MITCHELL — The Mitchell School Board heard positive feedback about the Mitchell School District's dual credit program, but took no action regarding establishing new administrative policies regarding the program.
Monday night's meeting was held at the Mitchell Career Technical Education Academy.
“I think we all agree that this is a great thing, but I think it's important to have a policy that states what we're going to do going forward,” school board member Terry Aslesen said at the meeting. ” he said.
Aslesen was referring to questions about dual credit programs that give eligible high school students the opportunity to enroll in South Dakota's public universities and earn credits for both a high school diploma and a college degree. According to the South Dakota Board of Regents, through this program, students pay only one-third of the total cost per credit hour if they meet the system general education requirements at all six institutions.
The program is relatively widely available to students within the district, allowing them to enroll in classes that earn them college credit at any of six South Dakota schools overseen by the South Dakota Board of Regents. The six schools are Black Hills State University, Dakota State University, Northern State University, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, South Dakota State University, and the University of South Dakota.
After receiving professional and parental comments from multiple district administrators, Aslesen assured that the system will be used to its maximum effectiveness and in the best interest of students. Therefore, I thought it might be necessary to introduce a formal board of education policy. Issues about the program raised at the meeting included concerns about students taking speech and physical education courses through online dual credit offerings.
Mitchell School District Superintendent Joe Childs said nearly all students at Mitchell High School have taken traditional speech at some point, and students will take an online physical education course for dual credit. He said the example occurred a long time ago and is not standard practice.
Still, Aslesen said he thinks policies that guide programs at the district level could be helpful.
“I think the board needs to look at these things and say one of our main responsibilities is the curriculum, which is a huge amount of curriculum and out of the four years that children spend. We're talking about more than a year's worth of stuff.''What's important to us is the curriculum, and how much control do we have over it or do we even know about it?'' Aslesen said. “I certainly think we need to look at what we're contributing to make sure we're happy with everything we're doing.”
Comments from administrators in attendance were generally supportive of the benefits the program brings to students and the district itself. The cost of taking dual credit courses is a fraction of the cost of credit hours taken outside of the program, so we encourage students with less financial means to take them.
This accessibility, combined with the ability for students to take college-level classes while still in high school, encourages students who did not plan to attend college or vocational school after high school to consider doing so. There is a possibility. The Mitchell School District is also an attractive admissions option.
Mitchell Middle School Principal John Tyler said children have been taking advantage of the program since moving from Wagner to Mitchell Middle School.
“My oldest daughter graduated from Wagner while we were still there. Many smaller school districts have limits on dual credit, and Wagner is one of them. When they moved to , the twins were sophomores and began taking dual credit courses. They both graduated last spring with 42 college credits,” Tyler said. “I know their older sister was very jealous of this opportunity. If we continue this program that allows dual credit the way it is now, it will be a big draw for our district and maybe one We're going to be able to attract students from the division. Every parent wants to give their child a chance, and I think this is a great opportunity for our students.”
Aslesen reiterated that despite concerns about possible policy changes, he supports the program and acknowledges its overall positive effects.
Mitchell School Board President Deb Olson was reluctant to rush into developing school board policy or administrative rules for the program beyond what had already been established.
The Board of Directors also made the following personnel changes at the meeting:
- $1 for new certified hires for Softball Volunteer Coach Chaydon Metzger. Maggie Kuttner, his 7th grade and his 8th grade math teacher at Mitchell Middle School, $53,100. Amanda Miller, special education teacher at Mitchell High School; Janesa Vanden Hoek, Mitchell High School/Second Her Chance ELA teacher, $50,100. Shelby Frey, Mitchell High School language arts teacher, $50,100. Jaycee Puetz, fourth grade teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, $50,100. Brooklyn Bortel, first grade teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, $50,100. Amy Wooher, third grade teacher Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, $50,100. Abigail Vermeulen, second grade teacher, LB Williams Elementary School, $50,100. Myah Roggenbuck, 5th grade teacher, LB Williams Elementary School, $50,100. Mary Hanson, LB Williams Elementary School 5th grade teacher, $50,100; Parker Grojon, LB Williams Elementary School 4th grade teacher, $50,100. All positions are effective starting in the 2024-25 academic year.
- New special hire of Brett Hofer, Maintenance Worker, $21 per hour, 8 hours per day, effective April 1, 2024.
- Ashley Bloor, a first grade teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, will be the K-1 loop teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, and Tracy Wilson, a third grade teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, will be a teacher at Mitchell Middle School. I moved to 6th grade ELA/Social Studies. Both transfers will be effective starting in the 2024-25 school year.
- The resignation of Caitlin Clement, kindergarten through first grade teacher at Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, is effective at the end of the 2023-24 school year. Mr. Zach Clement, 6th Grade Social Studies/ELA Teacher, Substantively Expected to End the 2023-24 School Year, Mr. Kent VanOverschelde, Head Softball Coach, Substantively Expected to End the 2023-24 School Year, Appropriate Waiting for a successor. Ms. Stephanie Baldwin, Assistant Educator, Mitchell Middle School, effective April 12, 2024, Ms. Teresa Zirpel, 4th grade teacher, Gertie Bell Rogers Elementary School, effective date, ends the 2023-24 school year.
- Mitchell College will be retiring Human Services Technician instructor Dixie Haar after the 2023-24 academic year.
- Mitchell Vocational School will be retiring Ranch Management Instructor Keir Mansen from the 2023-24 school year. Kerryl Nielsen, Student Success Coach/Counselor, effective June 30, 2024; Christina Tebay, Registered Nursing Instructor, effective end of the 2023-24 academic year.
Also at this meeting, the board is expected to:
- Mitchell Middle School Student Handbook Approval.
- The Workers’ Compensation Pool Group Renewal and Participation Agreement with South Dakota Affiliated School Boards for the 2024-25 school year has been approved.
- The South Dakota School District Benefit Fund Renewal and Participation Agreement with the South Dakota Conservation Trust Affiliated School Boards for the 2024-25 school year has been approved.
- Enter board meetings to prepare for contract negotiations or to negotiate with employees or employee representatives.
- I heard that the boat fitted out by the Mitchell Institute of Technology will be sold privately as there were no bids. The boat was put up for bid and the lowest bid was hers for $44,500.
- I heard the director's report.
- I heard the report from the superintendent.
- We listened to public comments.
The next Board of Education meeting is scheduled to be held on April 22nd.
Eric Kaufman joined The Mitchell Republic in July 2019 as an education and features reporter. He grew up in Freeman, South Dakota and graduated from Freeman High School. He graduated from the University of South Dakota in 1999 with a major in English and a minor in Computer Science. Contact him at ekaufman@mitchellrepublic.com.
