Chamois R-1 school board members last Wednesday approved a three-year $21,000 contract with Agile Sports Technologies Inc., to install the HUDL system in the gym. The HUDL system records all sports games that are played in the gym and uploads them to their YouTube channel. The games can be viewed as they are happening or for as long as they are available on the site. The subscription will be paid in yearly installments of $7,000. HUDL also keeps track of various statistics for basketball and volleyball games.

“This can be used for concerts and graduations,” Principal Jeremy McKague said. “It’s not just for sports; it’s for whatever is in your gym.”

McKague noted that the coaching staff is excited about using the statistics feature to improve their season.

The school is looking into a way to sell banners to local businesses that would either appear electronically as people are watching the game or that would appear in the background of the gym. The games can be watched for free. Statistics are also collected for away games if the hosting school has a subscription to HUDL as well. The system should arrive in about two weeks.

In other business, school board members approved the bus routes for the new year. The routes have not changed much from last year, according to Superintendent Lyle Best. The central bus route that goes down Hwy. 89 and Hwy. 19 picks up 19 riders and travels 46 round-trip miles. The route’s first pick-up is at 7:01 a.m. and its last dropoff is at 4:10 p.m. The route that travels through Morrison has 30 riders and covers about 75 round-trip miles. The first pick-up for the Morrison Route is at 6:53 a.m. and the last dropoff is at 4:10 p.m. The third bus route that travels down Hwy. 100 has 11 riders and travels a total of 95 miles. The first pick-up is at 7:02 a.m. and the last dropoff is at 4:25 p.m.

* The district has received a grant for $4,000 from the “No Kid Hungry” from the Family Community Trust. The money will be used to cover most of the cost of purchasing another refrigeration display for the high school for “grab-and-go” breakfast options. The cost of the display will be $4,600. The grant will also be used to provide a “second-chance breakfast” to students. This option will be available between first and second hour. 

“This is for students who come in late and they can get breakfast and take it with them to second hour instead of having to wait until lunch,” Best explained. “The thought behind that is, it is likely, if you’re coming in late, their morning hasn’t gotten off to a good start, so this is a way for them to get a meal.”

The “second-chance breakfast” is supposed to help the students have a better attention span, fewer class disruptions, and better behavior overall.

* Board members reviewed their Safe Return to In-Person Instruction and Continuity of Services Program (SRCSP) and decided that no changes were needed at this time. Best explained that he thought it was a good idea to review the guidelines every month to give the public and the school board members an opportunity to voice their concerns and to make possible changes to the requirements as things within the school and community change.

“I don’t think we are having problems with the plan that we’ve approved and what’s been implemented,” Best said. “Again, for us, a lot of it is the same as what we did last year so it wasn’t a big adjustment other than getting back into the routine.”

McKague echoed those sentiments. 

“So far so good,” he said. “Occasionally, we have to remind a student about keeping their noses covered and the bus route has not been an issue, not even for the little guys (elementary students).”

“Everybody has done a good job, students and staff,” Best added.

McKague noted that Missouri High School Sports and Activities (MSHSAA) has sent out notifications that any school that is playing kids that should be quarantined or playing kids that have tested positive will forfeit all games for all sports for the year.

“We’ve never gotten a call from a school saying, ‘hey last night you played us and now we’ve got a kid that tested positive,’” McKague said. “It seems unlikely that this has never happened. We have to follow the rules to help stop the spread (of COVID-19).”

McKague noted that they have had no pushback from students or staff on current regulations.

* Sean Hackmann with the Chamois Fire Department reported back to the school board about the recent active shooter training that was conducted at the Chamois School. 

“We thought it was a tremendous success,” Hackmann said. “We learned a lot. The chances that something like that would ever happen are slim to none but everyone involved felt like they were more prepared if it would ever happen.”

Hackmann noted that while there are a lot of advantages to their small, rural school district, one of the disadvantages is that the response time from law enforcement could take a long time depending on where the Osage County Sheriff’s deputy was at the time.

“We had a lot of positive comments from the agencies that did respond in respect to the school’s staff in that their participation as second to none,” Hackmann said. “The responding agencies work on these things all over the state and they said Mr. Best and his crew were excellent.”

Hackmann had some suggestions for the school district to implement to make emergency situations safer and more efficient in the future. The biggest suggestion was to have the buildings labeled so that it was easy for emergency responders to go to the correct location. Hackmann noted that while locals would easily know where the cafeteria was that might cost time for people who were not familiar with the school district. Another suggestion was to have classrooms numbered or named so that it was easier for emergency personnel to orient themselves to the building.

Board President Steve Cramer noted that these were also suggestions that were made by Porter, Berendzen, and Associates, the architectural firm that has recently completed a facilities study of the Chamois campus.

McKague noted that some problems came up as the active shooter training was taking place for the administration. These procedures were easily corrected by making extra copies of emergency cards, keys, and class lists but it was not something that was thought of until the training was underway.

Hackmann noted that all the suggested changes were not only helpful in the unlikely cases that there is an active shooter but in a fire or medical emergency.

School board members thanked Hackmann for all of this help and suggestions.

* Best presented the school board with the Annual Secretary of the Board’s Report (ASBR) which was submitted as of Aug. 30. The report shows that the school has total revenues for the year of $2,873,030.13 and total expenditures at $2,821,027.45. The ASBR lists the total local tax contribution to the school district at $869,618.14. With average daily attendance at 121.92 students, that is $7,132.89 local dollars spent per student. The total cost per student, with federal and state revenues included, was $17,335.44.

The ASBR will be updated throughout the year.

* The board approved the monthly bills for $59.405.02.

* Chamois R-1 has the following ending balances for the month: general ($1,238,516), special ($154,861), and capital projects ($187,846).

* Porter Berendzen, and Associates were scheduled to meet with the board to discuss the facilities master plan but due to health concerns, the presentation was postponed until the October meeting.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT

Best informed the board members that the assessment data from last year’s standardized tests would be available next week and that he would be presenting the results to the school board at the October meeting. 

The assessment data from last year will not be used for state or federal accountability because of issues with COVID-19 last year.

* Chamois R-1 has 144 students enrolled in school this year. Best reported that there are 71 students in elementary school, 74 students in junior high and high school, and 15 students enrolled in preschool.

* The solar panels have been installed but there is a problem with the burner on the elementary school roof. The burner is under warranty but will require additional labor for the solar panels to be fully functioning. The part has been ordered.

* Several of the air conditioning units around the school have been serviced. The problems were mostly noticed during the week of hot weather. The air conditioners never completely failed but were not working as well as expected. The air conditioner in the high school office, kindergarten trailer, and computer lab trailer had to have refrigerant added. The library had a disconnect on the roof that was reconnected. 

* Harold G. Butzer and Company, Inc., came out and developed a plan for what needs to be done to the boiler system before winter. 

* The financial audit will be done remotely again this year.

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

* The Pirate Pride Band was to perform at the Gasconade Bicentennial on Sept. 11. They will be marching in Chamois for Chamois Day on Saturday, and in Sullivan on Sept. 25.

* Classes will be making floats for the Chamois Day Parades this year. Teachers who are nervous about participating due to COVID-19 will help coordinate the events with parents.

* Members of the junior class will be making and selling apple butter this year. The senior class passed on this fundraiser since they are planning on a smaller senior trip this year.

* The girls’ volleyball played at Belle and the match is available to view on YouTube. There are several players out on quarantines but the games will continue as scheduled.

* The “Too Good for Drugs” program started Sept. 8.