Louise Durham Elementary School

The Mena School Board gathered for their regular July meeting on Tuesday evening at Mena Middle School. The meeting began with the Superintendent’s Report. Mr Benny Weston informed the board that they may be seeing some large purchases in the financial report & that the district will be reimbursed with CARES Act Funding on those purchases at a later date. Weston then asked the board for input on whether or not exchange students should be accepted in 20/21. This is normally an administrative decision. After a brief discussion all board members agreed that the district would accept exchange students as usual. A quick mention was made of the state & local bus training which was held at the MHS Performing Arts Center on Tuesday. Also a part of the Superintendent’s Report was the Bearcats Ready for Learning Plan which was presented by Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lee Smith. That led to discussion on the use of mask by students in the coming school year. The board agreed that the district will adhere to the Governors order & adjust as guidance is given. In new business Mena Middle School Principal Mr. Clif Sherrer presented the adjusted School Calendar for 20/21. It was approved unanimously & the new calendar will be posted on social media & the Mena Schools Website soon. Mena Mayor Seth Smith has requested a partnership with the district on a project to extend the overlay on Geyer Drive next to Holly Harshman Elementary. The board gave Weston permission to negotiate an agreement with the City of Mena. A bid was accepted & approved from Polk County Farm Bureau in the amount of $22,698 on insurance for all the district buses & vehicles. The board approved the annual $200 petty cash allotment for each campus in the district & the annual Statement of Assurances passed with no discussion. District Maintenance Supervisor Danny Minton gave an update on numerous projects. He also approached the board with two bids to paint the red portions of MHS. The low bid of $22,000 by a Mena company was approved. Minton also stated that sneeze guards for each office & some other locations have been ordered & a needs assessment is underway for classrooms. A total of 20 bottle filling stations have been ordered & 20 hand sanitizing stations have been built. The financial reports were approved, the amended adjusted salary schedule proposed at the June meeting was approved & the board voted to allow principals to make changes to student policies as guidance from the state is delivered. Finally in personnel matters the resignation of Josh Bradford was accepted & the hiring of Tyler Huntington as MMS Band Director was approved. Sam Varner was also put on contract as a bus driver…

URGENT MESSAGE TO ALL PARENTS

Mena Public Schools will provide many hand sanitizing stations in classrooms and hallways. Signage in bathrooms will emphasize the importance of hand washing and instruct students on proper procedures. The district has purchased state-of-the-art antimicrobial electrostatic systems to disinfect classrooms, hallways, commons areas, and buses. These systems will be used on a routine basis and in the event of outbreaks. Furthermore, general cleaning agents will be used along with further disinfection training of administrative, teaching, clerical, and custodial staff.

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has issued a mandate requiring masks to be worn in public statewide. The district will wait on guidance & may make changes to the district's Ready for Learning Plan. Click the link to watch the press conference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sk3NOo84PDQ&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0MEaCvKNLQZKh41brknB9Z5jSKNMDV6LAgQGW92FA0xygr2oozU6W2q8o

The Mena Public Schools Bearcats Ready for Learning Plan! Learning options, safety & frequently asked questions are included. Follow the link to the Mena School District website to read the entire document. https://5il.co/icgo

Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lee Smith is leading a meeting of the Health & Wellness Committee this morning. The committee consist of local health professionals, school nurses, students, administrators & teachers. Student Support, Facilities and Transportation, Human Capital, District Operations and Fiscal Governance and Community Engagement Committees will all be meeting this week to develop the Mena Public School’s “Ready For Learning Plan”. The state announced that the 20/21 school year will begin the week of August 24th.

Mena Schools Leadership are meeting this morning in the Mena High School Performing Arts Center. Many of the questions that our patrons have concerning the 20/21 school year are on the agenda. Options will be available & answers can be expected soon. Your patience is appreciated.

Preparations continue for the new school year at all Mena campuses. The first day of school is scheduled for Thursday, August 13th.

Kindergarten Registration! We are so excited to have our online registration ready for incoming kindergarteners. If you have a student that will be 5 years old before August 1, 2020, please click on the link below and start your journey as a Bearcat! https://registration.powerschool.com/family/gosnap.aspx?action=24780&culture=en

The Mena School Board met on Tuesday in the Mena Middle School Library & faced a lengthy agenda. Follow the link for the full story. https://www.menaschools.org/article/261150?org=mena-school-district

Mr. Benny Weston awarded Mrs. Paulete Sherrer with a plaque honoring her for her service to the Mena School District at Tuesday's school board meeting. Those attending applauded & wished her well in retirement.

Governor Asa Hutchinson & Dr. Ivy Pfeffer spoke at length today about a return to the classroom. Dr, Pfeffer is the Deputy Commissioner of the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education Click the link to watch today's press conference. https://www.youtube.com/watch

Mena School District Parent/Guardian Survey for Fall 2020 - Please complete 1 survey per household. Please take the time to complete the following survey. Your input is valuable to us. We have never before had to prepare for a school year like the upcoming Fall 2020 Semester. There are still so many unanswered questions for parents, students, and school personnel. The Mena School District is asking you to consider the following statements in each category and check all of them that apply to your situation. Your choices for your student and shared concerns are important to us. Your feedback will assist us to make important decisions about the upcoming 1st semester of the 2020-2021 school year. With your input our goal is to continue to strive to best meet the needs of our students and their families while still remaining in compliance with all the state agency guidelines and restrictions. We will offer you similar choices again in preparation for the 2nd semester of the 2020-2021 school year. Please complete one survey per household. Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your input. *If you are participating in this survey and you know someone in our district with no internet access, please direct them to call our Administration Office at (479)394-1710 and answer these important survey questions over the phone. https://forms.gle/mzHQpZVujrqW7tT87

Applications for the 2020-2021 school year are now available and can be completed online at the link below. PCVA is an online, home based educational option for K-12 students. For more information, contact PCVA Director Bridget Buckley at bridget.buckley@menaschools.org or 479-216-0205. https://forms.gle/13iWJAdUPgCMYDKS7

Tell your Instagram friends to like the NEW Mena Schools account! https://www.instagram.com/menaschools/

Tell your Twitter friends to like the NEW Mena Schools account! https://twitter.com/SchoolsMena

JLG’s May Librarian of the Month honor goes to Louise Durham Elementary and Tiffany Williams. We could tell from seeing her social media posts that she was always willing to go the extra mile to get students to engage with books, whether through sensory mats to form a check-out line or loading up her cart to deliver books to classrooms. Read on to learn more about Tiffany... https://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/blog/post/detail/id/3050/

Attention Parents of Students who attended Mena School District: State and Federal guidelines require that all special education due process forms and records be destroyed within six (6) years after a student leaves the special education or speech therapy program. If your child was dismissed, graduated, dropped from the program or found to be ineligible for special education services and/ or speech therapy during the school year 2012-2013, you have the right to review and request copies of your child’s due process records before they are destroyed. Your child also has the right to review these records providing he or she is 18 years or older. If you wish to see these records, they will be available at Mena School Special Education office beginning May 25, 2020 to June 15, 2020 from 7:00 am to 4:00 p.m. Records, which are not picked up will be destroyed on June 22, 2020. These records are NOT your child’s permanent school records, they are only special education due process forms and records. You may contact Laura Bunch Special Education Supervisor 479-394-1144

Welcome Dr. Lee Smith back to Mena. Smith has been hired as the next Assistant Superintendent at the Mena Public Schools.. GO BEARCATS!!!

The Mena School Board met on Tuesday, May 19th. The meeting began with the Superintendents Report. Mr. Benny Weston updated the board on the multiple phases the leadership team is working on for reentry & the beginning of the 2020/2021 school year. Assistant Superintendent Paulette Sherrer added that a needs assesment is underway in anticipation of the award from federal COVID-19 CARES Act monies. Personnel was next on the agenda. RESIGNATIONS Traci Gray Malani Vega RESCIND CONTRACT Markie Blocker TRANSFER Amy Dollar - 6th grade social studies Justin Goodnight - Mena High School Agri Chelsea Johnson - 8th grade algebra Susan McKeever - LDE Special Education paraprofessional HIRE Dr. Lee Smith - Assistant Superintendent Cheyenne Burdess - HHE Lisa Falls - HHE LPN Alicia Farringer - MMS Special Education self contained Amy Martin - MMS Chase McCormick - MMS Agri Colby Singleton - Secondary MHS COACHING DUTIES Landon Dover - head sr. girls track Tia Fryer - assistant jr. boys basketball Ryan Luttmer - head jr. boys basketball & head jr. boys track Brad Lyle - assistant sr. boys basketball Heather Goss - head jr. girls track All were approved unanimously. The board then renewed the contract with Aramark Food Service & also renewed the agreement with Horizon Software. The board accepted the Freedom of Choice Applications of 9 students. Next was an update on the district's Five Year Plan to improve the FTE (Full-time equivalent). For the 20/21 school year the FTE has improved to 91.4% & is expected to jump to 95% once final calculations are made. Finally financial reports were approved & the meeting adjourned.