By Chad Koenen

Publisher

The New York Mills School District general fund and cash investments ticked up last year as student enrollment increased in the school district.

During its regularly scheduled meeting last week, the NY Mills School Board heard its 2024 fiscal year audit from Brian Stavenger, of Eide Bailly. 

Stavenger said the school district’s cash and cash investments were up approximately $700,000 from last year and nearly match what they were from 2020-22. He said some of the main reasons for the uptick of cash and cash investments were due to higher enrollment and a number of capital outlay projects that were completed in 2023 that affected the school district’s overall cash on hand.

“More of a normal year without those larger capital outlay projects,” he said of the past year.

The school district also received additional funding thanks to an increase of 22 students in its average daily attendance. The increase in ADM significantly increased the amount of state aid the school district received. Last year the school district had an ADM of 796 students, which was up from 774 students in 2023 and 702 students from 2015. 

“Good slow and steady growth,” said Stavenger of the increase in ADM. “(Student enrollment is the) main driver for state aid.” 

As a result of conservative budgeting the school district received 4.8 percent more revenue than anticipated and spent 1.4 percent less than its budget. The end result is a positive general fund balance change in the positive of $118,276. 

Stavenger credited the school board for ending the year with a positive general fund balance and said it will help the school district with everything from a positive fund balance, produce investment income and a source of working capital, while also offering a cushion for future unexpected expenditures and revenue shortfalls.

Memorandum of Understanding

On a 5-2 vote, with Brian Schermerhorn and Derek Braukmann voting in dissent, the NY Mills School Board approved a Memorandum of Understanding with the Education Minnesota teachers union. The MOU became necessary after a question was raised about continuing education classes that some teachers took that were reportedly a pass/fail grading and didn’t agree with the current contract with the teachers union. 

Approximately two months ago the school board approved the step increases associated with the continuing education classes for the teachers in question, but were unaware that the classes did not follow the existing teacher union contract. 

School board member Kristina Ehnert said a union representative brought the discrepancy to the attention of the school board, which stated continuing education classes must have a letter grade associated with it and not just graded pass/fail. She said the union representative was the one who told the school board it broke the union contract by granting the step increases.

“To me the big thing here is the break of contract was brought to us by the union,” said school board member Derek Geiser. 

After the discovery of the discrepancy by the teachers union representative, the school board personnel committee and teachers union went into contract negotiations to try and sort the issue out. The issue has been the subject of a number of special committee meetings over the past two months as the two sides settled on the current MOU.

Throughout the process, Geiser said he has heard on numerous occasions that the school board went back on its initial word of granting the step increases. He said the school board never reversed its decision and never denied the request. In the end, the school board broke the teachers union contract, not its word, which he said is an important distinction that needs to be cleared up in the public.

“I just want it stated the board never reversed its decision. We broke contract is how we ended up here,” he said. “I was told the board denied it and I don’t think the board ever denied what we voted on.”

He went on to say the school board didn’t “knowingly break the contract,” but added that “saying we broke the contract rather than breaking our word means more to me.”

Ultimately the MOU was approved 5-2. 

In other news

• Heard from transportation supervisor Brent Gudmundson concerning the school district’s bus routes. The school district currently has nine bus routes and has one van route each day. The school district has 10 full-time bus drivers, which Gudmundson said are great drivers who get to know each child’s name on their bus and show up to work each day.

• Heard from activities director Matt Radniecki, who stated the winter sports season will get underway soon. He said one of the fastest growing sports in the state is female wrestling and he said that will continue both statewide and at NY Mills School. He said there are a number of elementary wrestlers who are female and suspects many of them will come through the junior high and varsity ranks in the near future. 

• Heard from high school principal Michelle Young about a number of trips that students have taken outside of the classroom to places like the zoo, college fair, career expo and BTD in Detroit Lakes.

• Heard from superintendent Adam Johnson who said one of the biggest focuses at the school district right now is providing the necessary options to help with mental health for students. He said this is a statewide issue, but the school district is doing what it can to provide the support necessary to students of all ages. 

• Approved an overnight trip for the middle school wrestling team for December 20. The team will be in Little Falls for the Pierz wrestling tournament. The wrestling club will cover the hotel and food expenses for the trip. 

• Approved the following appointments: Macy Koljonen as a paraprofessional, Terry Ohlgren as the head trap coach, JJ Weller as the assistant girls basketball coach, Creedan Dunrud as the JV assistant girls basketball coach, Alli Bauck as the junior high basketball coach, Kurt Mursu as the JV boys basketball coach.

• Approved the resignation of Jaden Karger as the junior high softball coach and a two-month leave of absence request from Terry Repasky through November 28.