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Carey appointed to newly-created assistant principal position
Ely School Board members took further steps this week in connection with a series of budget-cutting measures approved earlier this spring.
Those included the appointment of Jeff Carey to a newly-created K-12 assistant principal position.
Carey’s middle and high school principal post was eliminated last month as one of numerous measures to bridge more than half of an estimated $477,000 budget deficit.
He’ll remain in the district, however, in the assistant principal role while current superintendent Anne Oelke will take on the K-12 principal duties. According to estimates provided by the school district last month, the move will save $15,749.
Board members also approved several other personnel- related items this week, all linked to the budget reductions.
Among them was a reduction in time for Memorial secretary Holly Sherman and Washington secretary Stacy Hegfors. Both had 10 days trimmed from their positions and will now work 200 days per year.
The board also cut Kathy Champa’s school nurse position from eight hours to five hours per day, cut an hour per day from Michelle Milton’s cafeteria aide job, and reduced paraprofessional hours from 32.5 to 31.5 per week.
Paraprofessional posts held by Anna-Lena Forsman, Trenton Flegel and Joseph Elliott were also reduced, effective at the end of the school year.
District officials had indicated earlier that they wouldn’t try and close the entire budget gap in one year because of the impact it would have on school operations, and the district is expected to dip into reserves to fill the remaining deficit.
They’ll also explore more budget-cutting measures for the following year and hope for further aid from state lawmakers.
The district is expected to save money by a retirement in the social studies teaching staff and a reduction in the English department from 3.0 to 2.8 full-time equivalent.
Revenue enhancements were also approved including higher participation fees and admission charges for school sports events.
In other business Monday, the board:
• Accepted the resignation of speech coach Donna Kari.
• Approved an extended leave of absence of up to three years for teacher Megan Anderson.
• Hired Jennifer Kerntz, LeaRae Richards and Jacki Tolbert for extended school year positions.
• Hired Nick Bates for a full-time social studies teaching position.
• Approved a two-year agreement with Teachers on Call, the agency that assists in providing substitute teachers.
• Approved a one-year contract for $2,700 with BoardBook, related to online agendas and meeting materials.
• Had the first reading of policies related to public and private personnel data, harassment an violence, and disability nondiscrimination.
• Approved both the Memorial and Washington school day schedules for the 2024-25 school year.
• Received notice of the intent to negotiate from both the principals’ bargaining unit, and the school’s confidential/ supervisory employees group.
• Listened to a presentation from high school band instructor Karl Kubiak about a planned band trip to Florida in the spring of 2026.
The Ely band would join Mesabi East’s band on a several-day trip that is set for late-March of that year.
Cost is estimated at $2,600 per participant and Kubiak estimated that as many as 30 Ely band students might participate.
