by Mike Knaak
news@thenewsleaders.com
Waiting – that was the word of the evening when the Sartell-St. Stephen school board met on May 17.
Waiting for the weather forecast before deciding whether graduation will be indoors or outdoors.
Waiting for the Legislature to pass a budget to find out about funding for summer school and other education issues.
Waiting for COVID-19 guidance from the state on changes to school procedures.
Waiting to see how enrollment will shape up for next year’s kindergarten, first- and second-grade classes.
After seeing the weather forecast on May 27, school leaders will decide whether to conduct this year’s graduation outside at Sabre Stadium or inside at the high school. Rain or shine, graduation will take place at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 5, for more than 300 seniors.
On May 17, legislators and the governor agreed on a broad budget deal on the last day of the session. But details of the $52 billion budget won’t be settled until the Legislature meets in special session, probably on June 14. The agreement increases spending for education, including $75 million for summer school programs to help students who fell behind during remote learning because of COVID disruptions.
“We’re doing summer school in June,” Superintendent Jeff Schwiebert said. “We’re waiting for the details.”
In her regular update on COVID, Human Resources Director Krista Durrwachter said she’s waiting to hear summer protocols as well guidance for the fall. She’s expecting not as many mandates and more local control over safety decisions. With changes to the latest state mask guidelines for schools, the district will not require face masks at graduation on June 5.
While the district did not see enrollment drops as deep as some districts because of COVID, Schwiebert said the district is watching if enrollment rebounds in preschool and kindergarten. Current preschool enrollment is down 58 students from the end of last year, and kindergarten enrollment is down 55 students compared with the final count for the 2019-2020 school year.
Schwiebert said staffing is in place for next fall, but school leaders are waiting for enrollment adjustments.
