NRHEG board hears from para supporters

Nearly 30 visitors attended the Jan. 20 meeting of the NRHEG School board, most of whom were there in support of the district paraprofessionals, whose employment contract for the 2025-’26 school year is not yet settled. A mediation session was set to begin the morning of Jan. 21. A separate piece in this edition provides further information regarding the negotiations to date.

 

School nurse Carrie Petsinger shared information regarding a wellness grant of a few hundred dollars from the State Health Improvement Partnership. She described a wellness room the grant had made possible at the district’s elementary site in Ellendale. The room is available to adults in the building and is intended to provide a calm area where individuals can take a few minutes of respite from potentially busy or unsettling circumstances. Among the tools in the room are a comfortable chair, muted lighting, “mindfulness cards,” and other items meant to provide a few moments of reflection.

 

Elementary principal Dr. Kimberly Meyer briefly summarized some changes to the attendance policy at the elementary site. Stating that consistent attendance is a highly significant factor in student learning, she said that, going forward any arrival more than 30 minutes after the start of the day and any departure more than 30 minutes prior to the day’s end will be counted as a half-day absence.

 

Superintendent Michael Meihak provided a brief update regarding the privately constructed garage which extends into the high school parking lot at the New Richland site. The garage is due to be removed, he said, within the next couple of weeks, which will create a more open entry into the parking lot from State Highway 30.

 

He also shared that, as the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) continues planning and preparations for work due to be performed on Hwy 30 in the summer of 2027, the removal of the garage has led to a planned wider entryway into the parking lot–from the current 20 or so feet to about 30 feet.

 

An informal discussion regarding school policy when it comes to weather-related closures led to the shared conclusion that, with 365 square miles of land spread across three counties, decisions about closures can be complicated. “It might be snowing hard in one part of the district,” observed board member Amy Ihrke during the conversation, “but everything might seem fine in another part.”

 

Another discussion involved district teaching and learning coordinator Kendra Peterson, who had mentioned during her report that preparations for the spring round of Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs) is underway.

 

The tests are administered at school districts statewide. Students in grades 3 to 8 are tested in reading and mathematics; tests in science are administered in grades 5 and 8. High school students are tested in reading in grade 10, mathematics in grade 11, and at various grade levels in science. 

 

The  Department of education states the purpose of the tests is to “determine mastery of concepts and skills and to measure progress toward goals and objectives.”

 

Scores on the tests do not affect student grades, but can be implied to send a message about the success of various education programs and systems.

 

The tests tend to be unpopular among high school students, leading a significant number to take advantage of the possibility of “opting out,” something which can be done if parents sign appropriate forms. While there is no penalty to the student for choosing not to take the test, the district’s standing is harmed when the number reaches certain thresholds.

 

A spontaneous discussion among staff and board members speculated about incentives which could change student attitudes toward the test from one of withdrawal to a mood of challenge and shared achievement.

 

It was mentioned that other districts have built incentive programs around student activity passes–not so much about whether students achieve strong scores or not, but about whether a target number of students in a grade choose to take the test.

 

No conclusions were reached, but all present were encouraged to give the matter further thought and to share any ideas in the future.