and the following voted against same:
None.
Whereupon said motion was declared duly passed and the resolution adopted.
Reports were presented by:
Mary Matteson – Community Education
Kirby Anderson – 544 Education Foundation, Finance, Activities
Melanie Cole – Spec Ed Coop, Region I
Missy Hermes – Staff Development, Policy
Natalie Knutson - Wellness, Buildings & Grounds
Matthew Lemke – MSHSL
Stephen Vigesaa – Curriculum Review
Jeff Drake – Superintendent
General Consent Items
The following consent agenda was presented for approval:
Minutes from the May 22, 2023 regular School Board meeting
Bills and Treasurer’s Report - reviewed by Melaine Cole and Kirby Anderson:
General Fund
$1,960,904.69
Food Service
$73,342.29
Community Service
$23,159.34
Building Fund
$82,709.59
Debt Service
$111,930.00
Trust & Agency
$60,946.00
Activities
$23,904.29
TOTAL
$2,336,896.20
Personnel
Support Staff Resignations:
Danielle Ross, Title 1 Paraprofessional @ Cleveland; effective end of 2022-23 school year
Rachel Venberg, nonpublic nurse; effective 5/31/2023
Sarah Kampa, truancy interventionist; effective end of 2022-23 school year
Sara Koch, special education paraprofessional; effective end of 2022-23 school year
Angela Gladback, special education paraprofessional; effective end of 2022-23 school year
Support Staff Retirement:
Amy Tietz, special education paraprofessional; effective end of 2022-23 school year
Support Staff Hires:
Christina Baglo, part-time floater custodian; effective 6/5/2023
Jessica Fosberg, accounts payable and purchasing associate; effective 6/20/2023
Jaime Sem, para educator (health office) 5 hrs/day @ Cleveland; effective 8/30/2023
Sarah Kampa, high school/asst. Principal secretary @ high school; effective 8/22/2023
Scott Samuelson, position change from a mechanical worker to a groundskeeper; effective 6/1/2023
Sara Koch, para educator @ PSC/Cleveland; effective start of 2023-24 school year
Myrna Minoza, para educator @ Adams; effective start of 2023-24 school year
Support Staff Contract Changes - Effective 7/1/2023 (FY2024):
Grade change to 5: Delivery Operator (Job description #608-Custodian)
Grade change to 6: Activities Office Assistant (Job description #210-Secretary)
Certified Staff LOA Requests:
Lana Ouren, iQ language arts teacher; request for one-year leave of absence; effective 7/1/2023-6/30/2024
Daniel Sternberg, elementary teacher; request for an extended leave of absence; effective 7/1/2023
Certified Staff Hires:
Gabrielle Fredrickson, elementary teacher; effective 8/28/2023
David George, elementary teacher; effective 8/28/2023
Jessica Holland, high school REACH teacher @ KSS; effective 8/28/2023
Nathan Dragseth, middle school PE teacher @ KSS; effective 8/28/2023
Stephen Vigesaa moved to approve the consent agenda. The motion was seconded by Missy Hermes and carried unanimously.
Old Business:
None
New Business:
Melanie Cole moved to approve the FY24 Membership with Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA) and Policy Services. The motion was seconded by Missy Hermes and carried unanimously.
Matthew Lemke moved to award the FY24 Bread Bid to Pan-O-Gold. The motion was seconded by Kirby Anderson and carried unanimously.
Matthew Lemke moved to approve the commercial insurance policy package through EMC Insurance for a total estimated cost of $190,000 for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. The motion was seconded by Melanie Cole and carried unanimously.
Kirby Anderson moved to approve the workers’ compensation policy through First Dakota Indemnity Company for a total estimated cost of $68,171 for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. The motion was seconded by Melanie Cole and carried unanimously.
Matthew Lemke moved to approve the FY24 Budget (Final Reading). The motion was seconded by Missy Hermes and carried unanimously.
Matthew Lemke offered the following resolution and moved for its adoption:
RESOLUTION STATING THE INTENTION OF THE SCHOOL BOARD TO ISSUE GENERAL OBLIGATION FACILITIES MAINTENANCE, CAPITAL FACILITIES AND TAX ABATEMENT BONDS, SERIES 2023A, IN THE AGGREGATE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF APPROXIMATELY $13,600,000; AND TAKING OTHER ACTIONS WITH RESPECT THERETO
BE IT RESOLVED by the School Board (the “Board”) of Independent School District No. 544 (Fergus Falls Public Schools), Otter Tail and Wilkin Counties, Minnesota (the “District”), as follows:
Background. The Board proposes to issue general obligation facilities maintenance bonds,
capital facilities bonds and tax abatement bonds. In connection therewith, it is hereby determined that:
(a) Rescission of Prior Resolution. On September 12, 2022, the Board adopted a
resolution stating the intention of the District to issue General Obligation Facilities Maintenance,
Capital Facilities, Tax Abatement and Refunding Bonds, Series 2022A (the “2022 Intent
Resolution”). The Board hereby rescinds the 2022 Intent Resolution and adopts the following:
(b) Facilities Maintenance Bonds.
(i) The District is authorized under the provisions of Minnesota Statutes,
Chapter 475, as amended (the “Act”), and Minnesota Statutes, Section 123B.595, as
amended (“Section 123B.595”), to issue general obligation facilities maintenance bonds
for the purpose of financing certain facilities and site maintenance projects approved by
the Commissioner of Education (the “Commissioner”).
(ii) The Board hereby finds and determines that it is necessary and expedient
to the sound financial management of the affairs of the District to issue its general
obligation facilities maintenance bonds (the “Facilities Maintenance Portion”), in the
aggregate principal amount not to exceed $7,500,000, pursuant to the Act and
Section 123B.595, to finance the costs of certain facilities and site maintenance projects of
the District which are included in the District’s ten-year facilities plan for Fiscal Year 2025,
(the “Plan”), and related financing costs (the “Facilities Maintenance Project”).
(iii) The Plan approved by the Board is incorporated in this Resolution as
though fully specified herein. District staff and officials are authorized and directed to
submit any amendments to the Plan and the proposed issuance of the Facilities
Maintenance Portion to the Commissioner for approval, as required by the Act and
Section 123B.595. District staff and officials are further authorized and directed to submit
to the Commissioner such additional information as may be necessary to secure such
Approval.
(b) Capital Facilities Bonds.
(i) The District is authorized under the provisions of the Act and Minnesota
Statutes, Section 123B.62, as amended (“Section 123B.62”), to issue general obligation
capital facilities bonds for the purpose of financing certain facilities and site maintenance
projects approved by the Commissioner.
(ii) The Board hereby finds and determines that it is necessary and expedient
to the sound financial management of the affairs of the District to tentatively authorize the
issuance of general obligation capital facilities bonds (the “Capital Facilities Portion”), in
the aggregate principal amount not to exceed $4,500,000, pursuant to the Act and Section
123B.62 to finance the remodeling of existing space for use as kindergarten classrooms
and related support spaces (the “Capital Facilities Project”). If issued, the Capital Facilities
Portion will mature within fifteen (15) years of the date of issuance.
(iii) The issuance of the Capital Facilities Portion shall become finally
authorized unless a petition calling for a referendum on the question of whether to issue
said Capital Facilities Portion, signed by more than fifteen percent (15%) of the registered
voters of the District, is filed with the Board within thirty (30) days of the date of the
adoption of this Resolution. A petition must be in the form required by law. The minimum
number of valid signatures for such a petition shall be determined with reference to the
number of registered voters in the District as of the last day before the petition is filed with
the Board.
(iv) District staff and officials are authorized and directed to submit to the
Commissioner such additional information as may be necessary to secure any further
approval of the Commissioner for the issuance of the Capital Facilities Portion that may be
required by Section 123B.62. The submission of information and a request for approval
prior to the date of this Resolution is ratified and approved in all respects.
(c) Tax Abatement Bonds.
(i) The District is authorized by the Act and Minnesota Statutes,
Sections 469.1812 to 469.1815, as amended (the “Abatement Act”) to issue general
obligation tax abatement bonds.
(ii) Pursuant to a resolution adopted by the Board on September 12, 2022 (the
“Abatement Resolution”), following a duly noticed public hearing, the Board approved a
property tax abatement (the “Abatements”) in the approximate amount of $1,978,834 for
certain property in the District (the “Abatement Parcels”) over a period of ten (10) years in
an amount sufficient to provide financing for parking lot construction, reconstruction and
improvements at school sites and facilities districtwide, and related financing costs (the
“Abatement Project”).
(iii) In the Abatement Resolution, the District found and determined that the
Abatement Project benefits the Abatement Parcels, that the Abatement Project will provide
access to services for residents in the District, and that the maximum principal amount of
bonds to be secured by Abatements does not exceed the estimated sum of Abatements from
the Abatement Parcels for the term authorized under the Abatement Resolution.
(iv) The Board hereby finds and determines that it is necessary and expedient
to the sound financial management of the affairs of the District to issue its general
obligation tax abatement bonds (the “Tax Abatement Portion”), in the maximum aggregate
principal amount of $1,600,000, pursuant to the Act and the Abatement Act to finance the
costs of the Abatement Project. The Facilities Maintenance Project, the Capital Facilities
Project, and the Abatement Project are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Projects.”
(d) The Board hereby determines that the Facilities Maintenance Portion, the Capital
Facilities Portion, and the Tax Abatement Portion shall be combined and issued as a single bond
issue in the original aggregate principal amount of approximately $13,600,000 (the “Bonds”). The
Board hereby designates the Bonds as the “General Obligation Facilities Maintenance, Capital
Facilities and Tax Abatement Bonds, Series 2023A.”
Covenant as to State Credit Enhancement.
(a) The District hereby covenants and obligates itself to notify the Commissioner of a
potential default in the payment of principal and interest on the Bonds and to use the provisions of
Minnesota Statutes, Section 126C.55 (the “Credit Enhancement Act”) to guarantee payment of the
principal and interest on the Bonds when due. The District further covenants to deposit with the
paying agent for the Bonds (the “Paying Agent”), or any successor paying agent, three (3) days
prior to the date on which a payment is due an amount sufficient to make that payment or to notify
the Commissioner that it will be unable to make all or a portion of that payment. The Paying Agent
is authorized and directed to notify the Commissioner if it becomes aware of a potential default in
the payment of principal or interest on the Bonds or if, on the day two (2) business days prior to
the date a payment is due on the Bonds, there are insufficient funds on deposit with the Paying
Agent to make that payment. The District understands that as a result of its covenant to be bound
by the provisions of the Credit Enhancement Act, the provisions of that section shall be binding as
long as any Bonds of this issue remain outstanding.
(b) The District further covenants to comply with all procedures now and hereafter
established by the Minnesota Departments of Management and Budget and Education pursuant to
subdivision 2(c) of the Credit Enhancement Act and otherwise to take such actions as necessary to
comply with that section. The Board Chair, Clerk, Treasurer, Superintendent, or Finance Director
of the District are authorized to execute any applicable Minnesota Department of Education forms.
Sale of Bonds. The Board has retained Ehlers and Associates, Inc. (the “Municipal
Advisor”), to serve as the District’s independent municipal advisor with respect to the offer and sale of the Bonds and, therefore, is authorized by Section 475.60, subdivision 2(9), of the Act to sell the Bonds other than pursuant to a competitive sale.
Procedure for Review of Proposals and Selection of Purchaser. The Board hereby
authorizes and directs the Superintendent or Business Manager and any Board member (the “Authorized Officials”), with the advice of the Municipal Advisor, to review proposals for the purchase of the Bonds and award the sale of the Bonds to the prospective purchaser (the “Purchaser”) based on the recommendation of the Municipal Advisor and the following parameter: the true interest cost of the Bonds shall not exceed five percent (5.00%).
Acceptance of Proposal. The Board shall meet at a regular or special meeting on the first
practicable date after acceptance by the Authorized Officials of the proposal of the Purchaser, to ratify such acceptance and take any other appropriate action with respect to the Bonds.
Authority of Municipal Advisor. The Municipal Advisor is authorized and directed to
assist the District in the preparation and dissemination of a Preliminary Official Statement to be distributed to potential purchasers of the Bonds. The Municipal Advisor is further authorized and directed to assist the District in the award and sale of the Bonds on behalf of the District after receipt of written proposals and to assist the District in the preparation and dissemination of a final Official Statement with respect to the Bonds.
Authority of Bond Counsel. The law firm of Kennedy & Graven, Chartered, is authorized
to act as bond counsel for the District (“Bond Counsel”), and to assist in the preparation and review of necessary documents, certificates, and instruments related to the Bonds. The officers, employees, and agents of the District are hereby authorized to assist Bond Counsel in the preparation of such documents, certificates, and instruments.
Notice of Issuance of Facilities Maintenance and Capital Facilities Bonds. The Clerk is
authorized and directed to publish a notice of the District’s intent to issue the Facilities Maintenance Portion and the Capital Facilities Portion of the Bonds in the official newspaper of the District, in substantially the form attached as EXHIBIT A hereto, as soon as reasonably practicable after adoption of this Resolution.
Reimbursement from Bond Proceeds. The District may incur certain expenditures that may
be financed temporarily from sources other than the Bonds, and reimbursed from the proceeds of the Bonds. Treasury Regulation § 1.150-2 (the “Reimbursement Regulations”) provides that proceeds of tax-exempt bonds allocated to reimburse expenditures originally paid from a source other than the tax-exempt bonds will not be deemed expended unless certain requirements are met. In order to preserve its ability to reimburse certain costs from proceeds of the Bonds in accordance with the Reimbursement Regulations, the District hereby makes its declaration of official intent (the “Declaration”) described below to reimburse certain costs.
(a) Declaration of Intent. The District proposes to issue the Bonds to finance the costs
of the Projects. The District may reimburse original expenditures made for certain costs of the
Projects from the proceeds of the Bonds in an estimated maximum principal amount of
$13,600,000. All reimbursed expenditures will be capital expenditures, costs of issuance of the
Bonds, or other expenditures eligible for reimbursement under Section 1.150-2(d)(3) of the
Reimbursement Regulations.
(b) Declaration Made Not Later Than 60 Days. This Declaration has been made not
later than sixty (60) days after payment of any original expenditure to be subject to a reimbursement allocation with respect to the proceeds of the Bonds, except for the following expenditures: (a) costs of issuance of the Bonds; (b) costs in an amount not in excess of $100,000 or five percent (5%) of the proceeds of the Bonds; or (c) ”preliminary expenditures” up to an amount not in excess of twenty (20) percent of the aggregate issue price of the Bonds that finance or are reasonably expected by the District to finance the Projects for which the preliminary expenditures were incurred. The term “preliminary expenditures” includes architectural, engineering, surveying, bond issuance, and similar costs that are incurred prior to commencement of acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of the Projects, other than land acquisition, site preparation, and similar costs incident to commencement of construction.
(c) Reasonable Expectations; Official Intent. This Declaration is an expression of the
reasonable expectations of the District based on the facts and circumstances known to the District
as of the date hereof. The anticipated original expenditures for the Projects and the principal
amount of the Bonds described in Section 9(a), above, are consistent with the District’s budgetary
and financial circumstances. No sources other than proceeds of the Bonds to be issued by the
District are, or are reasonably expected to be, reserved, allocated on a long-term basis, or otherwise set aside pursuant to the District’s budget or financial policies to pay such original expenditures. This resolution is intended to constitute a declaration of official intent for purposes of the Reimbursement Regulations.
The motion was seconded by Melanie Cole and upon roll call vote being taken, the following voted in favor thereof: Kirby Anderson, Melanie Cole, Missy Hermes, Natalie Knutson, Matthew Lemke, and Stephen Vigesaa;
and the following voted against same:
None.
Whereupon said motion was declared duly passed and the resolution adopted.
1. Melanie Cole offered the following resolution and moved for its adoption:
2023-2024 RESOLUTION FOR MEMBERSHIP IN THE MINNESOTA STATE HIGH SCHOOL LEAGUE
RESOLVED, that the Governing Board of Fergus Falls Public School District Number 544, located in the State of Minnesota delegates the control, supervision and regulation of interscholastic activities and athletics (referred to in MN Statutes, Section 128C.01) to the Minnesota State High School League, and so hereby certifies to the State Commissioner of Education as provided for by Minnesota Statutes.
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the school listed is authorized by this, the Governing Board of said school district or school to renew its membership in the Minnesota State High School League; and. Participate in the approved interscholastic activities and athletics sponsored by said League and its various subdivisions.
FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Governing Board or Entity hereby adopts the Constitution, Bylaws, Policies, Rules and Regulations of said League and all amendments thereto as the same as are published in the latest edition of the League’s Official Handbook, on file at the office of the school district or school, or as appears on the League’s website, as the minimum standards governing participation in said League-sponsored activities and athletics. Further, the administration and responsibility for determining student eligibility and for the supervision of such activities and athletics are assigned to the official representatives identified by this Governing Board or Entity.
The motion was seconded by Kirby Anderson and upon roll call vote being taken, the following voted in favor thereof: Kirby Anderson, Melanie Cole, Missy Hermes, Natalie Knutson, Matthew Lemke, and Stephen Vigesaa;
and the following voted against same:
None.
Whereupon said motion was declared duly passed and the resolution adopted.
1. Missy Hermes offered the following resolution and moved for its adoption:
RESOLUTION ON THE RETIREMENT OF AMY TIETZ
WHEREAS Amy Tietz began her employment with the Fergus Falls Public Schools in September 1999, and
WHEREAS Amy has been a valued employee with the Fergus Falls Public Schools for the past 24 years, and
WHEREAS Amy has been a dedicated aide of mastery instructor and special education paraprofessional for the district and,
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Fergus Falls School Board to thank Amy Tietz for her 24 years of service to the Fergus Falls Public Schools.
The motion was seconded by Stephen Vigesaa and upon roll call vote being taken, the following voted in favor thereof: Kirby Anderson, Melanie Cole, Missy Hermes, Natalie Knutson, Matthew Lemke, and Stephen Vigesaa;
and the following voted against same:
None.
Whereupon said motion was declared duly passed and the resolution adopted.
Principal Mark Anderson and Chris Grabowska addressed the board regarding the KSS weight room equipment.
Matthew Lemke moved to go into closed session at 8:39 am permitted by Minnesota Statute §13D.05, Subd.3, to discuss developing offers or counteroffers for the purchase or sale of real or personal property - Parcel: 71001500055000. The motion was seconded by Kirby Anderson and carried unanimously.
Stephen Vigesaa moved to re-open the school board meeting at 8:57 am. The motion was seconded by Kirby Anderson and carried unanimously.
Matthew Lemke moved to go into closed session at 8:58 am permitted by Minnesota Statute §13D.03 to discuss negotiation strategies related to the District’s negotiations with Individual Contracts. The motion was seconded by Melanie Cole and carried unanimously.
Kirby Anderson moved to re-open the school board meeting at 9:31 am. The motion was seconded by Melanie Cole and carried unanimously.
The next regular School Board meeting will be held at 7:15 am Monday, June 26, 2023 in the Otter Community Room at the Kennedy Secondary School.
Matthew Lemke made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 9:32 am. The motion was seconded by Stephen Vigesaa and carried unanimously.
A work session followed the regular board meeting.
Melissa Hermes, Clerk