Saint Croix Central board elects officers, approves ACP plan and new extracurricular positions amid heated public comments and budget shortfall discussion

The Saint Croix Central School board elected a slate of officers and approved several personnel and program items during its annual reorganizational meeting, while members of the public used the meeting's public-comment period to press the board on alleged administrative misconduct and pending investigations.

The board elected Bridal Herrick as president, Lance Rongstad as vice president, Dave Roos as treasurer and Jeff Redmond as clerk by voice vote after a motion from Jeff Redmond and a second from Brad Wester. The board then approved the district's Academic and Career Planning (ACP) plan, added a proposed elementary "Orphansemble" music position and a unified coach position replacing cheerleading, and adopted several routine fiscal and administrative items including student fees and a debt defeasance resolution.

The actions matter because they set leadership for the coming year, authorize new student opportunities the district plans to fund, and commit the board to a multi-step plan to manage debt and the district's preliminary budget amid projected revenue declines.

Board actions and votes The board moved quickly through a series of consent and action items after the officer election. Items the board approved by voice motion or unanimous voice vote included: - A slate of officers (motion by Jeff Redmond; second by Brad Wester; motion carried). - Approval of the district's ACP plan, which the district described as expanding career-planning curriculum and family engagement across grades 6'12 (motion made and approved by voice vote; mover not specified in the record). - Addition of an elementary "Orphansemble" position to provide a fourth- and fifth-grade performing-arts ensemble (motion approved by voice vote). - Replacement of the cheerleading adviser with a unified coach position (motion approved by voice vote). - Approval of recommended student course fees for 2025'26 and a motion to accept any later changes to dual-credit fees forwarded by partner universities (motion carried). - A modest increase to student lunch and breakfast prices (15 cents…