Childs confirmed as MHS principal

• Joe Childs

Joe Childs

Talk about it

The Mitchell Board of Education on Monday confirmed Joe Childs as the successor to retiring Mitchell High School Principal Yvonne Palli.

The action was part of the board’s regularly scheduled meeting at the Mitchell Technical Institute north campus.

Childs, 37, who is currently principal at Longfellow Elementary High School, was hired at a salary of $80,000 a year.

“I’m grateful for the position and I’m eager to roll my sleeves up and get started with my duties at the high school,” Childs said after the meeting.

Palli, who said she will have a total of “30 fabulous years” with the district this year, said she plans to retire to the Black Hills area and be with family.

“I’m going to be a retired grandma and babysit my grandchildren so my daughter can have a career,” she said.

Palli began with the district in 1983 as a math and computer teacher. She later became an assistant principal and then MHS principal.

“I am going to miss it,” she said, but she also plans to keep a hand in the game. “I’m going to put my name on the sub list in Rapid City,” she said.

Hail damage settled

In other business, the board approved a final settlement of $800,046 for damage from the May 5 hail storm that pummeled Mitchell.

“It was the biggest hail event we’ve ever had,” said Ken Bridger, risk manager for the Associated School Boards of South Dakota. “The storm engulfed all of Mitchell.”

Todd Asher, a claims adjuster for Crawford Global Technical Services, who assisted with the claims, said metal roofing on one building at MTI’s north campus and two at the south campus received cosmetic, but not functional damage. He offered a 25 percent “appearance allowance” for those buildings, and the board accepted.

Acceptance of the allowance, Asher said, will not be counted against any future claims the district may have.

Superintendent Joe Graves said the jobs will be put out for bids and the insurance will cover actual costs.

“We’re quite satisfied the insurance companies did a good job by us,” he said.

The damages included about $75,000 to $80,000 in damage to school district vehicles. Some vehicle damage was slight and will not be repaired.

More seriously damaged vehicles, however, have already been repaired, Graves said.

Other business

The board:

Approved, at the recommendation of Michael Hoffman, MTI vice president and CFO, a low bid of $66,523 for 112 tables and chairs for the auditorium of the new Trades Center building at the MTI south campus. The only other bid was from School Specialty Co. for $70,403.

Enjoyed treats prepared by students in the culinary arts division of the Mitchell Career and Technical Education Academy. Board members later toured the program’s new kitchen, which has been in operation for about a month.

Personnel

The board unanimously approved the following personnel items as part of a consent agenda:

New hires: Sherri Becker, halftime curriculum director, $35,000, and also as a half-time Spanish and language arts teacher at MMS for $20,655; Joe Childs, MHS principal, $80,000 — both effective for the 2013-2014 school year; Donna Keller, mentor, MTI, TED grant, $500; Cori Goldammer, paraeducator, Gertie Belle Rogers, $7.25 hours daily at $10 an hour, effective March 11; Megan McManus, special education instructor, $34,250; Kelli Prater, secondary science, $33,500; Isaac Van Dyke, math instructor, MHS, $38,500 — all effective for the 2013-2014 school year; Josh Renken, SCADA instructor, MTI, $17.66, effective March 18.

Resignations: Ashley Finkenbiner, kindergarten, Longfellow Elementary, effective at the end of the school year; Jodel Dierks, Middle School food service manager, effective Feb. 14; Joshua Darling, Powerline Instructor, MTI, effective March 4; Amanda Stewart, paraprofessional, Longfellow, effective Feb. 28.

Extra-curricular resignations: Pat Moller, seventh grade boys’ basketball coach, pending suitable replacement, effective June 30.

Early retirement: Roger DeRouchey, farm business management instructor, MTI, effective June 30; Corinne Hoffman, medical assistant instructor, MTI; Kathy Kramer, sixth grade language arts and math; and Nancy Noess, kindergarten, Longfellow — all effective at the end of the current school year.

Transfer: Laura Kay Hora, paraprofessional, from being a para-educator at Gertie Belle Rogers elementary to the same position at Longfellow Elementary.

Reductions in force for the following 21st Century Community Learning Center coordinators: Cheryle Aslesen, L.B. Williams Elementary; Teriann Murray and Mindy Childs, Longfellow Elementary; and Diane Way, MMS. The five-year federal grants for the 21st Century program were not renewed in time to maintain the coordinator portions of the various teachers’ compensation, said Graves. The reduction in force applies only to the government funded program and not the teachers’ regular jobs with the district. The RIFed CCLC jobs will be reinstated when and if the grant is renewed, Graves said.

Also RIFed was Audra Borman, half-time science, MMS.

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