Colby rescinds additional absence policy

The Colby School Board decided to remove an administrative guideline regarding additional excused absences for students in good standing at their July regular meeting held on Monday.

Under state law, parents or guardians are allowed to excuse a student for up to 10 days in a school year for any reason for planned or anticipated absences. However, the administrative guideline stated that the principal may allow up to eight additional absences per year.

There were additional conditions that needed to be met before these eight addi- tional days could be utilized. Students needed to have no unexcused absences, no unserved detentions or a suspension in a previous quarter and they must have a minimum of a 3.0 cumulative GPA, based on grades from the latest reporting period.

The stated intent written within the guideline was to allow additional flexibility to students who were both meeting academic goals and were in good standing with the school. However, reports from administration during the meeting stated that the guideline was not functioning as it had originally been intended.

“When talking with our administration team, we don’t feel that this is helping us out in terms of allowing kids to miss more school,” superintendent Patrick Galligan said at Monday’s meeting. “It’s not necessarily being implemented in the spirit of the language as I’ve heard about it.”

“Our high school principal [Steve Wozniak] said that families will say, ‘well, how many days do I have left?’” he continued. “It’s not like we don’t want you in school, we want the students to be here, we want the expectation to be that they should be in school and so we think that the way this policy has been interpreted does not necessarily help us meet our goals.”

There was some discussion over whether part of the reason it was implemented was because of the COVID-19 pandemic, to give parents some additional flexibility, but regardless of the original intention, the board appeared to agree that the guideline was causing more confusion and was being taken advantage of.

“It’s gotten to a point where people have taken it so far. It’s been abused,” board member Jean Schmitt said. “You’re still going to have parents not happy whether you have or whether you don’t have it. But it got to a point where it was a little out of control.”

With the removal of the guideline, the excused absences move back to the regular state-allowed 10 absences per school year, though Galligan noted that he hoped the administration team would remain flexible in making allowances for special circumstances, as they have done in the past.

Other business

■ Resignations approved at the board meeting included Dante Kleinschmidt as a middle school track and field coach, Steve Wozniak as a middle school assistant football coach and Olyvia Pierce as a special education teacher. New hires included Justin Hill as a special education teacher assistant, McKenzie Parnewicz as a middle school cross country coach and Leighton Drolshagen as a middle school assistant football coach.

■ The board approved a milk bid from Weber’s Farm Store for the upcoming school year. There was a competing bid from Famerboy Creamery, but it was more expensive and did not offer the reduced fat options that the district needs.

There was a two-cent increase in cost per pouch from last school year, going from $0.29 per half-pint of fat free (skim) milk to $0.31 per half-pint. A similar two cent increase was included for the prices of 1% white and chocolate milk.

■ The first reading of adjustments to the policy regarding early graduation were approved. These changes will require more communication from those looking to take advantage of early graduation, requiring notice by the start of the second semester for which the graduation ceremony they will attend. It will also state that the district is not expected to provide more than four credits per semester to accommodate early graduation and that classes and courses outside the currently scheduled classes and online courses are not expected from the district in order to accommodate an early graduation.

■ A new administrative guideline set the official colors of the district to green, gold/yellow, white and black and standard Hornet logo as the official logo for all the in-season sports under the school district.