WBCSD board approves new quarantine rules, prom

At last week's meeting of the West Bonner County School Board, trustees voted to ratify the district’s supplemental levy, approve new quarantine requirements and approve plans for a prom at Priest River Lamanna High School.

The board unanimously approved new guidelines from the state Board of Education, in conjunction with the Department of Health, which allows for persons who have been identified as a close contact to someone who tests positive for COVID-19 to continue attending school if both parties were wearing a mask during the interaction.

That person is instructed to continue monitoring themselves closely for symptoms, and quarantine if any appear.

“If your student is wearing a mask, they aren’t automatically going to be quarantined,” said board Clerk Jennifer Anselmo. “It would be me calling the parents and having a conversation with them.”

The move garnered widespread approval from board members, many of whom have spoken strongly in support of keeping children in school, face-to-face whenever possible.

“This is how we do it at the hospital,” said Chair Sandy Brower, who is a program coordinator at Bonner General Health. “If we have a sign or symptom, we scoot.”

Vice Chairman Drew McLain also spoke in favor of the change.

“I think if both parties wear a mask, it’s silly to send the kid home who doesn’t have it,” he said.

The board further moved to ratify a levy passed approved in December, which costs taxpayers $146.94 per $100,000.

That rate did not change, Anselmo said, but the district will be receiving around $50,000 more from that levy because of an increase in home values.

The board also approved a second reading of a policy to change high school graduation requirements, which the board discussed in December.

One change since the December meeting, said Priest River Lamanna High School Principal Paul Lamb, is that the plan would add math and science requirements to allow more students to graduate with a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) diploma.

“Possibly 75% of our students could graduate with a STEM diploma,” he said. “A STEM diploma would make them more marketable going on to college.”

In addition to that change, the board heard presentation and approved plans for a prom at PRLHS pending panhandle or state guidelines.

In a plan laid out by students, a prom is now approved to take place on the football field with rented tents for shelter. The prom would include mandatory masks if mandated by Panhandle Health at the time of the event.

The board also approved the grant application by Idaho Hill Elementary School Principal Susie Luckey for the 21st Century grant program to fund before and after-school programs.

The grant lasts for five years, and allows for up to $110,000 per year in funding. Should the school be awarded the grant, it would allow for tutoring and enrichment services, as well as programming like dance, art, and an aerospace class. Those programs would run from 7-7:45 a.m. before school and 2:45-5 p.m. after school.

Those services and activities would run 102 days during the school year, Luckey said, and also include some summer programming.

In Superintendent Paul Anselmo’s report to the board, he noted that vaccinations have begun for district employees who are interested in getting them.

“I did get mine yesterday, and no side effects yet,” he said.

Jennifer Anselmo also noted that Gov. Brad Little was recommending changes to school districts’ budgets including replacing $300,000 of discretionary funds with the same amount in CARES Act money.

“The problem that I have with this is that they sold [the CARES funding] as if there are no strings attached, but it has the same 15 allowable uses as the original CARES funds did,” she said.

Discretionary funds, Jennifer Anselmo said, may be used for expenses like bills or teacher salaries. CARES Act funding, however, does not seem to allow for these types of expenses.

Many other school districts have the same concerns, Paul Anselmo said.

Some members of the board discussed reaching out to the governor’s office and local lawmakers to see if that move could be changed.

“Our state’s sitting on a $6 million surplus,” Paul Anselmo said. “I don’t want to double dip, i just want the money we can spend as we want.”

The board also moved to accept an offer from Columbia Bank over Spokane Teachers Credit Union to replace the district’s previous provider which will be closing its local branch, Wells Fargo.

In a report to the board, Lamb said students at PRLHS have been compliant in wearing masks, and that the schools sporting events have continued successfully with two fans allowed per student.

The games bring in around 50 fans, he said, and seating is arranged 12 feet apart. Fans have also been compliant in keeping with regulations, he said.

“We have not had to throw anybody out of the stands or anything,” Lamb said.

At Idaho Hill Elementary, the school currently has 102 students, two of whom are new, Luckey said. The school also has a 92% attendance rate, which is higher than the previous year.

In December, she said, students at Idaho Hill Elementary held a food drive, which they recently donated to the Oldtown Food Bank.

“We did that intentionally, because we know there’s a lot of giving before the holiday,” Luckey said.

Students in the third and fifth grade had a near-tie in a competition for who could bring in the most donations, and were rewarded with hot chocolate and a “no zone” recess because students are normally required to stay in certain areas.