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Board approves Pingree swim & dive cooperative, debates fee reset
Summary
After debate over a flat $300 cooperative fee versus a per-activity cost-sharing reset, the Jamestown board approved the Pingree Boys & Girls Swim & Dive cooperative agreement as presented; vote was 9–1. Finance committee follow-up was requested.
The Jamestown Public School Board voted May 18 to approve an activities cooperative agreement with Pingree for the Boys & Girls Swim & Dive team, adopting the district's standard $300 cooperative fee for the coming year.
Dan Tweeton moved to accept the agreement as presented; Aaron Roberts seconded. Board members debated two approaches: keep the flat $300 fee (equity/simplicity) or pursue a reset that calculates direct and indirect costs per activity and per pupil. Board member Owen McKenna said the data already in front of the board shows some activities carry much higher actual costs and recommended moving toward a cost-reflective model rather than a flat fee. "There's an extra thousand bucks on top of that $300 for direct cost," McKenna said, noting indirect costs could further raise the per-activity expense.
Superintendent Lehi acknowledged both options are viable and said the $300 fee treats all cooperatives equally; he recommended further study to develop a consistent cost methodology. Several board members urged caution about changing agreements with little notice to partner districts; Melissa Gleason said districts need time to absorb budget changes and asked for communication and timelines if the board pursues a reset.
The board approved the motion to accept the Pingree cooperative as presented. The roll-call outcome recorded Melissa Gleason: Yes; Owen McKenna: No; Jamie Baer: Yes; Heidi Larson: Yes; Jason Rohrer: Yes; Jacob Meyer: Yes; Dan Tweeton: Yes; Aaron Roberts: Yes; Steve Belcamp: Yes. The motion carried 9–1.
The board asked the finance committee and administration to return with a proposed cost-sharing model and timeline (the superintendent suggested a winter timeline for outreach and implementation), noting any reset would likely take a year to implement and require notice to cooperating districts.
Next steps: finance committee to analyze direct and indirect costs by activity, develop a recommended model and timeline for the board to consider before changing multi-district cooperatives.
