GHS Tenor/Base Ensemble honored
GHS Tenor/Base Ensemble honored
September 6, 2023 Meeting
Board Members Present: Chair Kris Howatt, Shawn Farrens, Cathy Keathley, David Ligatich, Blake Petersen, Holly Riegelmann

Recognitions

Transportation manager wins state award

The Oregon Pupil Transportation Association named GBSD First Student Transporation Manager Tammy Rickman winner of the Randy Schetky Supervisor of the Year Award. The qualities considered when evaluating candidates include leadership abilities, commitment to safety, integrity, attitude, cooperation and commitment to student transportation. Several individuals wrote Ms. Rickman supporting of letters of recommendation. 

GHS

2022-23 Tenor/Bass Ensemble honored

The school board honored the Gresham High School Tenor Bass Ensemble for the 2022-23 school year. The group participated in the District 2 Competition, winning first place. This qualified them to compee at the Oregon Music Education Assocation (OMEA) competition where they also won first place. The students had the highest score of all 68 ensembles from around the state in every category. Group Members:
Ben Kowalker-Junior, Reese Kahn-Junior, Alex Bigham-Junior, Sean Strojan, Junior, Kevin Lutsenko-Senior, Peter Nedelisky-Junior, Jack Lewis-Sophomore, Jeremy Rivas-Senior, Isaiah Culbertson-Senior.

National Hispanic Heritage Month 

The school board approved a rsolution recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month in the District from September 15 to October 15.
Read the Resolution (English & Español)

National Principals/School Administrators Month

The school board ratified a resolution recognizing October 2023 as National Principals/School Administrators Month in the Gresham-Balow School District. 
Read the Resolution

Superintendent and District Leadership Team Update

Superintendent Hiu shared that GBSD kicked off the school year with its All-Staff Convocation Celebration. It's the first time the celebration has been held in-person since 2019.
The superintendent shared that the state's economic forecast for September is generally positive. The state has earmarked $10.2 billion for K-12 education for the 23-25 biennium.
Superintendent Hiu expressed his appreciation to Representative Ricki Ruiz, former board member Amanda Orozco-Beach, and Senator Chris Gorsek for advocating for additional funding from the state legislature for the school-based health center. Thanks to their efforts, the District is receiving an additional $1.5 million for the construction project.
District leadership team members shared updates on summer programming, professional learning, a chromebook distribution pilot project, and beginning of the year enrollment.  
APPROVED, nominating Kris Howatt for Position 18 on the Oregon School Boards Association's Board of Directors
Nominations close at 5 pm on Friday, September 29. Official ballots will be distributed to members boards no later than October 13. Member boards will vote on the candidates following conclusion of all OSBA Fall Regional Meetings. 
APPROVED, for the administration to enter into contract negotiations with Bremik Construction, Inc. for the construction of the School-Based Health Center not to exceed $3 million for the project. 
APPROVED, declaring Position 4 on the Gresham-Barlow School District Budget Committee as vacant, and approve the appointment process as outlined with the addition or insertion of step 4 if previous budget committee member is not willing to serve, district will contact previous applicants from the most recent budget cycle. 
APPROVED, the agreement with Parallel Learning Behavioral Health, P.C. for the provision of professional Speech Language Pathology services for an amount no to exceed $254,800 for 2,800 hours of student services.
Due to a shortage of certified Speech Language Pathologists, the District struggles to find the necessary professionals to provide the services that students require. This contract will allow the District to meet the needs of this group of students.

Citizens' Requests of the Board


There were no citizens' requests of the board. 

Information Items


Capital Improvement Projects Update
Director of Schools Bruce Schmidt provided a brief update on current Capital Improvement Projects.
Out of State Travel Report
Deputy Superintendent John Koch shared the list of out-of-state trips the administration has approved since January 2023. 

Upcoming Meetings


September 20, 2023
Board Work Session - 6 pm - Partnership Room - Center for Advanced Learning
October 4, 2023 
Regular Board Meeting - 7 pm - Council Chambers - Public Safety and Schools Building
October 18, 2023
Board Work Session - 6 pm - Partnership Room - Center for Advanced Learning

Can't Attend Board Meetings?


GBSD Website: You can watch regular school board meetings LIVE on the the District Website. Look for the link on the homepage in the District News section!

 You can also watch regular school board meetings LIVE on Comcast cable channel 27 and Frontier cable channel 35. MetroEast Community Media replays the board meeting at the following times:

Second Showing-Monday at 7 p.m.
Third Showing-The following Thursday at 4 p.m.

If you live in Damascus-
Board meetings are shown on Willamette Falls TV for patrons in the Damascus area. They are scheduled for cablecast on channel 23 every Saturday at 1 p.m.
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