Students shared their projects and ideas for the district at Wednesday’s school board meeting, including a chicken coop and new art classes.
FFA members Allyson Rietcheck and Blake LaPean presented their plans for a sustainable chicken coop behind the Ed Tech building at the high school. The project is set to begin next school year.
FFA’s coop will work alongside other career and technical education classes to benefit more than just the agricultural sciences classes, Rietcheck said. The project will give students a hands-on learning opportunity as well as the chance to collaborate with other classes, she said.
“We kind of came up with the idea of something that we can offer to our students so that they can learn more valuable traits, and really good learning opportunities also carry with them for their future career,” Rietcheck said.
Culinary students will get to use the eggs that come from it and any produce grown in the greenhouse, Rietcheck said. The computer science classes will program code for the mechanics of the coop. It will incorporate every CTE class, she said.
They plan to also eventually sell eggs and meat to help fundraise for the project. They will also grow produce in the greenhouse from the fertilizer. They hope to one day have 40 chickens in the coop, but will start with 10 hens.
Rietcheck also laid out the cons of the project and how FFA would avoid them. To keep noise at a minimum, they will provide a comfortable and safe living environment for the chickens. To keep the smell under control, they will keep it well-maintained and rotated regularly. FFA will take donations to help pay for food costs and allow them free range to help reduce how much grain is given.
LaPean said they have talked the project over with Mayor Tim Reazin and city codes administration to make sure the project is approved with them. Reazin is supportive of the project and it is up to city code, he said. LaPean confirmed there would be no roosters to disrupt neighbors.
To feed 10 hens, they estimated it would cost about $1,400 for a year. They expect to get six to eight eggs a day from 10 laying hens, and will sell dozens for around $3. The inside of the coop will be 120 square feet, and 400 square feet of outdoor covered space.
They are also incorporating sustainability aspects like flower beds around the coop to compost the chicken waste, compost from the culinary program and rain water catching for watering purposes.
A chicken manager will rotate each week to care for the chickens they are assigned to, LaPean said. During the summer, there will still be one person appointed, but the coop will also have automatic feed and water.
Superintendent Stu Moeckel said when he had an initial meeting with FFA they had answers to every one of his questions, and it was clear they had done their homework. Moeckel had already given them the go-ahead on the project, but wanted the board to see it.
“I’m excited for them to start this project,” Moeckel said. “I think they found a great location, and I love how they’ve involved all the other CTE classrooms in the design and makeup of this.”
Board member Joe Hurla agreed he is looking forward to it getting started.
In other business, Georgia Martin presented her senior capstone project, detailing the need for more high school 3-D arts courses. She’s proposing adding a secondary art curriculum for this kind of art.
Martin said it would be beneficial for students to have the opportunity to learn more about jewelry, metalwork and ceramics. Martin said not only will the course help students better prepare for their future, but it also allows them to possibly pick up lifelong hobbies and functional pieces of art.
“Those students who go on to go into different art schools are at a huge disadvantage in Eudora because we absolutely have no ceramics experience or even sculpting,” she said.
Because ceramics require a lot of materials, a kiln, electrical support and ventilation, it can be hard to get into if you don’t start it in school, she said.
But it also provides students with experience on how to deal with failure since it is such a finicky hobby that takes a lot of trial and retrial, she said.
“Most importantly, though, art’s for everyone. All students can benefit from the lessons that ceramics teaches,” Martin said.
In her presentation, she included results of a survey asking if students would be interested in these types of classes. Out of 181 students, 44% or about 80 students said they would take a ceramics class if it was offered, and another 24% said they maybe would.
The high school already has a kiln and four pottery wheels, as well as glazes and other materials not being used, she said.
Martin said the classes could even be offered to teachers and community members and have members of the Lawrence Art Center do demos for students. Auctioning off student-made pieces could be a way to fundraise.
Hurla said he sat in on capstone presentations this year, and feels like students presented actionable ideas and that the high school will have a lot to consider.
The board also recognized state qualifiers, including powerlifting, girls wrestling, state band and choir, Science Olympiad and Scholars Bowl.
In other business, Principal Seth Heide gave an update on the elementary school’s year.
This year, a goal was to improve building communication as well as increase reading and math testing scores.
Assistant Principal Jamie Grado outlined updates on challenges they discussed at the presentation earlier this school year, including the multi-tiered system of support process, communication needs and substitute teacher shortages.
Grado said this was the first time all para positions have been filled, and that the sub shortage has been better. Better communication throughout the building and district has been an effort this year, as well.
Heather Hundley, director of school improvement, updated the board on continuous improvement strategies. She said the district has been participating in an ongoing discussion of curriculum, making sure standards and learning strategies are where they should be.
This continuous look at curriculum helps make sure the district is always improving techniques, trying new teaching techniques and replicating those that work well, she said. The district is working on a new English/language arts curriculum adoption, she said.
Making sure teachers have ample access to instructional materials that match curriculum needs is also a priority. Hundley said aligned instruction materials are important because otherwise teachers can spend substantial time searching places like Google or Pinterest for these resources, which don’t always meet standards or lead to inconsistencies.
“We already know that teachers spend a lot of time planning and so when they’re looking online, that’s taking just that much more time and are they pulling quality information that can be delivered to students?” Hundley said.
Moeckel also noted making sure teachers have the resources they need helps streamline student learning so everyone has the same knowledge when they move to the next grade level.
The district goals for the year are to get 80% of students to score a level 2 or above on the state assessment and increase the percentage of graduates earning at least one market value asset by 5% in 2024. Details about Kansas standardized test results are not yet ready but will be presented at a summer meeting, Hundley said.
During the superintendent report, Moeckel gave a preview of preliminary budget conversations that will continue at future meetings. Goals for next school year include improving student opportunities through more staff for the early childhood center, offsetting rising operational costs as well as retaining high quality staff with competitive salaries.
Based on budget assumptions for the 2024-25 school year, there will be $5,378 per student from the state. The total projected new funding is estimated to be about $634,888. New projected expenditures will total about $492,400
There will be a projected $142,466 in unassigned new dollars coming to the district after projected expenditures, Moeckel said.
With students graduating in higher numbers this year, the shortfall of funding will be about $269,050 at next year’s funding projection, Moeckel said. This is due to about a 50-student decrease because of the larger class size.
Enrollment numbers in Eudora are declining overall, which decreases funding coming into the district as well. Some grade levels are staffed to teach more students in the larger classes, he said. Since classes are getting smaller, the district has to consider these changes as budget conversations continue. People retiring and not refilling positions for the smaller classes is a way to help these changes, he said.
Moeckel gave an update on bond construction. Construction on the new entrance at the middle school is ongoing with a roof going on the structure. The new parking lot behind the high school as well as the new auxiliary gym and weight room are also in the works. The Early Learning Center’s construction is also ongoing. The classroom construction will begin as soon as school is out, he said.
He also shared the draft of the next school year fee schedule for classes. The draft did not change instructional, technology or student fees. Fashion and Interior design, a new class, is expected to cost $40 for students, a purposeful choice to keep the class open to everyone with a low cost. The student fees will be approved at a future meeting.
The board also approved a bid for structured cabling from Smart Cabling Solutions for $85,100 that is included in the bond. The cost will pay for new ethernet cable for the Early Learning Center, middle school and high school.
The board also passed a bid from SchoolsPLP for $26,200. This new service will be used for those enrolled in virtual school. The tool will support virtual learning, credit recovery, future CTE classes for online students, AP courses and gifted courses. This payment will be for one year of the service. Moeckel said this will open up for options and allow students to have more online possibilities for current and future courses.
The board also voted to hire Sarah Miller as an assistant principal for the elementary after the executive session. Miller is coming from an elementary school in the Topeka public school district where she was also an assistant principal.
Reach reporter Sara Maloney at [email protected]
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