Walker to fill school board seat
Board considers new conference
By Deb Egenberger
December 15, 2007
The Brady school board is back to full capacity.
At their regular monthly meeting Monday night, board members appointed T.J. Walker to fill the vacancy created when Bryce Franzen resigned in November to take a full-time maintenance position with the school.
Walker, a resident of Brady for the past five years, spent one term on the Brady village board.
He will serve on the school board through December 2008. Should he wish to continue on the board, he will have to file for the general election next fall.
Bryan Franzen was the other nominee considered for the position.
In other business, the board discussed a new activities conference alignment.
Paxton and Arnold schools both voted to pull out of the Central Platte Conference following Eustis-Farnam’s exit at the end of this school year.
That leaves only Brady, Maxwell and Stapleton in the CPC.
Superintendent Joyce Huffman told board members she and activities director Darren Tobey are investigating other conference options, including the Sandhills Conference, Loup Valley Conference and Republican Activities.
“Last month we were talking about what ifs and now it’s happened,” she said.
School board members requested a list of each school in each conference and the activities offered by each.
Travel distance is a consideration, board members said, because of high fuel costs.
Huffman told the board a decision on a conference application will likely need to be made by February.
In other business, the board:
• approved a change to the school calendar which will provide for no classes on Friday, Dec. 21, but add a half day on Friday, Feb. 15.
• accepted on first reading a job description for the K-12 principal to be included in board policy.
• learned teachers Julie Hoaglund and Steve Nicholson have received John R. Applegate Foundation grants. Hoaglund’s award of $900 will purchase graphing calculators while Nicholson’s grant of $3,800 will be used to buy microscopic equipment.
• discussed a request from band director Val Pohlman for financial assistance in replacing marching band uniforms. There are currently not enough uniforms for all musicians. Replacement cost would be approximately $15,000. Board members agreed the need is there and the district should contribute.
• denied a request for girls and boys basketball teams to spend the night in a motel between their games at McPherson County and Arthur County on Jan. 4 and 5.
