CHAMOIS — At their meeting on Wednesday, December 10, Chamois R-1 school board members approved a resolution calling for a special school bond election to be held on April 7, 2026. Proposition KIDS (Keep Improving District Schools) will ask voters to allow the school district to borrow $1,750,000 to complete heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) repairs. If additional funds are available, the district would also be allowed to use the money to complete other repairs and improvements to existing facilities.

If approved, the bond will add $.65 per $100 of assessed value for real and personal property. The bond issue failed by only a couple of votes last year, and board members hope that by changing the language on the ballot and narrowing the scope of the improvements, the measure will be approved by voters.

In a related matter, the school board approved almost $11,000 to have Harold G. Butzer of Jefferson City repair a cracked section of the elementary school boiler and investigate the valves above the boiler that are possibly causing the issue. Butzer is hoping to complete the work over Christmas break.

“This is the third time this has cracked,” Superintendent Lyle Best said. “It’s old, but these are parts that shouldn’t be cracking.”

He explained there is a working theory that somehow cold water is getting into the system and causing the parts to crack. “It’s unclear to me how cold water could be getting into the system,” Best said. “It doesn’t make sense. I’m not sure why things are cracking the way they are, but something is wrong.”

“This is why we need a new HVAC system,” said Board President Steve Cramer. “It just seems like every other year we’re paying thousands of dollars to make repairs and replacements for an outdated system.”

Currently, elementary classrooms are using electric heaters, but there is no supplemental heating for the school cafeteria.

“We can’t keep counting on these electric heaters,” Cramer said. “They are not safe or efficient.”

“And they are not going to keep up once it gets colder,” Principal Jeremey McKague added.

Board members rejected a bid from Harold G. Butzer to replace the boiler at the elementary school with a similar system for $60,000. They hope to put in an entirely new HVAC system if the bond proposition is passed.

In other business, board members rejected for the second month a proposal to purchase a new floor covering for the school gym. Best noted that the district had $350,000 in the budget for capital expenses, where all the money was not allocated for projects yet.

“That money is there for repairs and projects we decide to pursue throughout the year,” Best said.

“I’m not against the floor covering, but I’m against getting rid of something that works just to have something new,” said Board Member Kelby Busch. “We just spent $11,000 on a boiler; to me, that is money that we need.”

Busch also noted that someone had relayed to him they had seen the new floor covering at Tuscumbia and that they weren’t impressed with it.

“They said it had tape all over it, trying to hold down the edges and the seams,” Busch said.

“That’s not how I would have characterized it,” Best replied.

“It would be nice to have, but at the same time, we need an intercom system,” said Board Member Nick Schollmeyer. “We need an HVAC system. It just doesn’t seem like the right time.”

• Board members approved the district’s new Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP) for 2025 through 2029. The new CSIP has changed the mission statement to read: “To collaborate as a community to support, celebrate, and motivate all students, to define and find individual success.”

The plan defines seven key areas the school will focus on for growth: curriculum alignment, math achievement goals, ELA achievement goals, early childhood development participation, facility safety plan, success-ready students, and culture and climate.

The plan outlines steps the district plans to take over the next four years to reach goals in all these focus areas. By 2029, the district plans to have all the curriculum aligned to the Missouri Learning Standard (MLS) and implemented by all staff. Goals for Math and ELA achievement are to have MAP and EOC scores improve by 3% annually. The district hopes to increase participation in the Parents As Teachers program and preschool by 5% per year. In addition, the district will work to increase facility safety, focus on preparing students for life after high school, and increase participation in school surveys by staff, parents, and community members.

The ambitious plan builds on the district’s last CSIP. “I’m really proud of the work we did on this,” Best said. “I know we have a lot of good input. I know we’ve looked at a lot of data and areas that we need to focus on. I think we’ve done a good job of focusing on academic instruction.”

Best said that with this CSIP, the district particularly focused on the community. He noted the district acknowledges the relationship with the community, and that the district needs help from the community, adding that Chamois R-1 is growing the public as well. “Folks come into the public school system, you educate them, you help them progress with academics, and they leave, hopefully closer to realizing how they interact with those around them,” Best explained. “They, in turn, help lift and grow the community, and you continuously repeat that pattern and cycle.”

The details of the CSIP are available on the district’s website.

• Board members voted to increase all hourly wages to coordinate with the Missouri State Minimum Wage Increase that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2026. Best acknowledged that this would only affect a couple of employees.

• Members briefly discussed two policy updates.

— Policy #0320 disqualifies candidates for school board elections if they are convicted of or plead guilty to assault or harassment in the first or second degree on school grounds.

— Policy #2760 adds criteria for determining the best interest placement of foster students.

Both policies are mandatory and will be voted on at the January meeting.

• Board members approved outstanding expenses for December totaling $119,289.89.

• The district had the following ending account balances: general ($2,237,906), special ($112,223), and capital projects ($790,169).

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT

Best noted that the district has submitted all the information necessary to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) for the reporting cycle for the Missouri School Improvement Plan (MSIP). The deadline for submissions is the end of February.

Best explained that the district held a preliminary meeting to make sure that DESE has everything they need. The information will be reviewed, and the school district will receive feedback and evaluations.

“We were in a good spot, so it is just a matter of folks giving us feedback on things over the next few months,” Best said.

• Chamois R-1 has been having problems with the intercom system and will have Sound Solutions come down and evaluate the situation. The system was installed in the mid-1990s and has not had any maintenance or updates since.

Best hopes that it may be possible in the short term to make repairs if needed, but he warned the board that a new system is probably needed.

“There is really no fix except finding some parts from a scrap,” Best explained. “If something really did go wrong, we would just have to put in a different one.”

Best is not sure of the timeframe if a replacement system is necessary, but expressed that it was essential for day-to-day operations at the school to go smoothly.

Best discussed the four different work groups meeting for the Missouri School Funding Task Force, noting that while there are a lot of guesses about what might be changed, the big question is whether the state of Missouri will increase funding for public schools or remain one of the lowest-funded public education states in the country.

“Is this something where the state is going to invest more money in public education, or is it just going to move money around, which creates winners and losers as opposed to benefitting everyone?” Best asked.

He noted there is a concern that small school districts may lose out on funding if there is a change in state funding and policies.

“If we are looking at spending the same amount of money, we end up at the same place we are now, and the funding level for the state doesn’t change,” Best explained. “The question we need to ask is, in the big picture, what are we trying to do?”

The group will meet again in the spring and is expected to release its recommendations and introduce legislation in August of 2027. No one knows if any of it would be passed into law or implemented.

Best noted that the school staff has continued to meet with data teams, working on curriculum training, and attempting to do more peer-to-peer review.

The superintendent review will be held next month before the regular meeting.

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

McKague told the board that the renewed interest in Pirate Academy attendance has continued, holding steady at about 30 kids. “It’s really nice to see since we had such low numbers last year,” McKague said. “I attribute it all to the teachers changing the themes each time and keeping the kids excited. Sometimes, we have to trick kids into learning.”

• The junior class has just finished taking the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) test.

• The Christmas program was scheduled for Dec. 11, and senior recognition night was held on Dec. 12.

• The Title I Literacy Program will be held on Dec.18 at 5:30 p.m., with pizza for students and parents. Students will be able to participate in activities, games, do a book walk, win door prizes, enjoy hot chocolate, and visit with the Grinch!

• Dec. 19 will be the last day of school before Christmas break.

On Saturday, Dec. 20, activities will include the tree lighting, a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) Dinner with Santa, and a parade.

• Attendance rates remain high with grades 6-12 at 94.3% and grades K-5 at 95.4%. McKague noted that DESE is looking for a 90% attendance rate for all students, and Chamois R-1 is falling short of that. He hopes to increase attendance over the next couple of months to boost that number.

“With our small number of students, we only need to pick up a few kids to reach that goal,” McKague said.

• There were four office referrals for discipline within the last month.

• Special Education teachers provided a program update. Both Kristy Nolte and Lacey Garrett were enthusiastic about their students and the progress they have been making. Nolte detailed the progress of each of her elementary students, and Garrett focused on two of her seventh-grade students.

Both noted their students are making progress, and that is what is most important. They also praised other teachers and staff members who work closely with the Special Education department to determine students who are falling short, and collaborate to help them succeed.

• The next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 14 at 7 p.m.