BROKEN BOW – The Broken Bow School Board held its May meeting on Monday, May 8 at 6 p.m. in the high school board room; all were present.
The board approved the treasurer’s and claims report; treasurer J.B. Atkins said that so far, the district is operating at a surplus; always good news.
“So far, for the year, our revenue is up almost $1 million. Some of that is government money, not all of it, but all of it seems to grow. With income up and expenses flat, it’s a good place to be.”
The district’s ending balance so far is $2.6 million; last year that number slid in at $1.7 million.
The board also approved to start putting some of those excess finances in a bank CD, though as far as where and how much is still mostly open; Atkins said the move is the responsible thing to do.
“Now that we’re accumulating some money we haven’t foreseen, it would be due diligent for the taxpayer to maybe make a little money and pay somebody’s salary out of that.”
The administration’s next step for the money is determining which bank to use to purchase a CD.
Superintendent Tobey delivered district accolades which included MAPS scores; once again, he said, the scores from the elementary school were off the charts.
“The staff has done a really good job at getting those kids ready for the tests this year. The elementary school broke every overall score record that we had in all subjects.”
Over 50 individual testing records would be made by Broken Bow students, as well.
Angie Palmer, Broken Bow faculty member and head of the school’s FBLA chapter, came before the board to try to get her 18 nationally-qualifying students a financial boost to help their trip to Atlanta. The FBLA kids, she said, continue to surpass every expectation, especially at their state competition, and deserve a helping hand.
“We beat Class A schools, Class B schools. We are the fourth-largest group in Nebraska going to nationals.”
The FBLA has at least two more fundraising events planned, including a burger bash and garage sale in early June, but the $23,000 needed for the trip, Palmer said, feels closer to $23 million.
“They’re about fundraised out. Our organization alone has fundraised over $30,000 this year to support all the things that we do. By the time we’re done, we will have raised over $52,000 for FBLA events.”
The money would come from an Anderson grant; the board unanimously approved $4,000 for the FBLA’s cause.
A purchase for 195 Chromebooks was approved unanimously; the $56,000 purchase was deemed necessary some of the machines in the district are pushing 5 or 6 years old.
Nate Bell of Universal Insurance discussed worker’s comp for the district and reached an agreement with the board to return with a quote.
The school board set their next regular meeting for June 12 at 6 p.m., and adjourned at 6:33 p.m.
