Menu

Fairfield Community School District board meeting, Sep 21, 2026

1 h 23 min · 0 public speakers

Reading and test scores ▶ 48:10

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 1 h 23 min.

  1. Who spoke · first speaks at
What happened

What happened at this meeting

Fairfield board approves $983,410.80 special education allowable growth request 1:10:34

  • The board discussed chapters 5 and 6 of the Lighthouse Study and reviewed a new draft of the district scorecard. 9:12
  • The board approved the year-end financial health report. 1:04:42
  • The board approved a request for allowable growth and supplemental aid for the special education deficit in the amount of $983,410.80. 1:10:34
  • The board also voted to move the October 19, 2026 regular meeting to October 26, 2026. 1:12:29

Until Nov 4, lines where a board member takes a side don't name the member. Why →

Item by item (12)
  1. Opening and agenda 7:43
    • The meeting was called to order at 6:37 PM on Monday, September 21st, followed by roll call. 7:43
    • A motion was made to approve the agenda as presented. 8:55
  2. Board book study on data and leadership 9:12
    • A district staff member asked what specific behaviors would allow the board to increase both support and pressure when using data. 15:09
    • One board member said the district should have baseline data behind its goals and asked whether results could be compared with other districts. 20:02
    • A speaker suggested organizing opportunities for the board to visit school buildings twice a year, 3 times a year, and a staff member said the idea could be brought up at the admin meeting on Thursday. 31:09
  3. Committee reports 34:31
    • Mark Thornton said the policy committee met September 4th and worked through about half of the 700 series. 34:49
    • Dave Eastburn said transportation costs per mile had risen because of fuel costs and that a recommendation on whether to lease or buy buses was anticipated in May or June. 38:24
    • One board member said batting cages estimated at $450,000 were probably not manageable within the current budget and suggested seeking lower costs or private donations. 40:35
  4. Consent agenda and public participation 46:20
    • A motion was made to approve the consent agenda as presented, and a staff member said no public participation was known. 46:20
    • The chair announced the motion carried. 46:38
  5. Strategic plan final draft 46:49
    • A staff member presented the final draft of the strategic plan, which added a measured goal for building improvements under priority number 4. 46:57
  6. District scorecard draft 48:10
    • A staff member said the goal was to finalize the scorecard by November and described color-coded ranges, including green for assessment growth of 90 to 100%. 48:18
    • Mark Thornton asked whether past years would have all been green, and the staff member said they were not. 51:40
    • The staff member said a further draft would likely come back in October. 1:04:27
  7. Year-end financial health report 1:04:42
    • A staff member said the district had 130 days of cash at year end against a goal of 90 to 120 days and had reduced the total levy by 3 cents. 1:05:08
    • The staff member said 64.7% of dollars went to teachers at the end of the year, against a goal of at least 65% by the end of FY27. 1:05:08
    • The staff member said the average teacher salary was $65,672.79 in FY26 and was projected at $66,800 this year. 1:07:49
    • The chair announced the motion to approve the report carried. 1:10:34
  8. Special education allowable growth request 1:10:34
    • A staff member said the request seeks additional authority from the state, not necessarily additional cash, to cover special education needs. 1:11:05
    • The chair announced the motion to approve the request in the amount of $983,410.80 carried. 1:10:34
  9. Board policies at first and second reading 1:11:48
    • Separate motions were made to approve board policies at first reading and at second reading. 1:11:48
    • A motion carried, and a motion to approve board policies at second reading also carried. 1:12:12
  10. Meeting schedule changes 1:12:29
    • Motions were made to move the October 19, 2026 meeting to October 26, 2026 and the March 15, 2027 meeting to March 22, 2027. 1:12:29
    • A motion was made to add a special meeting at 12 PM on November 30, 2026 to accommodate construction schedules. 1:13:43
    • The chair announced each motion carried. 1:13:09
  11. Superintendent updates 1:14:13
    • The superintendent said 215 intent to return forms were returned and those employees would receive a $500 bonus. 1:14:13
    • The superintendent shared a professional development plan with goals tied to the Iowa School Leader Standards. 1:15:43
  12. Board highlights and adjournment 1:17:49
    • One board member said the PEAS lab that had been set up was a great investment. 1:17:56
    • Cody Freeman credited the financial committee for the financial health report. 1:18:28
    • The meeting adjourned at 7:53 PM. 1:23:11

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

Other meetings

Other meetings of this board

Video: posted by the district as “September Monthly Board Meeting”