1. education
2. school

Springville
www.springville.k12.ia.us
Superintendent:
Amy Kortemeyer
400 Academy Street
Springville, IA 52336
854-6197 Ext. 1001
Springville Secondary
School
400 Academy Street
Springville, IA 52336
Principal: Nick Merritt
854-6196 Ext. 1022
Springville Elementary
School
602 Mill Avenue
Springville, IA 52336
Principal: Amanda
Potter
854-6195 Ext. 2002
MISSION
STATEMENT
The mission of the
Springville Community
Schools is to instill a
lifelong love of
learning, while
promoting the
achievement of the
individual student
within a positive
learning climate where
high expectations are
cooperatively set by
school personnel,
students, parents and the
community.
The next School Board
Meeting will be held on
Wednesday, March 11th,
at 7:00 p.m.
March 2015
From the Desk of Superintendent Amy Kortemeyer
Spring Greetings!
In this month’s article I feature our ongoing facilities work and information on
snow make up days.
Facilities Update
This past November, Springville CSD invited an independent group in to do a brief
study of our facilities and provide feedback as well as hold community meetings to
gather input from our stakeholders. These meetings were held during the months of
January and February. We want to thank all of you who attended these meetings
and for sharing your thoughts!
During the February 16th Board Meeting, Duane Van Hemert and Sam Harding,
from Iowa School Construction Planning Services (ISCPS) shared their unbiased
assessment of the facilities and the various options that they had
considered. Based on a variety of data that were consulted, along with their own
assessment, they have made the recommendation to bring the student body into one,
PK-12, building by adding additional classroom space to the secondary building.
To learn more about their recommendations the Board and Administration have
asked Duane and Sam to share their final report and recommendations during a
third community meeting. This will also be an opportunity for anyone to ask
questions that they may have. Please plan to attend this meeting on April 8th, at 6:00
p.m., at the secondary school.
The board will need to consider the recommendations based on the data given
through this process and hold further discussions on how to proceed in addressing
the district’s facility needs.
Snow Make Up Days
We will make up the January 7th and February 2nd snow days at the end of the
school year. They will be made up on May 22nd and 26th. May 26th will continue to
be an early dismissal day. The professional development day will be moved to May
27th. Stay tuned for further information regarding additional make up days due to
the girls’ state basketball tournament.
Please let me know if you have any questions about these or any other items. I can
be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 319-8546197.
Have a great month!
From the Desk of Elementary Principal Amanda Potter
Spring is coming! We anxiously await the warm weather, as the month of February was not very kind with
its temperatures. Students have done a wonderful job with all of the indoor recess that has taken place but
everyone is ready to get outside and enjoy some nice days.
Iowa Assessments are now complete and we look forward to receiving the results. Prior to the week of Iowa
Assessments we kicked off the week with an assembly to help motivate students to do their personal best and
demonstrate all of their learning over the past year. The preschool, kindergarten, and first grade students
were our cheerleaders to show support for the second through fifth graders who took the assessments.
Our building-wide reading incentive, “Read Your Heart Out!”, was a huge success. We are still awaiting
final counts of minutes read during the month of February but the participation was incredible. Students did
a fantastic job committing to the reading each night and we can’t tell you how much we appreciate the parent
support. Motivating children to read will have a tremendous impact on their future success, and we are
thrilled this has been such a positive experience for the students.
We also look forward to another round of Parent/Teacher conferences. Conferences are always a wonderful
opportunity for discussing your child’s progress at school and we look forward to seeing everyone there. If
there are any scheduling conflicts, please contact the school and we will do our best to accommodate your
needs.
Read Across America week is March 2nd – 6th. We are planning some fun activities to participate in this
nation-wide event, which begins on Dr. Seuss’s birthday. With the girls’ basketball team making it to the
state tournament, we will kick off the festivities on Tuesday, March 3rd. This reading celebration takes place
annually and helps motivate students to enjoy reading! Students will have opportunities to dress up,
participate in school-wide activities, read with high school students and community members, and the week
will culminate with a book character assembly/parade on Friday. We are looking forward to the week and
seeing everyone in the building reading to the students! The schedule is as follows:
Tuesday, March 3rd – Read a T-shirt Day (wear a shirt with a message on it)
Wednesday, March 4th – Dress for Success Day (wear your best for spring pictures)
Thursday, March 5th – Color Wheel Day (wear as many colors as you can)
Friday, March 6th – Book Character Day (dress as your favorite book character)
Elementary Upcoming Dates to Remember
March 2nd - 6th
Tuesday, March 3rd
Wednesday, March 4th
Wednesday, March 11th
Thursday, March 12th
Monday, March 16th
Tuesday, March 17th
March 18th - 20th
Read Across America Week
Kindergarten Round Up
Spring Pictures
Board Meeting
Parent/Teacher Conferences 4-7:30pm
Parent/Teacher Conferences 4-7:30pm
Early Dismissal @ 1:50pm
No School Days
From the Desk of Secondary Principal Nick Merritt
Spring Conferences
Conferences are set for the following
dates:
Thursday, March 12th from 4:00-7:30 pm
Monday, March 16th from 4:00-7:30 pm
It’s hard to believe that we are already to the end of the
3rd quarter of the school year. With just one quarter left,
we have a lot of great things to get accomplished. We
encourage you to push your son/daughter to finish the year
on a strong note and work hard to do the best they can.
The hope is the momentum they end the year with will
carry over to next school year.
During the month of February, students took part in the
Iowa Assessments. During this time, students worked
extremely hard at meeting the goals that were both
outlined for them as well as what they formulated. We
will be getting the results back in March and will start to analyze our progress and reporting out as we look through the
results. We also participated in a pancake breakfast thanks to Quaker Oats, Linda Nelson, and member of the
American Legion, Post 331.
Teachers will be available in their rooms.
Please stop in when you can.
In other exciting news, congratulations to our girls’ basketball team on qualifying for the state tournament. This is a
great opportunity for our girls as well as our school and community. Thank you to all of the students, staff, parents,
and community members for your support and flexibility as we head to Des Moines!
We are also starting to gear up for preparations for next school year. We have started the process of getting students’
applications into Kirkwood for our academy courses.
Soon after, we will be working our schedule for the
building and will work with students on scheduling for
THANK YOU!
classes for the 2015-16 school year. If you ever have any
questions about classes for your student, don’t hesitate to
A huge thank you to Linda Nelson for
contact Ms. Murphy or me for those answers.
coordinating the efforts for granola bars
and pancake mix and syrup for our Iowa
Also, as a note for building management purposes, we ask
Assessments.
that students not arrive to the building prior to 7:30 a.m.
unless they are here for class (early bird PE), practice, or
Thank you to Quaker Oats for their
have a scheduled meeting with a teacher. By arriving prior
generous donation for our students and in
to 7:30 a.m., we cannot guarantee supervision in our
helping in their success.
cafeteria and we feel it is important to have that
supervision occurring. Doors will remain locked until
Thank you also to Lyle Andersen and
members of the American Legion Post 331
7:30 a.m. starting on Monday, March 23rd so if a student
for their amazing pancake making skills
arrives prior to 7:30 a.m., they will need to wait outside
that made our pancake breakfast a huge
until the school is open.
success.
As always, thank you for your support for the school
district and the students. Go Orioles!
Annual Notifications
Teacher Qualifications Notice
Parents and guardians in the Springville Community School District have the right to learn about the
following qualifications of their child's teacher/paraprofessional: state licensure requirements for the grade
level and content areas taught, the current licensing status of the child's teacher, and baccalaureate/graduate
certification/degree. The qualifications of an instructional paraprofessional who serves the student in a Title I
program may also be requested. Parents and guardians may request this information from the Office of the
Superintendent, 400 Academy Street, Springville, Iowa 52336. The Springville Community School District
ensures that parents will be notified in writing if their child has been assigned, or has been taught by a teacher
for four or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who is not considered highly qualified.
102.E1 Notice of Non-Discrimination
Students, parents, employees and others doing business with or performing services for the Springville
Community School District are hereby notified that this school district does not discriminate on the basis of
race, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, disability,
religion, creed, age (except for permitting/prohibiting students to engage in certain activities), political party
affiliation, marital status, or genetic information in admission or access to, or treatment in, its educational
programs and activities, or its employment practices. Any person having inquiries concerning the school
district's compliance federal and/or state non-discrimination laws is directed to contact the school district’s
compliance officer: Melissa Murphy, High School Guidance Counselor at 400 Academy Street, Springville,
Iowa 52336, or 319-854-6196 from 7:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. who has been designated by the school district to
coordinate the school district's efforts to comply with federal and/or state non-discrimination laws.
Inclement Weather
We will utilize three television stations (KCRG, KGAN, and KWWL), four radio stations, One Call (which
sends out a phone call using information pulled from our PowerSchool student information system), the school
website, Facebook , Twitter and Iowa School Alerts for school cancellations or delays. If you have not already
signed up for Iowa School Alerts and are interested be sure to sign up through the website:
https://schoolalerts.iowa.gov/
Emergency Bus Routes – Hard Surface Roads Only by Central Office Secretary Barb Hennings
Due to certain weather-related conditions, we may be forced to use emergency bus routes in order to have
school. Please check daily with your local radio and TV stations for the more current weather related
announcements. What does this mean? Emergency bus routes mean that we will run on “hard surfaced roads”
only. We hope you understand that we have the safety of your children first and foremost on our minds. We
appreciate your cooperation when it comes to emergency routes. How do my children ride the bus during this
time? We will need to rely on you, as parents/guardians, to take your children to the nearest paved road (a spot
where it is safe for the bus to stop) and meet the bus. A bus should pass by on the same paved road at least
twice. *You may see two different Springville buses – you can ride any Springville bus that goes by.
The following is the best-case scenario we can give you:
Rusty Horak, #98, will travel up Springville Road, X20, north to County Home Road. He will turn left and go
through Whittier, and then north on Whittier Road, X20. He will turn around at Bowdish Rd. and return the
same way. From Whittier, he will travel east on County Home Road to Alderman where he will turn around and
return to Springville.
Carry Nelson, #04, will also travel up Springville Road, X20, north to County Home Road. She will turn left
and go through Whittier west to Jordans Grove Rd. She will turn around at Jordans Grove, make a stop at Stone
Rd. and go back through Springville. She will go south on X20 to HWY 151. She will go west on 151 to
Jordans Grove Rd, turn around, and proceed east back to Springville.
Alan Horak/Scott Kilburg, #00, will travel south from Springville on Springville Road, X20, to Linn Ridge Rd
where he will turn around. He will proceed east on Martelle Road to Taylor Rd. where he will turn around,
come back on Martelle Rd, then go north on X20 and return to HWY 151. He will proceed east on HWY 151
and turn north on Linn-Jones Road, turn around, and return to HWY 151 and then to Springville.
NOTE: ALL three buses will leave the bus barn around 7:10 a.m. The time the bus goes by your nearest point
could vary. You might be able to catch it on the way out or on the way back. Feel free to ride any Springville
bus that goes by. For pick up at HWY 151, you will have only one chance to catch the bus going by. The p.m.
routes will be run the same way. If we run hard surface for the a.m. routes we will run hard surface for the p.m.
routes. We ask for everyone’s cooperation and understanding if it becomes necessary to use emergency or hardsurface only routes.
SPRINGVILLE COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Springville, Iowa
BOARD MINUTES – February 16, 2015
NOTE: These minutes are unofficial until approved by the board at the next regular meeting.
BOARD WORK SESSION
A Board Work Session was held at 6:00 p.m. in the secondary library on February 16, 2015 prior to the Regular Board Meeting with Lee
Ann Grimley, Todd Nulle, Laura Riley, Dee Wagaman, Superintendent Amy Kortemeyer, Secondary Principal/Instructional Leader Nick
Merritt, PK-5 Elementary Principal/Curriculum Director Amanda Potter, Board Secretary Stacey Matus and guest present. Board
member Tami Gillmore was absent.
The Board and Administration team discussed Chapter 7 entitled “Connecting with the Community” from the Iowa Association of School
Boards Leadership for Student Learning book. Topics of discussion were as follows: Communication with the community is key and it is
especially important to provide accurate, timely information; District communicates to the community using various methods;
Community engagement; Schools, families, and community groups need to work together to support learning; Possible forum for
communicating an “Education Fact of the Week” to the community; Committees that offer suggestions, offer solutions, and make
compromises will move forward; Would like a format where the community could ask questions and get them answered using tools such
as the district’s website; Same tool could be used to discredit misinformation; Research has not been proven that community involvement
affects student achievement, however it impacts the climate and culture and what a district wants to accomplish. Board work session
ended at 6:52 pm. No action was taken.
REGULAR BOARD MEETING
President Lee Ann Grimley called the regular meeting of the Springville Community School District Board of Directors to order on
February 16, 2015 at 7:00 pm. Other members present were Todd Nulle, Laura Riley, and Dee Wagaman. Also present were
Superintendent Amy Kortemeyer, Secondary Principal/Instructional Leader Nick Merritt, Elementary Principal/Curriculum Director
Amanda Potter, Board Secretary/Business Manager Stacey Matus and guests. Board member Tami Gillmore was absent.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Dee Wagaman made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. All ayes, motion carried.
PUBLIC FORUM
No one addressed the board during public forum.
APPROVAL OF CONSENT AGENDA
Todd Nulle made a motion to approve the consent agenda. All ayes, motion carried.
- Minutes from the January 21, 2015 board work session and regular meeting.
- Financial reports and activity account reports as presented.
- List of bills presented for payment.
- Resignation of Jamie Donaldson as Middle School Softball Coach.
- Approve Contract with the Linn Mar Community School District to provide educational services.
COMMUNICATIONS/REPORTS
Amy Kortemeyer, Superintendent/Transportation Director reported on the following: Site visit preparation; Applications are due by
March 23rd for the TLC positions; Working on a Memorandum of Understanding regarding TLC with representatives from the teacher’s
association; Early Literacy Initiative requires students who are considered at risk or substantially deficient (State terminology) are
required to be progress monitored weekly and receive interventions; Presented “School Finance 101” information with all staff during the
February 6th professional development; Discussed new money and expenditures for the 2015-2016 school year; Recap of previous facility
community meetings and the attendance; Facilities community meetings held on January 25th and February 4th were communicated
through a postcard mailing to all property tax owners, residents, open enrolled families, and staff members; District website, January
and February newsletters, e-mails, One-Call, and local bank signs were also used to get information out about the community meetings;
February 25th and 26th the Iowa Department of Education Bureau of Nutrition and Health Services will conduct an on-site administrative
review of the school nutrition program; January 28th Springville School Foundation meeting focused on teacher’s requests for funding for
various projects and instructional materials; February 4th GWAEA Superintendent meeting included topics such as IA REAP Foods
rebate, STEM, budget workshop, alternative kindergarten, TLC grants, MTSS Math Pilot, Tech readiness for online assessments,
Innovative collaboration for personalized learning and reports, and discussed when districts have a technology rich environment there is
a need to move into blended learning opportunities.
Lee Ann Grimley, School Board President reported on the increased Rural School Advocates of Iowa membership from school districts
and the Des Moines Register coverage of RSAI’s advocacy for school funding issues.
Nick Merritt, Secondary Principal/Instructional Leader/AD reported on the following: Site visit preparation; Professional development on
February 6th included an update from Superintendent Kortemeyer, TAG presentation, vocabulary instruction, curriculum mapping, team
building, technology, and preparation for project based learning projects; Meeting to discuss and narrow down 7-12 ELA curriculum;
Iowa Assessment test preparation including a special thank you to Linda Nelson, Quaker Oats, and the Springville American Legion for
making it possible to provide a pancake breakfast for the students; Tri Rivers Conference Principal’s Meeting on February 3rd provided an
opportunity to discuss various topics including the idea of a collaboration effort on April 6th to connect our teachers with other teachers
of similar content areas from local schools; Spring activities; February 7th archery tournament held at our district was a success due to
the time and effort given by Gary Biles, Bill Nelson, Tami Mysak and many parent volunteers.
Amanda Potter, Elementary Principal/Curriculum Director reported on the following: Parent informational meeting held on January 26th
by the ELI committee provided information on the Early Literacy legislation to parents; Met to narrow down possible curriculum for 7-12
ELA and hope to have a presentation and recommendation to the board at the April board meeting; Reported the winter FAST assessment
scores and the process that will be used to communicate with parents of K-3 students who have been identified as substantially deficient;
Parent contracts will be reviewed at the March conferences for these students, as required by ELI legislation; Collaborative teams have
worked to build interventions to best meet the needs of all students, including students in need of enrichment; Elementary students are
participating in a school-wide reading incentive “Read Your Heart Out” with the goal for students to read 60,000 minutes during the
month of February; SEDC meeting provided information on marketing techniques in partnership with Fox News featuring Springville and
Mr. Merritt and Mrs. Potter provided an update on the community facilities meetings; SAI mentor meeting provided time for meaningful
discussion and valuable learning.
BOARD LEARNING – SECONDARY LEADERSHIP FOR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PRESENTATION
Secondary Principal Nick Merritt, secondary teachers Alex Carls, Gretchen Eastman, Meleah Jones, and Rachelle Zehr gave a
presentation highlighting the training they have received on Leadership for Continuous Improvement through the Grant Wood Area
Education Agency. Highlights include: Focus on standards; Increase staff awareness of standards and the need to align assessments to
the standards; Provided good structure and common language; Unpacking and focusing on student ICAN statements; Use of collaborative
time for peer review; Variation within assessments to be certain you are getting those different levels of higher order thinking; Curriculum
mapping; Improvement of team meeting structure during collaborative team meetings to include an agenda, consistency, group learning
and success celebrations; Accountability and being respectful of each other; Problem solving; Leadership training has provided valuable
tools and resources to assist in our accomplishments; Vertical curriculum alignment is helpful; Standards have changed over the last few
years driven by the Core; Teachers shared examples of how they have implemented what they have learned through this training to affect
student achievement in their classrooms. The Board expressed their appreciation to the team for the presentation.
NEW BUSINESS
ACT ON OPEN ENROLLMENT
Todd Nulle made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the open enrollment application from Hope Minton for the 2015-16
school year from the Linn Mar Community School District to the Springville Community School District. All ayes, motion carried.
APPROVE THE 2013-2014 FINANCIAL AUDIT
Todd Nulle made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the 2013-2014 financial audit as presented. All ayes, motion
carried.
APPROVE ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY PARENT-STUDENT HANDBOOK 2014-2015
Laura Riley made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the 2014-15 elementary and secondary parent-student handbooks
to include the non-discrimination statements. All ayes, motion carried.
APPROVE SIAC COMMITTEE
Dee Wagaman made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the SIAC committee members as presented. All ayes, motion
carried.
APPROVE RESOLUTION FOR GUARANTEED BUDGET
Dee Wagaman made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the resolution for the guaranteed budget as follows: “RESOLVED,
that the Board of Directors of Springville Community School District, will levy property tax for fiscal year 2015-2016 for the regular
program budget adjustment as allowed under section 257.14, Code of Iowa”. Roll call taken as follows: Riley, aye; Grimley, aye; Nulle,
aye; Wagaman, aye. Gillmore; absent. All ayes, motion carried.
APPROVE SNOW MAKE UP DAYS
Laura Riley made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the two snow days of January 7 th and February 2nd to be made up
on May 22nd and May 26th; to include moving the teacher professional development day to May 27th. All ayes, motion carried.
APPROVE OPERATIONAL SHARING AGREEMENT FOR 2015-2016
Dee Wagaman made a motion to accept the recommendation to approve the following language “Springville Community School District
intends to participate in a 28E agreement with the Central City Community School District for a Curriculum Director provided that the
Central City CSD holds 80% of the contract and the Springville CSD will hold 20% of the contract.” Superintendent Kortemeyer
explained that this is a State incentive for sharing and generates funding resources as well as human resources. All ayes, motion
carried.
DISCUSSION ITEMS
Duane Van Hemert and Sam Harding from Iowa Schoolhouse Construction & Planning Services were present to share their report with
the board concerning the district’s facilities. Highlights included: Verbal recommendation presented this evening with the written
document to follow based on tonight’s discussion; Final report to be complete within the next two weeks; Mr. Van Hemert and Mr.
Harding recapped the process from 2008 to now on the Board’s decision making concerning facilities and in their opinion there was not
any decisions made that were reckless or inappropriate; In 2008 the Board hired Mr. Van Hemert and Mr. Harding for their expertise and
guidance after Neumann Monson brought several facility master plan options that were not in the district’s budget; It was their opinion
when the Board hired them in 2008 the secondary building’s needs for heating and cooling due to steam traps and boiler concerns
needed addressed worse than the facility needs at the elementary; Schwab Hall is not a safe learning environment for students, does not
meet any modern building codes and is not handicap accessible; It was their opinion that Schwab Hall should be torn down and it was a
real benefit to make use of the old gymnasium to give the fine arts staff and students that space for a safe and comfortable learning
environment; It was their opinion that the decision to move the Secondary office from the rear of the second floor to the front entry was in
the best interest of safety concerns for students and staff; Per their advice the Board hired a mechanical engineering firm, Alvine
Engineering, to update the Secondary building’s heating and cooling system which saved the district money rather than hiring an
architect for that scope of work.
Mr. Van Hemert and Mr. Harding provided a written report to the Board providing demographic information, enrollment trends and
projections, summary of the community meetings, maps, 2008 site visit report, utility costs, Department of Education and Iowa
Association of School Board information on the district’s financial position, capacity study, and facility scenario options. Declining
enrollment in a school district makes it difficult to maintain the same property tax rate. The Board requested their service to assess the
district’s facilities and assist them in making the best decision based on affordability and what makes sense taking all information into
consideration.
Four scenarios (pros & cons) were presented to the board and their recommendation at this time was to combine the buildings into one
PK-12 school building housed at the secondary. This scenario is recommended based on the district’s enrollment, ability to bond, and
wanting to attract new families to the district. It would include adding on classrooms, multi-purpose room, administrative space, parking
lot relocation, playground relocation funded with General Obligation Bonds. Other scenarios given were: 1) Maintain both buildings as
they are; 2) Renovate the elementary building and add a gymnasium sufficient for use for elementary students, however levying $2.70
would not afford everything in the previous plan; and 3) Try to pass the $4.05 levy again.
Mr. Van Hemert and Mr. Harding will provide ballpark costs, savings, and details of the scenarios presented to the Board after tonight’s
meeting. The Board asked if they would come back and make this presentation in a community setting like was done in the previous two
meetings; in the likelihood that more community members would attend. They agreed to return to the district and present their final
report in a community wide forum. Superintendent Kortemeyer will arrange the details and the community will be informed of the date
and time. The Board and Superintendent Kortemeyer expressed their appreciation to Mr. Van Hemert and Mr. Harding for their time and
efforts.
The Board and Administration discussed the current sharing agreements with Linn Mar for boys’ soccer and girls’ swimming and the
agreement we have with Central City for cross country and wrestling.
Upcoming dates include: Iowa Assessments will be given February 16th – February 20th; March 3rd is Kindergarten Round Up; and March
10th is the end of the 3rd quarter.
The Board expressed their appreciation to the Monday Club for their donations toward Preschool scholarship program and toward HOBY
registrations.
President Grimley stated that after the regular board meeting is adjourned they will meet as provided in Iowa Code 20.17(3) for collective
bargaining strategy session.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business President Grimley declared the meeting adjourned at 9:49 pm.
________________________________________
Stacey Matus, Board Secretary
_________________________________________
Lee Ann Grimley, Board President