WOOD SISTERS HURT – Brittany and Megan Wood, El Dorado Springs, were transported to Cedar County Memorial Hospital Tuesday evening by Cedar County/ St. John’s ambulance with injuries reported as minor after the westbound 1999 Pontiac Grand Am which Brittany, 16, was driving went off the right side of Lake Hill Road (Cedar County Road 150) about a half mile east of town, went sideways when the driver over corrected, went off the right side of the roadway again, then nose dived into a small stream and flipped on its top in the Camp Galilee woods. The El Dorado Springs Volunteer Fire Department was first on the scene. State Trooper Mitch Bush investigated. He said, “Thankfully, they both were wearing seatbelts.”

LAUREN CROWNED IN KCMO - On Saturday, Feb 20, Lauren Alumbaugh was crowned Miss Greater Kansas City. She will represent the Kansas City area, as well as her El Dorado Springs hometown, at the Miss Missouri pageant in Mexico, MO, this summer. The KC pageant was Themed “My Kansas City Girl” to the tune of “Brown-eyed Girl.” All phases of onstage competition were accompanied by a live band. “It was so much fun to feel like the live music was part of your performance,” Lauren said.

At a special meeting last Wednesday evening, the El Dorado Springs R-II School Board took care of three items of business but did not announce any action on administrator contracts.

All board members were present – Dennis Floyds, Vickie Vickers, Matt Cross, Dennis Whitesell, Kevin Fast, Wayne Yakel and Darrell Eason – presiding.

The board agreed without voting to move the weight room door to the locker room and purchase a new door for the weight room at a cost of $250.

The board voted to allow all teachers coming into the district to bring all years of experience for purposes of the teacher salary schedule.

In executive session, the board voted to hire Kevin Hixon as a High School teacher and coach.

That leaves in limbo the usual February contract extensions for the three building principals, the assistant Elementary principal and the Director of Special Education.

In the 1999-2000 school year, the board went to two-year contracts with all administrators. This year in January, the board offered a contract extension to Supt. Roger Barnes which he accepted. He is now under contract until the end of the 2011-12 school year.

At the February meeting, the board did not take any official action on the usual contract extensions for the building principals – High School, Middle School, Elementary – and the Special Education Director. The members of the board who did not want to extend the contracts have not announced their reason(s). Those administrators have one year remaining on their contracts, until the end of the 2010-11 school year.

The Sun surveyed the surrounding school districts. These districts offer only a one year contract to their building principals and superintendents–– Northeast Vernon County, Stockton and Lamar. The Nevada superintendent has a two-year contract. His five principals, three assistant principals and two directors have one-year contracts.

The Osceola superintendent currently has a two-year contract because he “is in the retirement window.” Previously, he had a three-year contract, the maximum allowed by law. The principal contracts are for two years.

Kelli Hopkins, Associate Executive Director, Board Services, Missouri Schools Boards’ Association, told the Sun, “Section 168.201 RSMo authorizes district to hire superintendents and“‘other such servants and agents’ with a contract not to exceed three years. Similarly, section 168.101 allows the district to hire certified teachers who are not eligible for tenure (this is their way of defining principals and assistant principals) and to specify the length of their employment in months. These have been used to support the idea that principals may be employed for up to three years.”

 Jim Morris, with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said, “We consider up to three years to be legal (for a contract with either a superintendent or a principal.” He said the multi-year contracts for superintendents are not unusual.

Dr. Jim King, of the Missouri High School Principal Association, said, “Superintendents will tend to sign more two and probably three-year contracts. Principals generally you will find with one year, although you will find in certain areas of the state two-year (I think they can do three year). You get some in particularly smaller districts that may try to lock them up for longer.”

Q. What is the advantage of two years versus one year or vice versa?

Dr. King: “For some folks the thinking is, I guess, that if you are a small district, if they agree to a three year contract that you are assured of having them there, although there are so many ways to get out of a contract if you get another job. If somebody has another offer and they want to leave, you just as well let them go if you can find a suitable replacement.”

“It is better job security for the administrator, on one hand. And it provides the district a little bit of feeling that they have somebody in place for more than just one year. Turnover is pretty high, particularly in smaller districts. The pool of quality principals is not great. A number of our principals, when they have a few years as a building principal, move into superintendency. So the domino effect is pretty great across the state, particularly in smaller districts.”

“I can’t give you exact numbers. There are a number of principals who will have a two-year contract, but probably the major will have a single year contract. Then if they have been there a number of years, it becomes kind of a rolling contract.”

Editor’s note: So, it would not be out of the ordinary for the school board to offer only one-year contracts to administrators. Nor would it be out of the ordinary for them to offer two-year contracts as they have for the past 10 years.

I think that if, in January, the school board had passed a motion to only offer one year contracts to all administrators, there could have been an open discussion and the public and the employees would have known what the board was thinking and why.

But that is not how it has been done to date. There have been no announcements of any kind. The board, without comment, let the February meeting pass without traditional consideration of administrator contracts. Following the December ambush and firing by five board members of Head Football Coach/Activities – Athletic Director Chad Depee, administrators and teachers alike fear for their jobs.

Kimball, a former teacher, said, “That can’t be good for job performance.” The No. 1 job of these school employees is the education of our children.

I might understand the board hedging their bets in these tough economic times by shying away from long-term contracts. But the five board members haven’t shared that information as far as I’ve heard. And you would expect the fiscally conservative superintendent to be the one to make that suggestion…in open session.

All anyone seems to have at this point is questions:

• With the school running the smoothest it has in the 30 years I’ve been covering it for you, why upset the apple cart?

• Why take away a benefit (two year contract) from administrators if they haven’t violated school rules? If they have violated
them, why are they still here?

• If one administrator has done something amiss, why punish all of them?

• Doesn’t each school board member owe it to the public who elected them and to the employees who they supervise to tell us all what is going on?

• If administrators and teachers decide they do not want to work here under these conditions, what will be the result for the children and our community?

The hue and cry in the community to the five school board members seems to be: Would somebody please tell us what you are trying to do and why?

When it comes to discussing items in closed meeting, the board might want to know that the open meetings law says: Nothing in sections 610.010 to 610.028 shall be construed as to require a public governmental body to hold a closed meeting, record or vote to discuss or act upon any matter. Another little goody from the open meetings law: Any meeting or vote closed pursuant to section 610.021 shall be closed only to the extent necessary for the specific reason announced to justify the closed meeting or vote. AND Public governmental bodies shall not discuss any business in a closed meeting, record or vote which does not directly relate to the specific reason announced to justify the closed meeting or vote.

I’m not at all sure that the school board can legally go into secret session to discuss whether or not they will give contracts to all administrators. The law only permits the secret session’“when personal information (related to the performance or merit) about the employee is discussed or recorded.”

Reckon the school’s business would be conducted differently in the open? I think that’s the intent of the law. I think we should insist on it.

by Jarrod D. Schiereck El Dorado Springs Chief of Police

Attached to this press release is a copy of an email scam that is being sent in this area. This one appeared on March 2, 2010. It is merely a different approach to the “scams” that have been around for years. It refers that a friend or family member traveling (generally overseas) has an unfortunate mishap and lost his/her money. Don’t be lured into this latest scheme because, like all others, it is designed to steal your money. Check with your friends and family first concerning their whereabouts.

It appears that the criminals are just attempting to lure you into sending money via Western Union or a like service to a location where they will receive the money and, in some instances, they are attempting to obtain your credit card numbers, bank account numbers and other personal identifiers. Once they get this information, they will be able to steal your identity and/or get into your bank account and steal your money.

Remember, keep your personal information personal. Don’t give it out to strangers. Don’t communicate with these individuals in any manner. Just ignore all communications with them. If you have questions or think you may be a victim of any scam, notify the police department immediately and file a complaint with the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov.
(Following is an example scam currently being sent in this area. The wording and spelling have not been corrected.)

How are you doing?

Sorry i didn’t inform you about my traveling, i am presently in London stranded. I need a favor from you because i was robbed by a taxi drive who drove off with my bag where my money and other valuable things were kept. I hate to bother you but i will like you to assist me with a loan urgently of about $2000 to sort-out myself back home.I will appreciate whatever you can afford and i’ll pay you back as soon as i return. Here are my information you can use and send the money to me via western union money transfer or moneygram money transfer below.

Receivers name:

Address: 20 Billington Road, SE 14 5DG

Country: United Kingdom

As soon as you sent the money please email me the transfer details: I promise to pay back as soon as i get back.

Regards

The Missouri Department of Agriculture has suspended the grain dealer’s license held by the Prairie Pride biodiesel plant near Deerfield. The state agriculture department’s action followed discussions with Prairie Pride’s directors and management and the company cannot conduct any grain-related business transactions until further notice.

A petition filed in Vernon County Circuit Court says Prairie Pride owes nearly $2.5 million with a grain dealer’s bond of only $300,000. State Agriculture Director Jon Hagler has been appointed trustee to liquidate grain-related assets and determine the validity of grain-related claims.

A Prairie Pride statement says the company called the state and is working with state officials to product producers and grain elevators. The company says the issues resulted from the loss of biodiesel incentives pulled from the federal jobs bill two weeks ago by U.S. Senator Harry Reid, D-Nevada. Some company senior managers and directors are on the East Coast seeking a solution and are expected to return Friday.

Prairie Pride told the state agriculture department last week it voluntarily stopped receiving grain because it could not make timelypayments for grain already purchased.
 

The Greater Ozarks Chapter of The American Red Cross will conduct a Chapter Response To Disaster training on Sunday, March 7, at the Nevada Seventh Day Adventist Church from 9 a.m. until approximately 3 p.m. with a one hour break for lunch. 

If you would be interested in training as a first responder to fires, tornadoes or other disasters in your local area as a Red Cross volunteer, contact Joyce Wallace at 417-465-2655 or joyce wallace@hotmail.com  or local DAT captain Earl Ackley at 876-7588.
Become a American Red Cross volunteer in the place you call home.

Due to imposition of City Ordinances, all animals may be kept a maximum of 10 days before euthanization

Check with Animal Control Officer for animals currently available for adoption

GRAY AND WHITE - Male cat, approximately one year old, needs needs good home.





BLACK AND WHITE - Male dog approximately two year old. Dog has a red collar. Good natured dog, needs family.




NOT PICTURED - A female mixed breed dog, salt and pepper in color, approximately one to two years old. Needs good home.



TWO ORANGE AND WHITE CATS - both are female, approximately one year old. They need a loving home or homes.



BLACK CAT - Male adult cat, needs loving home.


Anyone interested in adoption of these animals or making a donation for their care should contact the Animal Control Officer at 876-2313 before 3 p.m. weekdays.