LONE TREE

In a night where the Lone Tree School Board moved through a lot, they were first greeted by the Tiny Techies, a group of second graders from Brittney Dvorsky’s class. The three young presenters taught the school board about various components of a computer, showing the knowledge they have gained and also handing out an example of their work.

The pleasant start to the night was carried over to the principal reports where both Andrew Koshatka and Amber Jacque presented some positive news from both wings of the school.

Koshatka shared news about reassessments and Esports, in response to the school board.

Reassessments will be universally set to 95%. This means the highest score a student can receive on a reassessment is 95%. It will be determined on a class-to-class basis who offers reassessments.

In regard to Esports, Koshatka announced that the club would like to attend the January board workshop meeting. The board has expressed concerns about Esports scheduling and the games they play. Competitions are set by an association and are not under control of the club, which makes scheduling with other sports a challenge.

The club does not hold practices in order to avoid conflict with other sports.

Other issues arose from the games they play. The board does not approve of first-person shooters and violent games. This includes a game titled “Valorant” which the Esports club pushed to be added to competition and thus was. Lone Tree signed up to have a team in the Spring and now the board has concluded that it will not be allowed.

HVAC Update

The board approved a bid from Doug’s Heating and Air based in Moline, Illinois, for work on the gym. Doug’s Heating and Air’s bid was for $254,675.00 which was the lowest bid of the three options; the other bids were for $335,000.00 and $355,000.00.

Shive-Hattery, whom Lone Tree is working closely with for the replacement of their boiler system, recommended Doug’s Heating and Air and will work closely with the company to make sure the project goes smoothly and to keep the actual cost as close to the bid price as possible.

4-Day calendar update

Lone Tree’s Superintendent, Tyler Hotz, updated in his superintendent’s report that he is working within the community to gauge the interest of a four-day calendar.

It will be looked at again in the January board meetings.

Board action

The board voted against the baseball team holding their opening night game on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, as it falls on a Wednesday. The board does not want any event being held past 6 p.m. on a Wednesday night, as it is viewed as a “family night.” Both Gordon Viers and Jennifer Eden voted for the baseball team to play whereas Robert Sladek, Alex Ogren and Andrew Hotz remained against it.

The board approved to work with Wood River Energy for one year, making one payment towards a years’ worth of natural gas costs. The board declined to approve a second year at the moment as they want to see how the first year plays out.

This allows Lone Tree to save money when gas prices skyrocket. It also allows the board to take the funds out of their management fund instead of the general fund, allowing them to hold more money for things like a teacher’s salary.

Finally, the board held a closed session to discuss the recommendation of termination for Sara Braun. After deliberation, the board moved to terminate Braun’s contract with the school. No further details on the matter are available.

Next board meeting: The Lone Tree School Board will next meet on Wednesday, Jan. 3 at 6:30 p.m. for a workshop.