District 88

Board OKs

bond sale

Two FFA head advisers

approved despite reservations

By KREMENA TODOROVA

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- The District 88 Board of Education Thursday accepted the competitive bid for the sale of $685,000 worth of general obligation bonds.

The district received several "very competitive" bids, and ended up with an interest rate that was 60 basis points lower than a month ago, when the sale was set, said John Nefsted of Springsted Advisors, the firm that handled the deal.

Nefsted said these facts testified to the school system's good financial condition -- especially given that many school districts are in statutory debt.

Nefsted also noted that Moody's rating service is acknowledging District 88's "strong financial management" by giving it a AA rating. (A high rating from Moody's generally helps lower the cost of debt.)

According to Superintendent Harold Remme, a AA rating is "very unusual for a district with a similar enrollment decline."

"Because of the enrollment decline, they would have normally given a B rating," said Remme. "However, because of evidence of planning to cope with declining enrollment and the maintenance of appropriate fund balances, our rating was higher than would have been expected."

FFA adviser debate

Acting on a recommendation from the administration -- and despite a board member's reservations -- the board voted 6-1 to approve two head FFA adviser positions for 2003-2004.

Dissenting board member Susan Nierengarten called for the approval of a head and an assistant adviser contracts, but her motion died for lack of support.

Justifying the administration's recommendation, Remme said that FFA membership this year stands at 159 students, which is comparable to last year's 174 students, when two head advisers were approved.

Remme also noted that FFA advisers are active year-round, not just seasonally like, for example, football or wrestling coaches. Remme did acknowledge that FFA advisers get extra compensation for summer work.

Nierengarten, in turn, argued that having two head advisers opens the door for analogous requests from other departments.

She stressed that work-load inequities should be addressed by adjusting the compensation for, rather than the classification of, a position -- and that this should be part of the process of contractual negotiation.

While Nierengarten was the only board member voting against the arrangements that were ultimately approved, board members Carol Ackerson and Steve Wachter indicated after the vote that they sympathized with Nierengarten's concerns.

They explained their "yes" votes with being unwilling to change the assumptions under which the FFA advisers, who are already well into their work, started the school year.

A student representing the FFA also addressed the board during the discussion, speaking in favor of the approval of two head contracts.

Head FFA advisers receive between $1,056 and $1,385 a year depending on experience. Assistants receive between $639 and $746.

Policy revisions

The board approved revisions to policies on: open and closed meetings; public participation in board meetings; weapons and assault; administrators' code of ethics; and the Pledge of Allegiance.

The revisions comply with changes in state law and are discussed in advance by the district's policy committee.

The district also subscribes to a service that looks at legislative changes and updates districts on what changes should be made to policies.

The changes are rarely substantive, and are rarely discussed at meetings of the entire board; but they are available to board members and the public in advance.