McCook Daily Gazette: News : McCook Public Schools

McCook Public Schools

Action by the school board and news related to the schools.

Board OKs $389k for staff buyout (03/09/10)
McCook Public Schools board of education members at their monthly meeting Monday evening approved paying $389,000 in early retirement incentives to 10 teachers who represent 230 years of experience. The board offered the one-time early retirement program, called "Temporary Separation Incentive Policy," in January in anticipation of a reduction in state aid to McCook's school district. That reduction, Superintendent Grant Norgaard reported Monday evening, will be approximately $307,959...

Ten McCook teachers to accept buyouts (03/05/10)
Ten McCook Public Schools teachers have accepted one-time early retirement incentives, and their resignations will be discussed at the March board of education meeting Monday. The meeting, in the junior high conference room, begins at 6 p.m. The school district's "Temporary Separation Incentive Policy" program is designed to save personnel costs, replacing a higher-earning long-time teacher/administrator with a younger candidate hired at a lower salary. ...

School board OKs SPED director, classroom addition (02/19/10)
McCook Public School board of education members approved a contract for the new special education director and plans for a classroom addition at McCook Elementary during a special board meeting at noon Friday. John Hanson of Elba will split his time as SPED director 60/40 between McCook Public Schools and Educational Service Unit No. 15, Trenton, when he starts with the 2010-2011 school year...

School may add 5 minutes to schedule (02/02/10)
McCook Public Schools may add five minutes to its schedule for the 2010-11 school year. Superintendent Grant Norgaard told board members at their monthly meeting Monday evening that two instructional days lost in next year's calendar due to teacher training can be recaptured by adding five minutes to the daily schedule. "There is a need to lengthen classroom time on day-to-day basics to get content and curriculum covered," he said...

Top bidders disappointed in rejection of District 8 offer (02/02/10)
By CONNIE JO DISCOE Regional Editor The decision Monday evening to list the former District 8 schoolhouse for sale disappointed the rural McCook couple who submitted the high bid at the property auction last Friday. Following a 50-minute closed session called during the board's monthly meeting to discuss personnel and the sale of District 8 property, board members voted 4-2 to reject all bids for the property and list it for sale with a real estate agent. ...

No sale: Bid for old Distrct 8 school not high enough (01/29/10)
The former District 8 schoolhouse two miles southwest of McCook did not sell at auction Friday morning. The final bid of $48,000 generated at the auction at the Chief Restaurant and any other subsequent bids will be presented to the McCook Public Schools board of education at its meeting Monday, starting at 6 p.m. in the conference room of the junior high...

School board approves one-time buyout plan (01/12/10)
McCook Public Schools' board of education Monday evening approved a one-time program to pay financial incentives to long-time teachers and administrators wanting to leave the school system, a program reacting to an anticipated reduction in state aid...

Higher scores credited to new learning system (11/12/09)
McCook Public Schools Superintendent Grant Norgaard and staff members Karen Miller and Gayle Sharkey updated school board members Monday on assessments and school improvement, which, Norgaard said, are getting more attention from the state's Department of Education...

Old District 8 on agenda (11/09/09)
McCook Public Schools board of education members will discuss the fate of the District 8 school house facilities and the planning of special education classrooms at McCook Elementary during their meeting starting at 6 p.m., today, in the junior high conference room...

Superintendent thinks new school is cool (09/09/09)
McCook's public school system has met or exceeded the expectations of its new superintendent, a former elementary and junior high principal in Benkelman in 2000-01, who dreamed then of becoming McCook's top school administrator. Grant Norgaard said Thursday morning, from his new office in the senior high, that he and his wife, Michele, visited McCook almost every weekend when they lived in Benkelman, for shopping or socializing. ...

MHS homecoming candidates (08/26/09)
McCook High School's "Homecoming 2009" royalty candidates pose in the school's LeRoy Hoehner Memorial Park Wednesday morning. The queen and king and their attendants will be announced following the McCook-Sidney football game Friday evening. The game starts at 7 p.m., at Weiland Field. ...

Board approves salary agreement (08/24/09)
McCook Public Schools board of education members at noon Friday approved a 2009-10 agreement with certificated staff and the McCook Education Association, raising the base teacher's salary by $1,273 a year. School board president Tom Bredvick reported, following closed session during a special meeting, that the salary for a new teacher in the McCook school system increases from $28,770 to $30,043...

Board approves trip for ag team (08/11/09)
The McCook Public Schools board of education Monday evening approved a trip to the Kansas City American Royal livestock judging competition by a team of McCook High School ag students. If the MHS team is selected as Nebraska's representative from among the top five teams in the state, ag instructor Josh Schieber and chaperones will accompany team members Samantha Yonkers, Will Miller, Katelyn Fritsche and Amanda Shields to the judging competition Nov. 1...

Special ed interim, new anti-bullying policy approved (07/14/09)
By CONNIE JO DISCOE Regional Editor McCook Public Schools' new superintendent, Grant Norgaard, presided over his first board of education meeting Monday evening, overseeing the board as it hired an interim special education director and approved the school district's new anti-bullying policy...

Schley: Teacher's won't roast (05/14/09)
McCook Public Schools Superintendent Dave Schley promised "not to barbecue" teachers at the high school by proposing at the board of education meeting Monday to eliminate the built-in early-dismissal heat schedule for the first week of school this fall...

New science curriculum called bargain (05/13/09)

School taking part in effort to promote area (05/12/09)
The McCook Public Schools board of education approved, on a 5-1 vote, the schools' involvement in an eight-member inter-local cooperation project to design a marketing plan to promote the McCook area. The schools' involvement would require a $1,000 contribution for each of the next two years and provide one position on the 13-member board. ...

Stimulus funds could help add classrooms (05/12/09)
McCook Public Schools could use its American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds to add four early childhood preschool classrooms at McCook Elementary. That concept would meet the federal government's requirement that its recovery funds be used for special education projects. Moving preschool special education students into new classrooms would free up existing classroom space for K-3 students, several of whose populations are larger than normal...

Teacher wins 'Rookie of the Year' honors (05/01/09)
McCook Junior High's eighth grade social studies teacher and the high school's assistant softball coach has been named the "Rookie Teacher of the Year" by the Nebraska State Education Association. Craig Dickes, who has taught in McCook and coached seventh grade girls basketball and eighth grade boys basketball as assistant coach since the 2007-08 school year, was nominated for the award by fellow teachers for, among other traits, his "excellent classroom management skills."...

Walk to School Day (04/29/09)
Helen Hackney walks her granddaughter, Jacinda Ramirez to McCook Elementary this morning, during the school's Walk to School Day. Students and families enjoyed fruit and juice in the school commons area after their walks. Besides walking to school students will also be cleaning up the parks and playgrounds this afternoon in honor of Keep Nebraska Beautiful Day...

Board approves credit recovery summer school (04/16/09)
McCook junior and senior high students with failing grades can make up missing credit hours at summer school this summer. McCook Public Schools board of education members Tuesday evening unanimously approved the start of summer school classes and the implementation of a computer software credit recovery curriculum called "A+."...

Cooler classrooms ahead for Junior High (04/15/09)
Over the objections of two board members, McCook Public Schools' board of education Tuesday evening approved a contract with a Kearney company to install air conditioning at the junior high. Concerns about America's economic woes and optimism about maybe getting a lower price later caused Larry Shields and Shane Messersmith to cast "No" votes to the bid from the Siemens Co. to air condition the junior high for $392,886.64...

School board studies half-million dollar air conditioning plans (03/26/09)
McCook's junior high school will be air conditioned this summer if the board of education proceeds with one of the two proposals made during a special board meeting Tuesday evening. Installing air conditioning in the 43-year-old building could cost as much as half a million dollars...

School may hire new secondary art teacher (03/25/09)
McCook Public Schools may hire a teacher for art classes at the junior and senior high, the board of education authorizing the advertisement of the new position during a special board meeting Tuesday evening. It was a recommendation from the board's programs committee (board members Diane Lyons and Scott Johnson and Superintendent Dave Schley) to advertise for an instructor to teach two exploratory art classes at the junior high and one class at the senior high (in addition to current teacher Steve Clapp's schedule). ...

City irons out rules for new wireless tower at school (03/17/09)
Conflicting language in a city ordinance about wireless towers was ironed out by the McCook City Council Monday night. The amended ordinance now allows a 75-foot tower to be built at McCook Elementary. Operating on a skeleton crew with only three council members present -- Mayor Dennis Berry was absent due to a health issue and Councilman Jack Rogers was excused -- the rest of the council approved on its first reading an amended ordinance that allows school districts to have their own wireless towers, as long as the tower is separated from a church or residential structure by 100 percent of the height of the tower.. ...

Art proponent worries about timing (03/10/09)
Discussion of creating an elementary art program at McCook Public Schools started Monday evening when the president of the McCook Art Guild worried about moving the April school board meeting from the 13th to the 20th. Ray Walter, representing the art guild, told board members that he was afraid McCook would miss opportunities to sign a contract(s) with an art teacher(s) if the board met after April 15, a date by which teachers' contracts are generally signed and/or renewed...

English as second language enrollment climbing (02/11/09)
In 2000, McCook Public Schools had no children documented as "English Language Learners." Four years later, in 2004, Carolyn Klimper's job helping 10 or so McCook students who were learning English as their second language started as "a side job," "extra duty," with her sixth grade English teaching job at McCook Public Schools...

School calendar approved, despite concerns over interruptions (02/11/09)
One board member couldn't approve the 2009-10 school calendar ultimately OK'd by the McCook Public Schools board of education at its meeting Monday evening. Superintendent Dave Schley told board members and members of the public, "Everyone's had a whack at it -- it's the best we could come up with. It's not going to please everyone."...

Software system for at-risk students approved (02/10/09)
The absolute support of the schools' curriculum director and several teachers convinced the McCook Public Schools board of education Monday evening to purchase a computer software learning system designed to help at-risk students recover class credits and get closer to earning their high school diplomas on time...