School Board fills H.S. Girls Basketball coaching job, approves new admin position

The Lincoln School Board resolved their recent coaching kerfuffle at their Oct. 10 meeting, approving Superintendent Jen Packer as the head girls basketball coach

The recommendation to approve Packer for the position passed in a four-to-one vote, with trustee Wendi Dietz as the sole no vote.

Deitz told the BVD that Packer has the credentials and provided the required letter of interest but elaborated on comments made during the meeting. She said her opposition had to do with concerns with chain of command.

“I think for community members or parents to try and navigate any comments, or any complaints would just be a little bit more difficult,” she said. “I think we’ve been trying to go with transparency and it just feels like there’s been a lot going on and I feel the (normal) chain of command is easier to follow.”

If there is a complaint or comment from a parent of a high school girls’ basketball, it will first go to Packer as coach, then to Shane Brown as the Athletic Director. If necessary, Brown would then take it directly to the school board. Normally, Brown would take such issues that come to him to Packer who as superintendent would then take it to the board.

The board also approved the creation of a new administrative secretary position. The need for the new position grew out of concerns about the workload faced by Clerk Dani Barnett, who submitted her resignation from that position at the September School board meeting.

Packer provided the board with a list of duties currently that could be split between the new assistant, the school clerk and the superintendent.

Trustee Billy Cyr asked where the school would be financially by adding the new position. Packer said they could take care of it for the next several years.

Board Chairman Aaron Birkholz asked Barnett about her thoughts on it from her experience as clerk.

“I can’t imagine it (the clerk position) not being a lot for one person,” she replied. “I think that it would 100 percent have to be a good working relationship between the administration, the clerk and the administrative secretary.”

She said they must have good organization and there will have to to be consistent communication between the clerk and the administrative secretary to make sure things don’t fall through the cracks, a challenge she faced due to the complexity of school finances and record keeping.

“I don’t think that person would be sitting around without something to do,” she said.

Whitney Cyr has been recommended to fill the clerk position but hasn’t been approved by the trustees yet. A meeting of the school board is slated for Monday Oct. 24 to consider the recommendation.

The trustees also approved hiring assistant cook Alyssa Greany as the school’s head cook effective Dec.1. Long-time head cook Diane Krier is set to retire Dec. 21. They also approved posting the opening for the assistant cook position.

Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild President Becky Garland stopped in to provide an update on the sculpture park.

“This was our 9th year with Sculpture in the Wild. Next year is our 10th year of course, so I think we’re firmly rooted in the community,” she said.

Garland estimated that in the last nine years they’ve probably seen 3500-4500 kids in the education program. “I think that is incredible that the education program has been such a success. I think a big success is that we include the Lincoln students every year. As far as I know, they love coming, they love helping the artists, they love, of course, getting out of the four walls.”

She said the kids got to work with Bently Spang on his lodge tripods, but didn’t get to work with Stuart Frost as much because of the work he was doing off site.

“I just want to thank the teachers, who got kind of drug through the knothole during September with our kids. Number one, we want them there to be included; number two we needed them to help; and number three, we find that they become great ambassadors for Sculpture in the Wild.”

In other reports, Lincoln’s new first grade teacher Julie Sagissor updated the board on her class. “I really enjoy being here. I was in a bigger school before I came here so it’s nice being in a smaller community again,” she said.

She said the first-grade class, which has 14 students, is going well.’

“I think one of the biggest change for them is going from the iPads to the Chromebooks. We’ve been doing lots of practicing on that.”

She said they’ve been working with the website code.org, which has lessons in coding. “It’s fun to watch them. They’ll go around and help each other … solve different errors they get.” Sagissor said they’re also moving right along in reading writing and math and other subjects.

Fifth-grade teacher Stacey Mannix reported that the elementary students are selling butter braids instead of cookie dough this year as a fundraiser. “All of our money goes to field trips and the ski trips in the winter we go on,” she said.

Andrea Weisner provided updates on a couple of the schools clubs. She said the math and science club is putting together a team to go to the math and science bowl. Meanwhile, she said the Drama club is very excited to be putting on an as-yet-untitled play this Halloween.

Business Professionals of America secretary Kylie Copenhaver told the school board the organization completed a clean-up along Highway 200 east of town between the Lincoln Ranger station and the gravel pit. The clean-up was in coordination with the Ponderosa Snow Warriors. She said BPA also has plans to start a quarterly newsletter to keep help keep the folks who donate to the club for their trips to state and nationals up to date.

Packer also reported that the school had completed its fall child count. This year’s numbers are up, with nine kids in pre-k, 75 in elementary, 26 in middle school and 44 in high school, for a total of156 students. Last year at this time the school had seven pre-k students, 73 in elementary, 24 in middle school and 46 in high school, totaling 150 students.