School board hears about tech group coming to Havre

Havre Public Schools Superintendent Andy Carlson told the Havre School Board Tuesday during its monthly meeting about a group coming to the schools to help with technology.

Carlson said Consortium for School Networking is coming to Havre in May. He said this initial group would come to tour the schools as well as check the technology systems at the schools in the district.

“This is an incredible opportunity,” he said.

The group will also be training teachers and students, introducing low-cost items and apps the school can put toward technology and dedicating a day to Google.

Aug. 11, the consortium will be hosting a Technology Fun Day, Carlson said, open to parents and students in grades one to 12 where they can learn about technology such as mobile apps, robotics and web videos.

The board also recognized an award presented for work making Havre schools a trauma-sensitive community.

Carlson showed the board a certificate National Council for Behavioral Health awarded the Havre Public Schools certifying its Havre Trauma-Sensitive Schools Initiative had completed the 2017-18 Trauma-Sensitive Schools Learning Community, due to the effort of Assistant Superintendent Craig Mueller and board member Curtis Smeby.

The official website for the National Council for Behavioral Health describes this community as a chance for experts and professionals from schools all across the country to connect with one another to help create schools that are healthier because of a trauma-sensitive approach. That approach addresses the impacts that childhood trauma, including deaths, violence, crime and abuse, have on people as they mature including while they are in school.

Havre district was one of four districts, out of 12, that had completed the year-long process, Smeby said, and attended the summit held last month in Washington D.C.

Smeby said he felt the achievement was due, in large part, to the leadership of Mueller.

The board unanimously re-elected Aileen Couch as board chair and Harvey Capellen as vice chair for the 2018-19 school year. Shawna Flores, Havre Public Schools district clerk, was unanimously voted in as next school year’s clerk.

Capellen was appointed as a member of the County Transportation Committee and Wayne Bolken was appointed as the trustee to Havre Public Schools Education Foundation Board.

The board approved the consideration of the English and language arts curriculum as presented by Mueller.

Mueller added that they will not be asking for new English textbooks this year.

The board also unanimously approved, for 2018-19, to keep the trustee meeting on the second Tuesday of the month and the trustee special meeting on the fourth Tuesday of each month.

The 2018-19 trustee activity calendar and the school board member code of ethics, District Policy 1511, were also passed unanimously and the code of ethics was signed by all present trustee members.

The renewal of the Montana Unified School Trust employee insurance was also unanimously passed by the board.

Carlson presented to the board requests and considerations from school districts to enter the Havre school district when picking up their students by school buses.

The board unanimously passed a request by North Star School District #99 to cross boundaries into the district to pick up high school students.

They also passed, unanimously, a request by Rocky Boy Public Schools to enter Havre school district to pick up students east of the Big Red Barn.

After Carlson presented the request by Davey School District #12 to cross boundaries by picking up students at a stop at Patterson Park, the board passed the request on the condition that they pick up students at only the Patterson Park stop and they don’t collect state reimbursement for traveling past the district lines.

The board set the budget meeting for May 29 at 5 p.m. and the June board planning meeting for June 12 after the regular board meeting.

The next school board meeting will be Tuesday, June 12, at 6:30 p.m. at Havre Middle School.