[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6205645,"mediaKeyId","3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df","parentId",3769014,"title","Blaine County School District amends 2024–25 budget after $13.8M state modernization payment; adopts 2025–26 proposed budget","audioSeconds",318,"startMs",71000,"endMs",389000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df&start=71&end=389","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df/thumbnail_71000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6205645/Idaho/Blaine-County-School-District-amends-202425-budget-after-138M-state-modernization-payment-adopts-202526-proposed-budget","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6205645-1280b17f45c9d7fd414d2779e4fe19a5/orig.mp4?Expires=1775030602&Signature=ebTRCb0TeNb204q7CPW-EqiahlmYZn9V1Ul7qQ1SlCDht1vf0zCjwyi1BF8RsXROlZPS1X9Ch09iznwByrQtnh~wxA0NJ8sFcaYVVRdin4hOlLGwK9XCabsMH20eglarOrLlg1OuNXvS8cVUcEA6Qxs2ik-3ES7rLDomQMeYEF7uXdaaPhGeNonpimHm~xTYZEzAFOp6OUoLo2518B1PnwzX0ugGqc1~c-42baqxrItH7U0tlpyhQTogVZYDZPUYD2JJDdvTy26xcrEGk~mlH9oc1iGZpatfJY5dbo-8nvtezArWpArHiSVrxjslXbo4i07BrromAIPSnXmNfviRpg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Blaine County School District","date","2025-06-11T14:10:59Z","article","Blaine County School District No. 61 trustees approved an amended fiscal year 2024–25 budget at their June 10 public meeting to record a large state modernization grant, and then approved the district’s proposed 2025–26 budget for public adoption.

The amended 2024–25 budget was presented at a public hearing by Director Poe, who told the board the change was required after the district “received a large amount of money from the state in reference to the modernization funds.” He told trustees the district received about $13,800,000 in those modernization funds and that the amended document reallocated revenues and transfers so the state money and related interest are captured in the correct funds.

The amendment also reflected timing differences tied to a voter-approved levy and a state offset payment. Director Poe said, “We ran a levy for 1,850,000.00. The state offset was 1,650,000.00. So, essentially, we only assess the taxpayers a $194,000.” He explained the budget form requires the levy to be shown in the local tax line and the state offset to be shown in state revenue, which created changes between the adopted and amended pages.

Trustees moved and approved the amended 2024–25 budget and then moved to adopt the 2025–26 proposed budget as presented. During discussion trustees and staff emphasized that a larger-than-usual interest line this year—driven by interest earned on modernization funds and other nonmajor funds temporarily flowing through the general fund—is an anomaly and should not be relied on for ongoing operations.

Board discussion flagged structural concerns for future years. Trustee Turner noted salary and benefits now account for roughly $51,958,000 and “up to 87% of our total revenues,” calling that level unsustainable without further action. Director Poe and other staff warned the district faces operating deficits in future forecast years if current spending assumptions (including potential insurance and energy cost increases) and the use of one-time funds for ongoing expenses are not addressed.

Trustees and staff described options under consideration: consolidating district operations onto the community campus, selling surplus property, and examining program and staffing reductions. Director Poe said centralizing operations “on paper … looks like it saves $50,000 a year” and could produce longer-term savings if paired with property sales for facilities funding. He also called out unfunded needs, such as a vehicle-replacement requirement of about $200,000 per year for the next decade to maintain a safe minibus and district vehicle fleet.

Board members noted calendar and process deadlines if they pursue additional local revenue. Staff reminded the board that paperwork to place a supplemental levy on the November ballot must be filed by Aug. 29 to meet November election timelines; trustees said any levy decisions would need to be considered at upcoming meetings.

Budget actions taken at the meeting included approval of the amended 2024–25 budget and approval of the proposed 2025–26 budget; both motions carried after board discussion.

The district plans to provide monthly budget updates as the 2025–26 planning year continues and to return to the board if additional amendments are needed before final adoption.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","2025-6-10 Regular Board Meeting / Public Hearing","oneSentenceSummary","Blaine County School District No. 61 trustees approved an amended fiscal 2024–25 budget at a June 10 public hearing to record a large state modernization payment, then approved the district’s proposed 2025–26 budget; trustees warned of multi-year deficits and flagged levy and staffing choices ahead.","taxTitle","BLAINE COUNTY DISTRICT, School Districts, Idaho","taxId",49394,"location","Idaho","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6205631,"Board discusses several policy updates; rental‑use liability waiver clarified for future action",248,2190000,2438000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df&start=2190&end=2438","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df/thumbnail_2190000.jpg","/articles/6205631/Idaho/Board-discusses-several-policy-updates-rentaluse-liability-waiver-clarified-for-future-action","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6205631-d0d59d9d507e68a8b44ab4fe2b9a8fcb/orig.mp4?Expires=1775030602&Signature=EKet0lwo0EcvIKg-l9fNeiq~LK0EPrrmTgtdD-S73nxJ3qpASM6T5RiMr5h6i3u5wroHX~26XqmvQREr5Et-tvjYUq9wMUnojkPfoe4LDwh-ZlaFZhr-X8QU0cBXiI8LUZvhvhUeYy9jbCqotbjVVaTlYNFoIAjAsl~4fdV3OtDOTNyw39j24tnNsbHfo050qOk6WjFtJek3YDb8PJwkCNVS4yBUqNkE1~QGG4mfIpiXLYaon3xo0p0F4TPsD-iYOUBwUwKh0hA4a1bX96KDMX~aNrQdnqLS4QOopnHmdxAEIfFIuYRBePB3FTnlIvKoudXzAIAxGDW~DFl3WjrcBA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At its June 10 meeting the Blaine County School District No. 61 board reviewed and advanced several policy items. Trustees approved many consent items but pulled Policy 9‑10 (rental use of school facilities) for separate discussion and follow-up.

Board legal counsel and staff introduced a new draft Policy 9‑43 (AI tools acceptable use) intended as a companion to the district’s acceptable‑use policy (9‑42). Staff also presented a proposed academic‑honesty policy (5‑56) that explicitly addresses improper use of AI tools in student work. District staff said both policies were reviewed by librarians, principals and IT staff and will be incorporated through the district’s policy process.

Trustees discussed updates to a suite of policies addressing federal Title I compliance—policy 8‑90 (Title I A supplement/not supplant) and policy 8‑92 (equivalence in instructional staff and materials)—which staff said consolidate federal requirements (including post‑ESSA guidance) into single policy references for audit and compliance purposes.

Policy 9‑10 (Rental use of school facilities) drew specific trustee concern over the $1,000,000 commercial‑liability certificate requirement for non‑BCSD groups and the policy language for waiving that requirement. A trustee asked whether routine meeting spaces (low‑risk uses) should be exempt on a risk basis rather than by a simple routine‑meeting label. Staff replied the district currently may waive the requirement “at the discretion of the district” for routine meetings but agreed to return with clearer language that ties waivers to a documented risk assessment and specific use categories.

The board did not take final action on Policy 9‑10; trustees moved it to the action agenda, discussed waiver language and directed staff to return with revised text for formal action at a future meeting.

Other updates presented for information and review included modest grammatical and cross‑reference updates to certified‑employee evaluation policy (4‑43) to remove an unnecessary 21‑day response limit; updates to searches by school officials (5‑42) adding contraband examples (tobacco, vapes, alcohol, illegal drugs) and language to attempt parent notification after searches; and a minor update to policy language on certified‑employee evaluations to clarify response opportunities following negotiations.

No policy adoptions in this block were finalized at this meeting except those on the consent agenda (approved earlier); staff will return with the revised rental‑use language and other finalized policy edits as required.

","Trustees reviewed and queued multiple policy items June 10, including AI acceptable‑use and academic‑honesty policies and updates to Title I compliance and searches; the rental‑use policy (Policy 9‑10) was pulled from consent for additional language clarifying when the $1 million insurance requirement can be waived.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6205636,"District expands employee housing; HR reports fewer special‑education vacancies but dual‑immersion and other hard‑to‑fill roles remain",422,5384000,5806000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df&start=5384&end=5806","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df/thumbnail_5384000.jpg","/articles/6205636/Idaho/District-expands-employee-housing-HR-reports-fewer-specialeducation-vacancies-but-dualimmersion-and-other-hardtofill-roles-remain","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6205636-c98c8598349514989404c35671a3d96a/orig.mp4?Expires=1775030602&Signature=LQlhpXl2gcB7-YmcrZUqmYaXkgvAp1nepYvYfm2TqkyNincdpoUt9Dvxxt15aJhZbz4Zm9ButrEjcBy0yGLa4ug9S7lLMeHGpQrZxIyAA0tJjCOGCZPy2dUUQZQo1rf6Jd0P9a0KKybA4vkUYEgTydVPWBTNrFoytmXvY~OtF7jLtfjZU3lVMU~Ehz3sQTP8Z~D4~e3gPiKc36c90lW6PizeI1W-63Q5Ux-v2Z8~4UL20-F~9bsD-dwz52roEVieiQ2mf1lstSOcS9pNkiI6cd-IWCeOh1O~rv49SmaXUJELQ05Ezos8-kCl4MlqJXHIf-6qm9LNfQA4J6BHIyYb1Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Human Resources staff reported at the June 10 meeting that the district’s employee-housing portfolio is expanding and that several previously open positions have been filled, although some hard-to-fill roles remain.

Human Resources staff told trustees the district currently manages nine housing units (including recently completed units on Croix and Mercure and the Winterhaven house to be available July 20) and expects to fill multiple units in the coming weeks. The district plans to update policy 4-98 (employee housing) to add new units to the tracker and to consider changing procedural details rather than rewriting policy language each time.

On staffing, HR reported progress: the district began the year with eight special-education teacher vacancies and is now down to two. HR staff said dual‑language elementary vacancies remain a challenge and that the med‑tech position and a K–12 principal vacancy for \"Carrie\" (application period closing the next day in the meeting) are active searches.

Trustees and staff discussed whether the district’s current two-year rule for bridge housing should be extended depending on recruitment needs; HR staff said several current occupants will need to find housing again within a year if the two-year limit remains in force. Board members asked HR to coordinate recruitment outreach and to consider scalable housing policy options.

HR staff described active recruitment strategies: posting to education-specific job platforms (e.g., SchoolSpring), outreach to university networks and use of LinkedIn and other national contacts. One trustee offered to use professional networks to broaden outreach for difficult-to-fill positions.

The board also received updates on benefits and operations: a plan to run staff health screenings and flu shots in October–November at school sites (no‑cost under district insurance), efforts to finalize open contracts and a near-term push to digitize contract signatures (staff said they are close to an electronic-signature process but must confirm the state-approved contract format supports e-signature). HR indicated evaluations and career-ladder data will be certified with the state and used to inform staff movement on the state career ladder and the district’s reimbursement estimates.

","Human resources told trustees the district now has additional housing units coming online and has reduced special‑education vacancies from eight to two, but continues to struggle to recruit dual‑immersion teachers and med‑tech staff; trustees discussed policy limits on housing durations and next steps for staffing outreach.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6205640,"District reports SAT gains and mixed ISAT/IRI results; leadership cites math curriculum and dual-language context",1080,2697000,3777000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df&start=2697&end=3777","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3769014-aa255edc303aaec84d31e2fe09fc35df/thumbnail_2697000.jpg","/articles/6205640/Idaho/District-reports-SAT-gains-and-mixed-ISATIRI-results-leadership-cites-math-curriculum-and-dual-language-context","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6205640-805f976bdfaaf8c80fc25a0260d30e1d/orig.mp4?Expires=1775030602&Signature=EHzMY87RfczV6iL7EBWGXwyJhwCpW5W7A07GhbEZs4ag29JnbXzdwCJorMd09vCLSF-5tUVs1AUrxqqwqEmeCqJlRvsE~ND-teIByvkxSJuYm8a~liQGhuyuimxHTlD9BvPmjIzyop2lfqdi7rVrCnUlQf~HSw2cz8jkhBXbrSo0zAGKORsKNlulolMmwTEus3GCaB3-nuUz7T6I~cWvEEdu3EhDDpWhJ1uQFbij-P2jVYAgMKnHOZ6AD5Cgi4kyUh3zkDsWctlsHzpXtBoih7TnBKxHC2vG2xaLV76DKUouUpjK~PdIle1YKQo~wSrd9wY2YUV--DUH8Fc6kZ6lDg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Blaine County School District presented multiple end-of-year student achievement datasets at its June 10 meeting, reporting a districtwide increase in SAT mean scores among juniors but mixed results across state assessments and strong early-grade screening gains.

Assistant Superintendent Johnson told the board the district SAT mean score increased from 949 in 2024 to 973 this year and that “27% of students met college readiness benchmarks in both evidence-based reading and writing and math,” with 62% meeting at least one benchmark. Johnson emphasized stronger performance in evidence-based reading and writing and continuing work needed in math.

At the state ISAT assessment (grades 3–8 and 11), staff reported district-level percentages of advanced/proficient as 46% in English language arts, 37% in math and 40% in science for 2025; that compares with 2024 figures of 51% ELA, 36% math and 43% science. Johnson and other staff attributed the ELA decline in part to the district’s high share of English-language learners and to curriculum-cycle timing; they said a district ELA curriculum adoption is under way.

District leaders highlighted positive signs in math: small districtwide math gains, stronger cohort growth in several tested grades, and adoption of a new K–8 math curriculum this year. Johnson said the math adoption and sustained grade-level professional collaboration helped many grades meet the district’s continuous improvement goals.

Early-grade screening results (Idaho Reading Indicator, IRI, and a locally selected early-math fluency screener) showed substantial gains in kindergarten through second grade. On the IRI, kindergarten tier‑1 (on-grade-level) reading was reported at 76% and first grade at about 59%. For early math, the district reported roughly 80% of kindergarteners and 79% of first-graders at grade-level on the early-math screener; staff cautioned that local screeners are not perfectly comparable with the higher-stakes ISAT but described the results as encouraging.

For the ACCESS test, which measures English-language-development growth, the district reported an 11% exit rate (students reaching the proficiency threshold and exiting services) and that 40% of language learners met their individual growth goals; staff said combined with near‑misses this produced roughly 67% of English-language learners meeting or nearly meeting growth targets—above statewide averages on growth measures.

Trustees asked about test participation, statewide practice for SAT administration and the district’s use of AI-assisted analysis tools. Johnson explained the district still administers the SAT to all juniors (a local graduation requirement previously required by state rule for a period), whereas many districts administer SAT on an opt-in basis. Johnson said the district uses analytics tools to help identify curricular pacing and standards gaps and that teams of teachers will use the data to adjust instruction.

District leaders said they will continue to use the SAT and vertical/cohort data to monitor progress and align curriculum, with focused attention on algebra and middle‑school vertical alignment to address persistent math gaps.

","Blaine County School District presented end‑of‑year assessment results June 10: the junior-class mean SAT rose from 949 to 973; district ISAT scores showed mixed changes (ELA down, math modestly up); early-grade IRI and local math-screen results improved; ACCESS growth for language learners outpaced state averages on growth metrics.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Blaine County School District amends 2024–25 budget after $13.8M state modernization payment; adopts 2025–26 proposed budget

Board discusses several policy updates; rental‑use liability waiver clarified for future action

District expands employee housing; HR reports fewer special‑education vacancies but dual‑immersion and other hard‑to‑fill roles remain

District reports SAT gains and mixed ISAT/IRI results; leadership cites math curriculum and dual-language context