Highlights of 9/22 Board of Education Regular Meeting and Educational Service Unit 18 Board Regular Meeting

Board of Education Regular Meeting

The Lincoln Board of Education met for a regular meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 22, at the Lincoln Public Schools District Office, 5905 O St.

Lincoln Board of Education recognized by the Nebraska Association of School Boards

The Lincoln Board of Education received the Board of Excellence award from the Nebraska Association of School Boards. This award is in recognition of the Board’s commitment to achieving excellence in board leadership through continuing education.

2020 LPS Pandemic Plan & Procedures Update

During the update, Superintendent Steve Joel spoke about remote learning survey results and important changes to the pandemic plan and student calendar. 

Remote Learning Survey Results

Joel shared results from the LPS Remote Learning Surveys. There was one survey sent to teachers, and one sent to families of remote learners. 

Preliminary analysis of the results showed that depending on the grade level, 74-78%  of parents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that remote learning is going well so far. In contrast, 38-41% of teachers agreed or strongly agreed with the same statement. 

Joel said, “We interpret this to mean that for teachers remote learning is challenging, that it is a lot of work, and that it is stressful. We certainly acknowledge all of this to be true. However, and this is the important point, our teachers are working hard and the vast majority of parents are pleased with how teachers have responded and how remote learning is going so far. We appreciate the hard work of our teachers.”

Here are a few other highlights:

• Parent response rate:
• Grades K-1: 31.5%
• Grades 2-5: 22.5%
• Grades 6-8: 20%
• Grades 9-12 100% remote learners: 11%
• Grades 9-12 A/B schedule: 12%
• 61-76% of parents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that their student has opportunities to share/talk with their class.
• 70-76% of parents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that their student can reach teachers for help outside of class.
• 76-83% of parents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that their student has the instructional resources needed to be successful in a remote environment.
• 62-77% of parents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that their student is spending about the right amount of time on Zoom.

Results from the surveys can be found on our website:

• Parent Remote Learning Survey
• Teacher Remote Learning Survey

Staff are still reviewing the open ended questions on the surveys.

No school for students Nov. 2

Nov. 2 will be a teacher and staff plan day and there will NOT be school for all pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade students and Independence Academy students. This day will provide additional plan time to work on serving the needs of both in-person and remote students and up to two hours designated for work toward the school district’s equity goal. 

Please note: There is also no school on Nov. 3 due to election day, creating a four-day weekend for all students.

Ending 3/2 in high schools starting second quarter

After discussions with the health department, beginning the second quarter on Oct. 19 we are initiating plans to end the 3/2 high school plan and have all high school in-person learners return to school full time, five days a week. This means that high school PLC early release will move back to Tuesdays.

Please note: This will be subject to current community conditions and we will continue to work in collaboration with the health department on the transition. Please note that given the number of remote learners at the high school level, our high schools will still only be at 70-80% capacity.

Elementary specialists will teach from their classrooms starting Oct. 19

Starting second quarter (Oct. 19) we have put safety protocols in place to allow for all elementary specialists to teach from their own classrooms instead of from a cart. 

Dates and location change for May 2021 graduations

Due to the uncertainty of the pandemic, LPS has secured Lincoln’s biggest venue to hold in-person graduation on Memorial Day weekend. All six ceremonies will now take place May 28-30 at Pinnacle Bank Arena and livestreamed for those who cannot attend. 

The new graduation schedule at Pinnacle Bank Arena is as follows:

Friday, May 28, 2021
6 p.m., Lincoln High School 

Saturday, May 29, 2021
8:30 a.m., Lincoln Southeast
12:30 p.m., Lincoln Northeast
4:30 p.m., Lincoln Southwest

Sunday, May 30, 2021
Noon, Lincoln North Star
4 p.m. Lincoln East

The Bryan Community Focus Program graduation will still be held at Lincoln East High School on Thursday, May 20, 2021, at 7 p.m.

All times are subject to change.

First Reading

Land Acquisition, Sale, and Exchange - Spirit/Cherrywood & new SW Site Properties

The board held a first reading of a property exchange agreement with Southwest Folsom Development, LLC. The agreement would transfer the entire 62.5 acre tract of real estate near 84th and O streets behind the State Farm office complex, commonly known as Spirit Park, that is owned by LPS and allow LPS to acquire an approximately 18.72 acre parcel of real estate generally located north of W. Old Cheney Road between SW 12th and S. Folsom streets from the development group. If the exchange transaction is completed, the development group will also pay LPS $2,330,000.00 for the property. If Southwest decides not to participate in the transfer by exercising its due diligence option, LPS will continue with the purchase of the approximately 18.7 acres from the development group for the amount of $786,240.00, without transferring the approximately 62.5 acres to Southwest and will not receive payment from Southwest.

The Board will vote on the agreement at its next meeting.

Lincoln High Roof Repair

LPS sought bids for roofing at Lincoln High School. There were two bids submitted. It was recommended the lower bid be chosen to complete the project. The Board waived second reading and approved the bid from Weathercraft Company of Lincoln for a price of   $1,646,181.00.

Second Reading

Official property tax request

The Lincoln Board of Education voted to approve the official property tax request to fund the 2020-2021 budget. This is the last, necessary step in officially finalizing the 2020-21 budget and is a routine step in the process.

Public Comment

There were 8 citizens who addressed the Board during Public Comment. You can view the full video of the meeting that includes public comment here.

Closed Session

The Board went into closed session to discuss litigation.

Glimpses of LPS

We open every Board meeting with a video that highlights the amazing things taking place in our schools. Tonight’s video featured the work done by early childhood teachers through in-home visits.

Education Service Unit 18 Regular Meeting

Following the Lincoln Board of Education meeting, the Educational Service Unit 18 Board held a regular meeting. The Board voted to approve the official property tax request to fund the 2020-21 ESU 18 budget.

 

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