Norris School Board approves officers, counsel, banks, policies and calendars in organizational meeting

The Norris School District Board of Education on Jan. 13 held its required organizational meeting and completed a series of routine but binding organizational actions, including the election of officers, approval of legal counsel and banks, adoption of district policies and acceptance of the superintendent evaluation summary.

The board nominated and elected Jim Devine as board president, Gary Kubitch as vice president, Roger Burbank as treasurer and Craig Gader as secretary. The board voted to continue work with Perry Law Firm, with Justin Knight identified as the district’s primary legal counsel. First State Bank, First National Bank of Omaha and related institutions were approved as depository banks. The board also designated Voice News as the district’s newspaper of record for one calendar year and approved the district’s current policies and regulations as presented.

Board members approved the superintendent evaluation summary and moved to adopt district calendars for the 2025–26 and 2026–27 school years. The meeting record shows motions and seconding for each item, and chairs conducted roll-call-style approval for contested votes.

Why it matters: These organizational votes set the board’s official leadership, administrative vendors and basic governance parameters for the year. Legal counsel and depository bank choices determine who the district contracts with for routine legal advice and day-to-day banking; calendars and policies guide the district’s school year and governance practices.

Details of recorded motions and approved items include: Perry Law Firm retained as primary legal counsel for one calendar year with Justin Knight as primary counsel; First State Bank and First National Bank of Omaha approved as depositories; Voice News named newspaper of record for one calendar year; current board policies/regulations presented and approved; superintendent evaluation summary approved; district calendars for 2025–26 and 2026–27 adopted as presented.

The board handled the consent agenda — typically including approval of minutes, claims, financial reports and personnel matters — by unanimous consent after offering members the chance to remove items. The superintendent’s financial comments noted the general fund beginning balance and month-end balance were higher than the prior year and that payroll obligations are expected to remain just over $2,000,000 for the next pay period.

Votes at a glance (motions taken during the organizational meeting): - Elect Jim Devine as president — motion made and seconded; approved by roll call. - Elect Gary Kubitch as vice president — motion made and seconded; approved. - Elect Roger Burbank as treasurer — motion made and seconded; approved. - Elect Craig Gader as secretary — motion made and seconded; approved. - Approve Perry Law Firm (Justin Knight primary counsel) for one calendar year — motion made and seconded; approved. - Approve First State Bank and First National Bank of Omaha as depository banks — motion made and seconded; approved. - Approve Voice News as newspaper of record for one calendar year — motion made and seconded; approved. - Approve current board policies and regulations for the coming year (annual presentation) — motion made and seconded; approved. - Approve superintendent evaluation summary — motion made and seconded; approved. - Adopt district calendars for 2025–26 and 2026–27 as presented — motion made and seconded; approved.

Notes: Where individual roll-call tallies were recorded during the meeting audio, the minutes show affirmative votes from those present; the transcript records the board speaking each vote aloud but does not present a unified numerical tally for every motion in a single consolidated table. The approved superintendent evaluation is a personnel record and remains part of the district’s administrative files as required by board practice.