E-learning was a success

BERNE — Reviews for South Adams’ first e-learning day were mostly positive.

Administrators, teachers and students on Tuesday told South Adams School Board about their first experience with e-learning, which was implemented Monday when inclement weather caused schools to be closed.

The board also learned that South Adams will no longer be home to a Migrant Education Resource Center office, was updated on the conclusion of the guaranteed energy savings contract and held its board of finance meeting.

South Adams used an e-learning day for the first time Monday because of snowy conditions. The corporation had already used both of its built-in make-up days.

On e-learning days, teachers post assignments online via the school’s Canvas learning management system. Students then complete those assignments from home, with teachers and school administrators available to answer questions.

Student representatives Becah Schwartz and Ethan Duff told the board that some of their classmates said they would have rather simply gone to school Monday while others said they’d prefer to have e-learning every day. For them, though, the process went smoothly.

“I really liked it,” said Duff. “I didn’t really have any problems. I got everything done. And that seemed to be the consensus of everyone I talked to.

“I thought it was effective. It was efficient.”

Teachers and administrators also had mostly positive comments, saying the day went well, especially for a first try. Technology director Myra Moore said most of the 15 calls she got came from parents of elementary school students. High school principal Trent Lehman and others noted that in some cases it was challenging for larger families that had several students who needed to do work from the same home computer.

“From the middle school perspective, it went well,” said principal Jeff Rich. “You can measure that by how much stress or anger or frustration that I saw or dealt with. And that was none.”

Superintendent Scott Litwiller reported to the board that on Jan. 10 Indiana Department of Education informed the staff at South Adams’ Migrant Education Resource Center office that as a result of an expected large cut in federal funding, their office will close Aug. 31. There had been six migrant education offices in the state, and plans call for that number will be reduced to three.

Students who had been served by the office in Berne will shift to the South Bend office for the 2018-19 school year.

Litwiller said he plans to have positions on staff for Susie Amstutz and Julie Baumer, who worked at the migrant education office as South Adams employees.

Answering questions from several board members, he said the change will not impact South Adams’ enrollment count.

Litwiller also informed board members Arlene Amstutz, John Mann, Amy Orr, John Buckingham, Julie Mansfield and Landon Patterson, absent Mitch Sprunger, that South Adams has made its final payment on its guaranteed energy savings contract, which involved a $4.06 million loan taken out in 2007 to renovate the high school’s heating, ventilation and cooling system. It is estimated that the new, more energy-efficient system saves the school about $42,000 per year on its heating bill alone.

The board also held its required board of finance meeting, electing Amstutz as president and Patterson as secretary. Litwiller reported that total interest earned from Bank of Geneva and First Bank of Berne for 2017 was $25,892.61.

In other business, the board:

•Elected Amstutz as president, Mann as vice president and Patterson as secretary, set regular meetings for 6 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month, and re-appointed Rebecca Biberstein as recording secretary and board treasurer, Anne Schwartz as deputy treasurer, Amber Schwartz as extra-curricular treasurer and Tim Baker as legal counsel.

•Was presented with health insurance compliance and property tax revenue reports.

The school corporation’s health insurance costs came in at $1.43 million, or $11,458.96 per employee. That’s about 10 percent less than the state’s average cost per employee. A corporation’s cost may not exceed the state average by more than 12 percent.

The tax revenue report showed that South Adams brought in about $3.98 million in property taxes, which is 96.6 percent of its certified levy of $4.12 million.

•Approved field trips for Dots in Blue Water from June 5 through 12 to Haiti and career and technical education freshman students March 20 to the University of Northwestern Ohio and Wright State University.

•OK’d the additional of a part-time speech and language therapist position to the one full-time position that is already in place.

•Heard Litwiller plans to ask the Area 18 CTE Board to approve a second year of fire and rescue training classes. Fifteen juniors are enrolled this year and are interested in returning for the second year. Litwiller said he is also discussing the possibility of adding a computer science class and a family and consumer science class. Also under consideration is adding a guidance counselor.

•Approved the first reading of new policies regarding background checks for employees. The key change to the policy is that the school must conduct an expanded criminal background check on all employees at least once every five years. The board agreed to pay for the background checks on current employees, which is expected to cost about $1,000 per year. Litwiller plans to discuss the change with South Adams Classroom Teachers Association before the new policies come up for second and final reading.

•Heard from director of buildings and maintenance Dave Vorhees that all work is complete for the 2017 portion of the high school renovation project. The last major areas of work were replacing floors in the new science labs and adding walls around the library.

The 2018 portion of the project will proceed as planned, Litwiller said, with crews to being work on the renovation of the former office area in March.

•Hired Jill Baker as technical director for the school’s upcoming performance of “Bye Bye Birdie” and Manda Arnold and Riley Thompson as volunteer middle school swim coaches.

•Learned from technology director Myra Moore that the school’s technology fair is Feb. 1.

•Designated a $420 donation from an anonymous source to go toward the fifth grade camping trip.

•Learned school facilities will be used June 4 through 8 for a community Vacation Bible School.

•Heard from Litwiller that the board’s annual visitation day will be April 10.

•Learned from Duff that Snowcoming (a winter homecoming event) is scheduled for Feb. 12 through 16. A career and technical education showcase for eighth and ninth graders is slated for Jan. 31.