Van Buren Public Schools to consider purchase of 575 W. Columbia Ave.

School Supt. Pete Kudlak told the public at Monday’s meeting of the Van Buren Public Schools Board of Education that as in the past, they are keeping an eye on property around the high school that may become available for purchase.
He said with the high school property the district’s option for land are very limited.
He presented the property at 575 W. Columbia Ave. as an information item only and said the board will have it on its agenda at the next meeting for a vote.
At other business at Monday’s meeting, the school board:
• Heard an Instruction Support Specialist presentation on iReady implementation. This is the first year of the iReady benchmark assessment that replaced the district’s former NWEA assessment;
• Heard a report on the district’s Extended COVID-19 Learning Goal, as of mid-year, 2022-23, according to the iReady assessment, which is administered three times a year to students grade K-8. The report is required to be made available through the transparency reporting link on the district website;
• Approved hiring Andrea Nault as BHS math teacher as of Feb. 6 and Jordan Berger as BHS science teacher as of Feb. 13;
• Approved the termination of Jose Augilar from Buildings and Grounds after less than a year of service; and the resignations of Jermain Crowell from a non-instructional position at BHS as of Feb. 1 after two years of service; and Matt Barr resigning from BHS after four years of service as of Feb. 24;
• Approved hiring non-instructional employees Jacob Kosilkowski as a custodian as of Jan. 31; Bryan Vannoy as a bus driver trainee as of Jan. 31, Kirt Harrison as a paraprofessional at the Early Childhood Center, and Rahman Baith as custodiam with a date to be determined; and
• Held a closed-door session at the end of the open meeting and then went back into public session to reinstate Student 21-22-070 with conditions for the second semester of this school year.
The school board also held a closed-door session at 6:15 p.m., before the beginning of the regular board meeting, to “consider material exempt for discussion or disclosure by state or federal statute … and to discuss a document protected from public disclosure under the attorney-client privilege.”