Dorchester Times: Feb. 16 School Board Minutes: Bell Monument To Be Ready By Alumni Banquet

Friday, February 20, 2009

Feb. 16 School Board Minutes: Bell Monument To Be Ready By Alumni Banquet

(The following minutes from the Feb. 16 Dorchester Board of Education meeting appear as submitted to the Times by school administration staff.)

President Brad Havlat called the regular monthly meeting of the Board of Education of Saline County School District 76-0044, a.k.a. as Dorchester Public Schools, to order at 7:06 pm on Monday, Feb. 16, 2009. All members were present along with Superintendent Brian Redinger, Principal Mitch Kubicek, Joyce Karl and Scott Pohl, AD. Motion by Bors, second by Hansen to approve minutes of the January regular meeting. Members voting yes to the motion were Bors, Hansen, Zoubek, Boller, Kahle and Havlat. Motion passed by a vote of 6-0. There were no visitors present at this time.

After verification of publication of the meeting notice in the Crete News, local postings of the meeting notice (Dorchester Schools, Farmers Coop, First State Bank and the Village Office) and the advanced receipt of the meeting agenda and other meeting materials by individual board members, the President stipulated that meeting minutes should reflect that this meeting was held in compliance with the Neb. Open Meetings Law. It was also noted the Open Meeting Act Poster is posted in the boardroom. There was a request for a change of agenda. An executive session was added to discuss legal issues.

The January Treasurer’s Report was reviewed. Motion by Kahle, second by Bors to approve the January Report. Voting yes were Kahle, Bors, Boller, Zoubek, Hansen and Havlat. Motion passed 6-0. Motion to approve January 2009 end of the month and February general fund expenditures, along with year to date expenditures from the Special Building, Depreciation, Bond, Employees Benefit, Student Fees, Lunch and Activities Funds was made by Boller, second by Hansen. Voting yes were Boller, Hansen, Bors, Kahle, Zoubek and Havlat. Motion passed 6-0.

Committee Reports:

Building/Grounds Committee – A time capsule will be made for the bell monument out of stainless steel. A 10 X 22 tube is being donated so the only cost will be with sealing the ends. The bell monument is scheduled to be done by the Alumni Banquet. The Wellness Committee will be meeting after basketball has concluded.

7:45 pm Cindy Havlat arrived. Cindy presented information on a scholarship trust. The Board asked her to obtain some more information concerning start up costs and etc. Cindy will be in contact with Mr. Redinger. The Board supported the formation of the scholarship trust.

Principal’s Report: Mr. Kubicek discussed proposed changes to the student handbook. Changes will be tabled until the July meeting.

Superintendent’s Report: Mr. Redinger discussed current legislation including LB240, LB61, LB228, LB102 and LB225. A new Pepsi contract was discussed and Mr. Pohl will contact Coke. There are new Federal Wellness guidelines going into effect regarding types and size of drinks allowed to be sold in schools. Running an option student ad was also discussed.

New Business:
a) The scholarship trust information was presented at 7:45 pm.

b) Motion by Kahle, second by Bors to approve the 2009-2010 School Calendar. Voting yes were Kahle, Bors, Hansen, Boller, Zoubek and Havlat. Motion passed 6-0.

c) Motion Boller, second by Zoubek to approve the FBLA request to attend the State Leadership Conference, April 2-4, in Omaha. Voting yes were Boller, Zoubek, Bors, Kahle, Hansen and Havlat. Motion passed 6-0.

d) Motion by Boller, second by Zoubek to approve the resignation of Mr. David Kampmann, Secondary Social Studies teacher. Voting yes were Boller, Zoubek, Bors, Hansen, Kahle and Havlat. Motion passed 6-0.

e) The Board of Education recognized the Dorchester Education Association as the 2009-2010 bargaining agent for certified staff.

Motion by Zoubek, second by Hansen to adjourn to executive session at 9:10 pm. All members voted aye. Motion by Bors, second by Hansen to return to regular session at 9:38 pm. All members voted aye. The next regular monthly meeting of the Dorchester Board of Education will be Monday, March 9, 2009 at 7:00 pm. Motion by Kahle, second by Hansen to adjourn at 9:40 pm. All members voted aye.

Ron Kahle
(s) Ron Kahle, Secretary of the Board of Education

8 comments:

AnonymousFebruary 20, 2009 at 1:19 PM
Who do we send money to to help pay for the bell monument?

Another thing, can we contribute items to the time capsule? How??
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AnonymousFebruary 20, 2009 at 5:14 PM
I think that you would probably get in contact with Don Eret or Tom Scheffert. Tom is president of the Alumni Association and I think that Don is the treasurer.
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AnonymousFebruary 20, 2009 at 10:54 PM
where can a person find the list of bills and what money is being spent on???
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AnonymousFebruary 23, 2009 at 9:24 PM
isnt it amazing that of all the people who read this blog, noone can give me information about school board minutes and bills.

I am sure there are board members or school employees that read this blog.

I think it is important that the public has this material available without having to search for it.
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AnonymousFebruary 24, 2009 at 8:26 AM
The information you desire would be public record and on file at the school office. I would guess bills are not listed here to conserve space.

Board members are wise to be tight lipped concerning comments. In this day nearly anything they say could be used against them by someone. It's unfortunate our elected officials have to worry about their conversations turning into a lawsuit.
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AnonymousFebruary 24, 2009 at 6:53 PM
I'm not sure what the bell monument is. Does it have anything to do with the bell that used to be mounted on the school grounds (east side of school)?
I understood that the large bell was to be used someplace in the new school. As a Dorchester Alumnus who doesn't make it back to the banquets, could someone please update me on the bell status? Thank you so much!
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AnonymousMarch 3, 2009 at 3:05 PM
still waiting for an answer to my question regarding the large bell that used to be mounted in an area east of the old school. What is being done with that old bell?
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AnonymousMarch 4, 2009 at 8:15 AM
It will be part of the new monument.
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Dorchester: A Good Little Family Town

Dorchester, Nebraska (est. population 630) is located in northern Saline county. Close in proximity to Interstate 80, Dorchester is only 25 minutes from the state capital of Lincoln (est. population 250,000) and about 55 minutes from Omaha (metro population 725,000).

Dorchester's median resident age is 37 years. In 2005, Dorchester had a median family income of approximately $35,600. The median house value was about $63,000. About 95 percent of Dorchester residents commute to work via Interstate and highways.

The village has a quality public school, which received a $4.1 million expansion and modernization in 2008; it offers a small classrooms and individualized attention. Total enrollment of grades K-12 is around 230-250 students.

Ancestries of the Dorchester area are primarily German (42.4%), Czech (24.9%), Irish (12.5%), English (5.4%), and Dutch (4.9%).

Dorchester Historical Facts

* On July 4, 1871, the railroad reached Dorchester.
* Incorporated in 1881, Dorchester's population grew from 200 to 500 by 1882.
* In 1882, Dorchester had 90 buildings, 35 of which were businesses or public facilities. Brick buildings lined both sides of Washington Avenue for two blocks.
* Dorchester's longest-running newspaper was The Dorchester Star, which was published until the late 1940s.
* By 1889, Dorchester's population is said to have reached 800, while the town housed an opera house, a two-story brick schoolhouse with a bell tower, and four churches.
* By the 1910s, Dorchester had electricity, a water tower and a fire department.
* Dorchester's main arteries, Highways 6 and 33, were graveled in the 1940s.
* Dorchester's first irrigation well was drilled on Chris Weber's farm and rural electrification was finished following WWII.

A Village with History

Dorchester is one of the "alphabet towns" on the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad line built west from Lincoln. The town site was selected for its pleasant location in the northern part of Saline County, about eight miles west of Crete. This situation is an attractive one, being on the level prairie land, midway between the West Blue River and Turkey Creek. The first named stream is three miles north, and the latter about the same distance south from the town. Dorchester was platted in 1870 and incorporated in 1881. The name "Dorchester" came from either for a suburb of Boston by that name or a town in England. No one is sure. Two of the very first settlers were James Seely and Edward McIntyre, who both made Dorchester their permanent home.

Dorchester: In The Beginning

Here is a look at Dorchester around 1890, less than a decade after its official incorporation, as documented by Andreas' History of the State of Nebraska:
* POPULATION: "About 300, and is made up of a substantial and progressive class of citizens, who are moral and industrious. ... The town grew but very little until the year 1879, for the reason that Pleasant Hill, on Turkey Creek, a short distance south, was the county seat and naturally drew a trade for quite a large scope of country."
* BUSINESS: "The business and professional interests of the town are represented by three general merchandise stores, two drug, one grocery, one furniture, two hardware, and two millinery stores, one bank, two restaurants, two hotels, three livery stables, a post office, one newspaper office, two elevators, two lumber yards, two coal yards, two blacksmith shops, two lawyers and four physicians."
* SCHOOL: "The schoolhouse is a good one. The schoolhouse was built in 1872, since which time the public schools have been continually kept up. The present schoolhouse is 24' x 40' in size, two stories high. The school is graded and consists of three departments. The house is found too small, and arrangements will soon be made to increase its size."
* CHURCHES: "There are three substantial churches."
* HOMES: "The residence portion of the village is made up of neat houses of different styles of architecture, but none of them very large."
* NEWSPAPER: "The Dorchester Star, which was established August 21, 1881, by H. C. Bittenbender, who edited it until January 19, 1882, when he sold it to Ryerson & Bullock, the present proprietors. The Star is a bright weekly paper, five-column quarto, in size, and is Republican in politics."