Mitchell Board of Education approves first reading on board member reimbursement policy

Oct. 15—MITCHELL — The Mitchell Board of Education approved the first reading on a policy change that will alter the way the district pays its board members for official events at its most recent meeting Tuesday night.

The board made the decision on unanimous vote during its meeting at Mitchell High School.

The board altered the current policy by changing the method of payments per official and obligatory meetings to a percentage of the maximum amount allowed by state law. The board agreed on an amount of 36% of the state maximum, which is currently at $166 per meeting. That is roughly equal to the $60 per official meeting that the district currently pays board of education members.

The board also removed the $2,400 annual maximum for reimbursement to board members, but left the 40 event maximum that was also a restriction in the previous form of the policy.

Terry Aslesen, a member of the board, had previously suggested switching to a percentage of the state maximum as well as removing both the $2,400 maximum and the 40-event maximum. A motion by Aslesen and seconded by Shawn Ruml included both those changes but the effort died on a 1-4 vote, with Aslesen casting the lone yes vote while Deb Olson, Brittni Flood, Ruml and Deb Everson all cast a no vote.

A second motion, by Ruml and seconded by Olson, that included the percentage language and kept the 40-event limit while removing the $2,400 limit, passed by unanimous vote after further discussion.

Aslesen said one of his concerns with the original Policy 211 was that it could stifle qualified individuals from running for the board. Aslesen cited the fact that most board of education candidates run unopposed, and limiting pay for what amount to meetings and events that are obligatory could be a deterrent. That could be especially true for parents in the district, who may need to pay for childcare in order to attend meetings and events.

He noted that with the district also including Mitchell Technical College, board members can have more committee meetings or obligatory events to attend than many other districts in the state and it was fair to compensate them for their time. He pointed out that only Mitchell and Watertown had any kind of cap on board member reimbursement.

"My concern is if it's too low and expect people to spend money on an election, I see this as a potential financial hardship and it could be detrimental to getting good people to run," Aslesen said. "And there are a ton of advisory meetings. Compared to other districts, our district doesn't really compare that way. I think the cap should be gone, and I think the price per meeting should be a multiplier."

Changing to a percentage would keep future boards from having to adjust payment amounts, as it would always be a percentage of whatever the state allows. Removing the $2,400 cap would also prevent future boards from having to up that amount to keep up whenever the state maximum changes.

Deb Olson, another member of the board, said she didn't feel board pay was a deterrent for those seeking office since she believes those who serve on the board do so out of a desire to serve, not make money.

"I think service is important in my life, and I don't look at this as an opportunity to gain a salary. It's a service I can do for the students and parents and community and that was one of the reasons I wanted to do it," Olson said. "I didn't even know the salary when I chose to run to be a board member. It just wasn't in the realm of what I was thinking. It isn't about money, it's about having a passion for education and the students and what's happening in our school district."

Olson did vote in favor of the second motion on the policy, which included the change to a percentage and removed the $2,400 limit.

Ruml said that he saw Aslesen's point about thinking toward the future and noted he was in favor of eliminating the $2,400 cap on yearly reimbursements. He suggested the addition of guidelines that would determine whether or not an event a board member attends requires reimbursement or not. Under the current system, reimbursement is at the discretion of the administration, which almost always approves such vouchers.

"There is more to saying it's being in it for the money. I don't understand the cap other than that's the way it's always been. I don't see the purpose of the cap if you're doing events," Ruml said.

Theresa Kriese, business manager for the district, said it was extremely rare for a voucher to be declined, noting she had only once declined a voucher due to a limit, and that was for Aslesen the year before.

Joe Childs, superintendent for the district, said following the meeting that the change would not have much impact in budgetary terms, but he estimated the change would keep board reimbursement in line with other districts without actually raising the current per meeting payment.

"The changes that were put in place don't have any real impact on us as far as budgetary impact right now. The board approved a multiplier of 36% of whatever the state maximum is," Childs said. "No board wants to give themselves an increase, so putting a multiplier in place today just means that future boards won't ever have to have this conversation."

The second reading for the policy is expected back in front of the board at its next regular meeting.

Also at the meeting, the board made the following personnel moves:

* The new certified hire of Heather Zins, volunteer wrestling coach, $1, effective 2024-25 school year.

* The new classified hires of Joel Sanchez, assistant boys soccer coach, $3,333, effective 2024-25 school year; Trevor Wilkinson, 7th grade assistant football coach, $2,244, effective 2024-25 school year; Noelle Rust, 0.6 computer aide/0.4 paraeducator at Longfellow Elementary, $16 per hour, 7.25 hours daily, effective Sept. 16, 2024; Erwin Garcia, volunteer boys soccer coach, $1, effective 2024-25 school year and Alex DePestal, volunteer high school wrestling coach, $1, effective 2024-25 school year.

* The transfer of Taramee Paulson, paraeducator at Gertie Belle Rogers Elementary to special education para at Longfellow Elementary, effective Sept. 30, 2024.

* The resignation of Hilaray Shelton, paraeducator at Longfellow Elementary, effective Sept. 13, 2024.

* The new Mitchell Technical College hire of Marc Adam Bakke, energy division students worker, $15 per hour, effective Sept. 23, 2024.

Also at the meeting, the board:

* Recognized Joe Van Peursem for being selected as the SDMEA Outstanding Young Music Educator of the Year, Jordan McKean for being named SHAPE SD Young Physical Education Teacher of the Year, the Mitchell School District art department and its state fair blue-ribbon recipients. It will also acknowledge the Mitchell Board of Education for earning an ALL Award for the 2023-24 school year.

* Approved a bid of $71,897 for a Mitchell Technical College bus.

* Declared items surplus.

* Reviewed and approved Policy 745 on second reading as presented.

* Heard board member reports.

* Heard the superintendent report.

The next meeting of the Mitchell Board of Education is scheduled for Oct. 28. That special meeting is intended as a workshop to study district goals and no action is expected.

The next regularly-scheduled meeting of the board is scheduled for Nov. 12.