By Randy Bruer
End of the School Year
As graduations wrap up in the region and teachers clean up to get ready for another year, we want to say thank you teachers and parents for a great year at Win-E-Mac schools.
ECFE
The school district hired DeAnn Boe to serve as our ECFE Coordinator to lead our program. She is planning to host Tuesday evening classes again for our little ones and parents. Look for advertising for program details on our website and local media channels of communication. She has done a tremendous job this year creating a program for the future.
School Parking Lot Improvements
A major improvement this summer will be resurfacing the Parking Lot and driveway into the school. Resurfacing the lot was scheduled for the summer of 2025, but we found out from a couple of contractors that this may be a better time to do the work with a better price tag. We can do the job for half the amount, so the School Board decided to move forward with this improvement. This will be done from the end of June into July. A few years ago, the School Board refinanced our Building debt to a lower interest rate which will reduce school taxes in Pay 24. If we add the parking lot debt to the existing school building debt for 2 years, school levy taxes will remain constant for that time vs a large decrease. We cannot control the increases in market values, but we can control our spending. At our next school board meeting we will have a truth in taxation for this proposal. The time is right to do this overlay due to the cost difference versus waiting 2 more years and a longer payment period.
Free Breakfast and Lunch
During the summer months, Win-E-Mac School will be serving free Breakfast and free Lunch for all school-aged children. Adults will be charged for meals. If students want to participate regularly, please call the school and give the office the names of students participating. This program will be available all summer through August 26, 2023. This is open to any or all students. Next school year the state will provide free breakfast and lunch to all students. We still need to collect Free and Reduced statements from parents, so please keep this information.
Important Immunizations
Now is the time to prepare for student immunizations for the next school year. Do not wait until the last minute because state law does not allow a student to attend a Minnesota school until their immunizations are up to date. According to Minnesota’s School Immunization laws, a child entering Kindergarten should have dates for the following vaccines: 5 (DTaP/DTP) Diptheria-Tetanus-Pertussis, 4 (IPV) Polio, 3 (Hep B) Hepatitis B, 2 (MMR) Measles-Mumps-Rubella, 2 Varicella (chickenpox), 1 (Tdap booster-7th grade only) and 2 Meningococcal (MCV) first dose at 7th grade, second generally at age 16. Win-E-Mac School along with all schools in Minnesota is required to make sure all students meet the criteria for immunization certification in Minnesota schools. If a parent has a question about immunizations, please call the school district. In order to remain in school, your student is required to be in compliance.
Bus Drivers
If you would like to earn some extra income during the school year we need substitute bus drivers. This is open to anyone who is interested. We can train and assist you in getting the license. Please call the school at 218-563-2900 for more information.
Juneteenth is a State Holiday
Governor Walz signed legislation that establishes Juneteenth as a State holiday. Juneteenth recognizes the historical pronouncement of the abolition of slavery on June 19, 1865, when the Emancipation Proclamation was said to have been first publicly read in Texas by Union soldiers. As is the case with other holidays defined in Minnesota Session Laws 2023 Chapter 5, no public business can be conducted on this day. This means schools cannot hold classes or programs, school board meetings, athletic practices and competitions, and other school-associated events. Private entities can be held but no public business.
Shared Programming
The school board will be meeting with surrounding school districts to talk about the addition of adding more activities to our programming. Wrestling and Track have been activities WEM is interested in sharing. Our district does not have enough students to fill a full program, but a shared program has potential.