CVCS Office
John Carlucci System Administrator
Tom Drisch Business Manager
Kent Hansen Development Director
Mary Beckey Kelly Marketing Director

Administrators
Richard Caye Columbus
Roger Ahrens Sacred Heart
Beth Wright Queen of Peace
Nancy Stirm Blessed Sacrament
Chris Mitchell St. Edward’s

Columbus - Fr. Ken Glaser, Columbus Spiritual Director
Archdiocese - Alice Conlon
Director of Religious Education - Pam Johnston, Sacred Heart
Non-Board Chairs - Don Johnston Finance

Call to Order
Tim Luce called the board meeting to order at 5:02 pm.

Prayer
Suzy Luecke led the Board in prayer.

Approval of Minutes
Fr. Juhl made a motion to approve the September 2nd minutes. Suzy Luecke seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

In-service
The board watched sections one and three of the Archdiocesan tapes.

Correspondence
The board will send correspondence to the following people:
Mike Berns – Eagle Project Storage Shed @ St. Ed’s
Jake Demske – Eagle Project Shelving in 12 Classrooms @ St. Ed’s
Mali Rushton – Queen of Peace teacher – bed rest

Committee Reports (Non-Board Chair)

Public Relations & Enrollment Management
Mary-Beckey Kelly reported that the annual report has been designed and printed. Pioneer Graphics did a great job. There have been many media releases and pictures. The website has been updated with new pictures, benchwarmer results, focus group discussions. The PR Committee has representatives from each school and this has been working very well. The October Voice will go out next week and the November Voice will be the report card containing the Annual Progress Report which came from Alice Conlon. Work has begun on a web-based calendar with Bluedawn working on the technicalities. She invited the board to attend the Shipyard Barbeque on Saturday @ 7 pm @ Columbus.

Finance
Don Johnston said the Finance Committee minutes were emailed to all members. There was been much discussion on the budget and subsidy. The Preschool/Day Care budgets were discussed and two areas are not currently self-sustaining. The Finance Committee will need some direction from the board – Sacred Heart and Queen of Peace. Blessed Sacrament’s Preschool is marginal (break-even). CVCS is in the process of changing to the Archdiocese chart of accounts. Third Source Income needs to be clarified – this is a transition year where third source was to be used to offset subsidy. There is approximately $250,000 in 140 different accounts – who should administer/control these accounts? We also need to develop a clear strategy on fundraising which needs to be coordinated between parishes and the system schools. Every administrator should be contacting the Development Office for fundraiser approval and scheduling the fundraiser so it doesn’t conflict with other fundraising initiatives. How many fundraisers do we allow? How long can money sit in these accounts? Fr. Landherr asked about the definition of third source income. The board discussed and felt the Preschool and Day Care budgets should be combined and at a minimum must break-even. Chris Herman made the following motion: Beginning with the 2005/06 school year the preschool and day care budgets should be combined and must break-even. Fr. Juhl seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus. St. Pat’s abstained from voting on this issue.

Old Business
Strategic Planning Committee
Tim Luce said the first meeting went very well. The next meeting is October 18th. The groups will view a video and asked to think outside the box and be creative with solutions.

August Liturgy/Dinner
Tim Luce asked board members who’ve not contributed to kindly do so.

Enrollment Figures
John Carlucci handed out the latest enrollment updates.

Bylaw Updates
Anne Sergeant said the bylaws were sent to all board members by email and read the updates for Bylaws - Article II. Chris Herman made a motion to approve the Bylaws as stated. Donna O’Brien seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus. Anne Sergeant read the updates for Bylaws - Article III. Chris Herman made a motion to approve the Bylaws as stated. Jake Schaefer seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

Committee Assignments
Anne Sergeant emailed committee assignments to the board members.

Consolidation/Constitution Updates
Anne Sergeant reported that these documents will be updated in conjunction with recommendations from Finance Committee regarding subsidy and other financial issues that need to be updated.

New Business
CVCS Office Move
John Carlucci handed out the cost summary of the CVCS office move to Columbus. The total amount is $739.00 higher than projected but he asked the board to note that a portion of the costs include some electrical wiring that needed to be done for Columbus. He asked recognized Brian Hayes and his company for donating their labor to install flooring. The board thanked Brian for this gesture.

St. Edward’s Strategic Plan
Fr. Cahill informed the board that St. Edward’s is working on a new strategic plan for the next five year period. This will address facilities (including the school). A new school building or renovation has been discussed but they are not sure the direction CVCS is going with regard to schools they have decided to hold off and not implement their strategic plan until they know what direction CVCS is going in. He said they hoped to be a in a position by January/February to know what they are doing which may or may not dovetail with CVCS plans.

Reports
CEO Report
John submitted a written report to the board. There have been many nice positive comments and everything seems very upbeat which is nice.

Principals
Blessed Sacrament
Nancy Stirm said their out-of-uniform day raised $400.00 which was sent to a school in St. Charles, Florida which was hit by the hurricanes. CAT tests will be held for grades 2/4 & 7. Their fundraiser was successful. Things are going well.

Columbus
Richard Caye said they are not selling subscriptions for the Compass – it’s going home with kids. The first quarter ends October 15th. ITEDS will be held for 9-10-11 graders. There is a vocal program going on tonight which includes elementary and secondary schools. Helping Hands day is October 29th. He has created an Education Committee (social/academic/staff needs). Block versus period scheduling is being evaluated. He is going to meet with the WAMAC principals. Senior release is also being re-evaluated. He will work on scheduling an open house for elementary students. There will be a mini-assembly for Homecoming.

Queen of Peace
Beth Wright said they hosted the League of Women Voters for a presentation and mock election. They will have some veterans come in and talk about their war experience. They are making cards for the veteran’s home residents. Their fundraiser was successful.

St. Edward’s
Chris Mitchell said their 7th-8th graders attended a retreat last week. 5th and 6th graders are going to Ft. Atkinson. The 4th graders participated in a fun run. There is an upcoming 5th and 6th grade music program. They will have a bagpipe performance on Monday.

Sacred Heart
Roger said the school fundraiser was very successful. One of the prizes was an out-of-uniform pass for a week. They will hand out five day punch cards – if the card is lost so is the privilege. To date 17 of 30 eighth graders plan to attend Columbus. Unit C will be going back to Salvation Army for a service project. They participated in the shoe box project and he is driving the bus for the kindergarten field trip to the pumpkin farm.

DRE – Pam Johnston – a written report was sent via email to board members.
Spiritual Director – Fr. Glaser sent a written report via email to board members.
Academics – Tim Luce will talk to Barb Lyman-Kluck in regard this committee.
Catholicity – Fr. Glaser sent a written report via email to board members.
Co-curricular – Chris Herman said their next meeting is next week.
Development – Kent Hansen said things are going great. The annual fund drive is in process. Tim Luce said a new corporation is in place and he will be meeting with the Archbishop with the Endowment group.
Facilities – Brian Hayes said there was nothing new to report.
Human Resources – Anne Sergeant sent a written report via email to board members.
Technology – Anne Sergeant sent a written report via email to board members.
SIAC – no report.

Adjournment
Fr. Landherr made a motion to adjourn @ 6:48 pm. Wendy Peterson seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

Submitted by Anne Sergeant – CVCS BOE Secretary

Cedar Valley Catholic Schools
Board of Education Meeting Minutes APPROVED
November 11, 2004

In Attendance:
Parish Pastor Lay Representatives
Blessed Sacrament: Brian Hayes,Chris Herman
Queen of Peace: Fr. Colter, Jake Schaefer, Bernie Stroh
Sacred Heart: Fr. Landherr, Wendy Peterson, Anne Sergeant
St. Edward’s: Tim Luce, Donna O’Brien
St. Patrick’s: Fr. Secora, Suzy Luecke, David Lane
Absent: Fr. Cahill, Fr. Juhl

CVCS Office
John Carlucci System Administrator
Tom Drisch Business Manager
Kevin Karns Athletic Director

Administrators
Richard Caye Columbus
Roger Ahrens Sacred Heart
Beth Wright Queen of Peace
Nancy Stirm Blessed Sacrament
Archdiocese
Alice Conlon

Director of Religious Education
Pam Johnston Sacred Heart

Non-Board Chairs
Don Johnston Finance

Call to Order
Tim Luce called the board meeting to order at 4:17 pm.

Prayer
Alice Conlon led the Board in prayer.

Approval of Minutes
The approval of the October minutes was tabled until the December meeting. The board did not receive the minutes in time to review prior to the board meeting.

In-service
The in-service was also tabled until the December meeting.

Correspondence
The board will send correspondence to the following people:
Shelia Miller – loss of her father
Deb Murray – loss of her father-in-law
Kenny Frost and volleyball team – state birth and awards
Ron Roberson and cross country team – state birth and awards
Aundra Meeks and football team – state championship and awards
Msgr. Steimel – Football team chaplain – thanks for his efforts
Lynn Johnson – teacher @ Blessed Sacrament - selection to Who’s Who
Bob and Nancy Stirm – 30 year wedding anniversary

Agenda Change
Tim Luce asked the board to add two items to the agenda:
Mr. Schneiders – approval of AP European History trip to Europe
Audra Meeks - football team request to make an exception to the Sunday practice policy

Anne Sergeant made a motion to approve the addition and it was seconded by Chris Herman and approved by consensus.

AP European History Trip to Europe
Mr. Schneiders asked the board to approve the AP European History Class’ request to fly to Europe and visit World War I and World War II battlefields. The trip would take place March 28 – April 8, 2005 and would cost $1500.00/person. There are ten students and three chaperons that will attend. Fr. Landherr asked if all students in the class were going to attend – Mr. Schneiders said there was one student who does not plan to attend the trip. Anne Sergeant asked if the three chaperons have attended virtus training and Mr. Schneiders said they would attend prior to trip. Donna O’Brien made a motion to approve the trip pending the appropriate forms being filed and chaperons attending virtus training. This motion was seconded by Jake Schaefer and approved by consensus.

One-time Exception to Sunday Practice Policy
Tim Luce spoke to the board regarding the football team’s birth to the playoff semi-final which will be held in the morning. Coach Meeks would like permission to practice with the team on Saturday/Sunday from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm. The team will attend 7:30 mass @ St. Patrick’s. This will allow the team to practice at the same time their game will be played which they hope will help better prepare them for a morning game. Tim said he believed Fr. Glaser and Pam Johnston approved this request and the students will attend Confirmation when they are finished. Chris Herman made a motion to approve the one-time exception to the Sunday Practice Policy. Wendy Peterson seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

Old Business
August Liturgy/Dinner
If you have not turned in your contribution, please turn it in to the CVCS office.

Enrollment Figures
John Carlucci emailed the latest enrollment updates to the board. Enrollment is stable and we are gaining a student here and there.

Consolidation/Constitution Updates
This has been tabled until the Executive Committee and Finance Chair can work on this.

New Business
Truck Purchase
Don Johnston said the Finance Committee discussed and passed a resolution to authorize $12,000 toward the purchase of a one ton truck for snow removal/field work which will be done in-house – not contracted. The previous agreement was to pay a contractor $7000.00/year regardless of how much it snowed. There is $7000.00 in this year’s budget allocated for snow removal and the remaining balance can be paid off in two years. Fr. Secora made a motion to approve the truck purchase. The motion was seconded by Jake Schaefer and approved by consensus.

Freezer Purchase
The walk-in freezer at Sacred Heart is in need of repairs. The repairs will run $4000-5000 and a used freezer can be purchased for $5750.00. John sent an email through the Executive Committee and the Finance Committee. There is money for this purchase in the lunchroom account. Chris Herman made a motion to approve the purchase of a used walk-in freezer at Sacred Heart. This motion was seconded by Bernie Stroh and approved by consensus.

Parishioner Status
Anne Sergeant read the following proposed policy submitted by the Finance Committee:

Beginning with the 2005/06 school year all CVCS families will be required to have a parishioner status form signed by the parish pastor. After brief discussion it was agreed to change the policy to read:

Beginning with the 2005/06 school year all CVCS families will be required to have a parishioner status form signed by the parish pastor or his designee. Bernie Stroh made a motion to approve the changed policy. The motion was seconded by Chris Herman and approved by consensus.

The pastors will get together to work out the mechanics to implement this policy. Chris Herman asked if families will be presented a covenant for tithing. The focus of the policy is to determine whether or not a family is a parishioner and if not to invite them to become a member – not to require a minimum contribution. This card will determine if the family is charged parish tuition or non-parish tuition.

Registration Fee
The following policy was submitted by the Finance Committee:

In order to develop realistic budgets and make appropriate staffing decisions, registration fees shall be doubled for each student registered after March 15th. This date may fluctuate between March 10 and March 20 depending on the calendar year. Exceptions to this policy are families new to the CVCS system registering after the deadline.

Brian Hayes made motion to approve this policy. Bernie Stroh seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

The board would like the CVCS office to issue a letter explaining the rationale behind this proposal in January. There was concern about the policy causing a hardship for some families. The board agreed to review the policy next year if it seems to be problematic.

Richard Caye shared his concern about the $70.00 high school registration fee and then families are charged other class fees. He would like to see this issue addressed because the tuition families pay which doesn’t include these special fees. He would like to see one fee which includes all classes. The Finance Committee will discuss this issue at its next meeting.

School Closing

The following policy was submitted by the Executive Committee:
In the event of an emergency school closing, or early dismissal due to inclement weather (extreme heat and humidity or cold, ice, snow) all school activities are automatically cancelled. This includes all curricular and co-curricular activities.

Chris Herman made a motion to approve the policy. Jake Schaefer seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

Third Source Income
Don Johnston stated there were three different November meeting agendas that were circulating and the Third Source Income verbiage differs in all three. He said this was discussed at length and included discussion of special projects and the necessary approvals. He suggested the Finance Committee revisit this policy and bring it back for approval in December.

Policy Review
Tim Luce said the board was asked to review the policy summary for policies 1000-3000 and asked if there were any questions pertaining to these policies. There weren’t any questions.

APR Presentation
John Carlucci shared the APR presentation with the board. The November edition of “The Voice” contains the report. They are required to share this information with the public and the review needs to be part of the official Board of Education records. Upon review there were no issues regarding the presentation.

Reports
CEO Report
John Carlucci said the impression given at the last board meeting was the administrators were not aware of the budget figures shared at the November meeting. John wanted to state that he had worked with the administrators on the budget and they were part of the process. John joined the Rotary Club. John recently attended a future trends seminar. He’s been working with the administrators and will present a balanced budget to the Finance Committee which allows for a plan to reduce parish subsidies. John said he plans to visit the elementary schools one-half day to a full day per week.

Academics –report was emailed to the board. Roger Ahrens will chair the next meeting which will be held at Sacred Heart.

Catholicity – report was emailed to the board. Pam Johnston reminded the board there is an adult formation session scheduled for Wednesday, December 1st from 7-8:30 pm @ Queen of Peace. Fr. Colter will lead the panel discussion on forgiveness and reconciliation.

Co-curricular – Chris Herman reported he heard from parents at Sacred Heart regarding the following issues:

Prayer – They like the pray prior to athletic events and suggested that each schools pray before every activity not just sports (ie, play, vocal concerts, band concerts, etc). A prayer made need to be written for these other activities. The board was very receptive to this idea and asked this be placed on the Administrator meeting agenda.

School Pictures – They were dissatisfied with the quality of the pictures and cost of the pictures this year. The company Sacred Heart used in the 2002/03 school year was less costly and the pictures were of better quality. They would like this to be reviewed prior to handing out the contract for pictures next year. The other administrators said they had similar complaints in their buildings as well.

Extra-Curricular Eligibility – The Co-Curricular Committee would like this item to be placed on the Administrator’s meeting agenda so the eligibility requirements are the same for all schools.

Chris said that 2/3 of the schools have a form of student government. They would like each school to have student government. He said the committee is very happy with the increased number of staff/student faith celebrations – they would like to see this increased to include more than students and staff. The Co-Curricular Committee would like to see more spirit days and will be meeting with the band instructors regarding the formation of a metro band. They would like to build more bridges between the high school and grade schools. There’s been a great start to that this year. There was conversation about allowing the 7th/8th graders to attend the Columbus football game. It would be nice if there was a bus that could take the kids to the game. John explained the grade schools will be open but if parents want to take their children to the game they may do so.

Development – John Carlucci said the annual campaign is under way and they’ve raised approximately $76,000 to date. There are quite a few team leaders who’ve not turn in their pledges. Letters to alumni will be mailed shortly.

Facilities – Brian Hayes said there was nothing new to report.

Finance – Don Johnston submitted a written report to the board.

Human Resources – report was emailed to the board. Anne said the next meeting is Monday, November 15th @ 6:30 pm @ St. Edward’s.

Public Relations/Enrollment Management – Mary Beckey Kelly sent a written report with Tom Drisch. Anne Sergeant shared the report with the board. The annual fund drive has kicked off. The pictures are changed on the website every week or two. She hopes to post the elementary athletic schedule on the website until they each have their own website. She worked on posters/pocket schedules for Columbus winter sports and a post for the canned food drive. The annual progress report is the main focus of the November edition of “The Voice”. She is working with Bluedawn on technicalities of the web-based calendar. There was a lot of media coverage in October. She attended the Chamber luncheon and found the future trends presentation very interesting. She is starting to work on the Catholic schools week tabloid, social and billboards.

Technology – The committee didn’t meet on October 25th as scheduled. Two Technology Coordinators (Blessed Sacrament and St. Edward’s) showed up for the meeting at Columbus and no one else showed up. Anne reminded the board this committee agreed at the September meeting to meet on the 4th Monday of the month. The next meeting is Monday, November 22nd @ 5:30 pm @ the Columbus Media Center.

SIAC – no report.

Strategic Planning – The committee met November 2nd and will meet again on November 16th. They will come back with an action plan for each area.

Principals
Tim Luce asked that each principal review their school enrollment information and send a list of students who have left the system in the last two years to Mary Beckey Kelly. A letter will be written to the students and their families which says we hope all is going well for them but we would like to extend an invitation to welcome them back to our school system. The principals agreed to send the lists to Mary Beckey Kelly.

Blessed Sacrament
Nancy Stirm emailed a report to Anne Sergeant. Anne will forward the email to all board members after the meeting.

Columbus
Richard Caye handed out a written report. There will be a 7th/8th grade orientation next Thursday. He said Pam Johnston provided him a list of CORE and CCD kids and he will contact them as well.

Queen of Peace
Beth Wright emailed a report to Anne Sergeant. Anne will forward the email to all board members after the meeting.

St. Edward’s
Tim Luce said Chris Mitchell called him and that she’s on her way to Milwaukee. Her daughter is going to have surgery. Tim asked that we all say a prayer for her.

Sacred Heart
Roger said they will be receiving a new student on December 2nd – thanks to Pam Johnston. There was 95% participation at conferences. He told his teachers to pick out a book for their classrooms and he would pay for it.

DRE – Pam Johnston said there was nothing to report.
Spiritual Director – Fr report was emailed to the board.
Don Johnston said there were financial statements through October 31st. Pickup a copy before you leave.

Adjournment
Chris Herman made a motion to adjourn @ 5:44 pm. Suzy Luecke seconded this motion and it was approved by consensus.

Submitted by Anne Sergeant – CVCS BOE Secretary