.
  3. Align EBF staffing levels with Iowa school districts serving a similar number of elementary students.
  4. Establish enrollment triggers that require Board and administrative review.
  5. Commit EBF to a maximum of three elementary sections per grade level (PK–6).

Superintendent Williamson provided an overview of early retirement and discussed whether the Board would be interested in exploring the development and offering of an early retirement incentive plan for the current school year. He noted that the District last offered an early retirement plan in 2018 and that developing and implementing a plan would take approximately two months. The Board scheduled a work session for Monday, November 2, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. to further discuss early retirement and potential budget reductions.

The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 16, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. at the District Offices in Eddyville. The Board reviewed open enrollment applications. Current open positions include Elementary Music Teacher, Head Baseball Coach, Wrestling Cheer Sponsor, Basketball Cheer Sponsor, and substitutes for all positions.

Adjournment: Lobberecht moved, and Batterson seconded, to adjourn the board meeting. Meeting adjourned at 7:41 p.m.

 

 

______________________________                

Thomas Judy
Board President

 

______________________________

Mary McCrea
Board Secretary

mary.mccrea@ro… Wed, 10/21/2026 - 08:26