Ames Comm School District approves multiple budget requests, gifts and dropout-prevention funding

The Ames Comm School District board on Monday approved a set of budget requests and donations, unanimously voting to send requests for modified allowable growth to the School Budget Review Committee, accept multiple community gifts and finalize the district’s dropout-prevention budget.

Board members voted to request modified allowable growth for increased enrollment totaling $651,239 and to request modified allowable growth for limited-English-proficiency instruction beyond five years (the transcript includes two figures in rapid succession—$66,000 and $56,554—see clarifying details). The board also approved district gifts as presented and adopted a modified allowable growth of $1,796,051 for dropout prevention, establishing a total dropout-prevention budget of $2,394,735. The district’s required 25% local match for dropout prevention was stated as $598,648.

“It’s an annual report that...shows the number of students that is supported and what positions come from,” Superintendent Mister Davis said while introducing the dropout-prevention budget and describing how funds support school-family counselors and ‘success teachers,’ comparable to Title I reading supports.

All recorded motions in the public portion were approved by voice vote and reported as unanimous in the transcript. The board chair moved approval of the agenda and later the consent agenda; motions were moved and seconded by board members identified in the meeting as Bierbaum, Shields Cook, DeWard, Tipton and Ward during the roll call of motions.

The donations accepted by the board included cash and in-kind gifts for school choirs, classroom libraries and the district Hope Pantry; examples read into the record included $1,000 for Ames High Choirs from Tammy Hartman and multiple small cash and food donations directed to the Hope Pantry.

The board did not take further public action in the meeting’s public session and announced a transition to a closed work session to discuss board meeting schedules and committee assignments.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of agenda: passed by voice vote (recorded as unanimous). - Consent agenda (gifts accepted): passed by voice vote (recorded as unanimous). - SBRC request — modified allowable growth for increased enrollment: $651,239; motion passed (recorded as unanimous). - SBRC request — modified allowable growth for LEP instruction beyond five years: transcript references $66,000 and $56,554; motion passed (recorded as unanimous). - Dropout-prevention modified allowable growth: $1,796,051; total dropout-prevention budget $2,394,735; motion passed (recorded as unanimous).

The board said more detailed staffing and budget information will be provided in January, and the next regular meeting was scheduled for Jan. 12.