LINN  — Linn R-2 Superintendent Bob James told board members at their last meeting that 10 non-resident students have enrolled this year.

“Another two or three either haven’t completed or started registration but have indicated they were interested in enrolling, so I predicted about eight to 12,” said James. “We’re solidly at 10, and we might end up at 12. Generally, we may have had one in the past more often.”

He added that about half are in the elementary and the others are in grades 7-12.

“About a third of them are coming to us out of convenience,” said James. “They work across the street, for instance, and they live close enough that they really want to make that work for them. The other reasons are programming and the school environment.”

Overall, James said the elementary enrollment is up by about 14 students, but middle/high school is down eight in total. “We’re looking at some of those trends,” he added. “Ninth grade to 10th grade somehow seems to be our biggest drop. For about three-quarters of them, it just ended up being life circumstances.”

In other business, James told board members the Annual School Board Report (ASBR) showed an ending fund balance of 40.2% following the 2023-24 school year.

“We’ve talked a few times already about that being slightly inflated because of remaining lease purchase funds, but we will still be comfortable around that 34 percent mark,” he explained.

That 40.2% balance includes some “pass-through funds” associated with the district’s lease-purchase items (track resurfacing, lighting, and fencing). The remaining lease-purchase balance constitutes approximately 6%, leaving R-2’s actual balance closer to 34%. “Having anticipated 31.5-32 percent conservatively, this places us in a slightly better position than expected,” said James.

James noted that auditors might suggest the district recode entries or move funds from one account to another, but he’s confident there won’t be a big swing if any at all. “We will go through an audit process, and I think we’ll do very well,” he added. “We are anticipating a smooth audit this fall that should have little to no effect on the fund balance.”

* Board members adopted Missouri’s official Special Education compliance program, which has been standard for several years. The alternative requires Linn R-2 to create a comprehensive plan as a district.

* The board approved AA’s Propane’s bid of $1.359 per gallon for 10,000 gallons for the school’s six tanks and offered special pricing of $1.509 per gallon for Linn R-2 employee families. AA’s service pricing is also the lowest in total costs, James noted, adding, “Their customer service was excellent last year.”

AA Propane also agreed to swap out the tanks at no charge.

MFA ($1.40), Lock’s Mill ($1.49), and Ferrellgas ($1.685) also bid.

* Bus routes were approved as submitted with very little change from last year.

* Board members approved FFA’s request for its four-day trip to the National FFA Convention from Oct. 23-25 in Indianapolis, Ind.

The trip will include advisors Megan Niederhelm and Terry Shepherd, as well as an additional school-employed chaperone, and 20 freshman through senior FFA members who have excelled in their participation in chapter activities.

While in attendance, students will participate in a business session, general sessions, career expo, agricultural tours, and more. Linn will travel in a Cavalier coach bus with Vienna and Cuba FFA chapters to split the costs.

* The school has a checking and investment balance of $3,441,587.96, including investments of $489,288.05 through Mid America Bank.

SPECIAL EDUCATION UPDATE

Special Education Director Rylie Glenn told the board that inclusion has been a focal point in both special and general education.

“We’ve talked about what it means to have an inclusive environment, not just allowing our kiddos in the four walls, but really enhancing the learning process to make sure they can be a part of as many general education environments as possible,” Glenn said. “The general education teachers we have are second to none when it comes to that. I go to a lot of meetings with other school directors, and that’s a big area of focus. How do you guys get general education teachers to really want to include special education students, especially your high-need kiddos and they’re like, ‘If they’re breathing like they’re willing to do it.’ It’s an unfortunate situation for other districts, but we’re really fortunate here. I try to let the general education teachers know as much as possible how fortunate we are to have that here, but we want to elevate it. We never want just to be satisfied where we’re at, but really elevate it and build upon that, especially with new teachers, and since it sounds like even schools within our conference are struggling with that. That’s a big goal of ours, and we’re rocking it.”

Glenn is working with new department teachers to ensure they understand the new processes that involve enhanced expectations. “That was a big goal of mine throughout our first few days of Professional Development (PD), with the first few days of school,” she added. “It seems like that transition has happened pretty seamlessly, and I’ll continue to monitor it throughout the year.”

At the beginning of the school year, 76 students were enrolled in Special Education, including 17 at the high school, 15 at the middle school, and 37 in elementary. The department will serve two students at St. George.

Glenn told the board the department has maintained demographics according to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), which means the evaluation process is diligent. “We’re doing a good job of following DESE’s standards and indicators,” she added.