Chisago Lakes board approves contracts, accepts donations and adopts routine resolutions

At its meeting the Chisago Lakes School District board approved a set of routine resolutions, accepted community donations, and ratified multiple master agreements that district negotiators said were reached largely within budget constraints.

Donations: The board accepted gifts including $7,517 from CHISAGO XPTO to support primary school garden supplies, Pre-K items, Scholastic News and BrainPOP; $1,000 from Minnesota Potters for middle-school ceramics; $1,000 from the Bailey family for choir; $500 from the Chisago Lakes Fire Department for Lakeside Pride shirts; $1,000 from Taylor's Fall School Foundation for gym mats and climbing ropes; $1,000 from Peterson Company for the dance team; and $1,000 from the Chisago Lakes Hockey Association (in the name of Mike Blizzott) for scholarships. The board moved and approved acceptance by voice vote.

Resolutions and policy: Trustees approved annual Minnesota High School League membership, a language access plan intended to meet state statutory civil-rights testing and service requirements for students whose first language is not English, and a recertification of district population estimates for census purposes (district area estimated to have gained about 400 people since 2020). The board also acted to appoint Superintendent Brian Dees and Michelle (board member) as the district's designated contacts for an annual information-access item referred to in the meeting as an "Iowa/ISD" access proxy; the transcript recorded the motions and roll calls.

Contracts and negotiations: District negotiators and leadership presented three master agreements. The Technology Master Agreement was reported to carry a 7.28% total package percentage and was described as within budgetary constraints. A custodial master agreement showed a 7% total package increase and was noted to be approximately $5,000 over the board's internal budgeted amount, with staff indicating adjustments will be made within unit budgets. The Food Service Master Agreement carried a 6.95% package increase and was within the provided constraints. Board members and negotiators described the recent bargaining rounds as more collaborative and noted fewer meetings and less tension compared with past negotiations; the board approved all three agreements.

Votes at a glance: motions to accept the consent agenda, accept donations, approve the Minnesota High School membership resolution, approve the language access plan, recertify census estimates, approve the SCRAG LTFM levy portion (~$35,000 district share), adopt Policy 721 (equipment threshold increase), and ratify the three master agreements were each moved, seconded and approved in the meeting record.

The board adjourned the open portion of the meeting and proceeded to a recorded closed session for a brief negotiation-strategy discussion.