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Oelrichs School Board approves equipment purchase, staff bonuses and multiple hires
Summary
At its Nov. 18 meeting, the Oelrichs School District 23-3 Board approved a $35,000 skid-steer purchase, $350 staff Christmas bonuses and an $800 teacher salary increase effective Jan. 2026, and confirmed several hiring agreements and personnel actions.
At its Nov. 18 meeting at the high school, the Oelrichs School District 23-3 Board of Education approved a series of operational motions including equipment purchases, staff bonuses and multiple hires.
Board President John Cope called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. and the board first approved the Oct. 21, 2025 meeting minutes and the meeting agenda. Business Manager Sword presented unaudited financial reports; the board voted to accept the reports and pay invoiced claims (MOTION by Board member Dave Osmotherly, second Board member Katie Merdanian; motion carried).
On procurement, the board voted to republish the invitation to bid for snow removal after no bids were received and approved a motion to purchase a skid steer with tire chains and blade not to exceed $35,000 (MOTION by Lance Tlustos, second Marty Schommer; motion carried). The board also approved a vendor bid from Triple 7 Skillet & Spirits for the district Christmas party scheduled Dec. 12 (MOTION by Katie Merdanian, second Dave Osmotherly); Board President John Cope recorded an abstention on that vote.
On employee compensation and staffing, the board approved a $350 Christmas bonus for teachers, hourly staff and administration and a teacher salary contract increase of $800 (pro-rated for part-time staff), effective January 2026 (MOTION by Lance Tlustos, second Marty Schommer; motion carried). Board President John Cope and Board member Katie Merdanian abstained from that motion due to conflicts, as noted in the minutes.
The board approved several personnel actions by separate motions: an employment agreement with Abbey Ries for the remainder of the 2025–26 term at $34,344 (MOTION by Marty Schommer, second Katie Merdanian), a custodial hiring agreement with Jerome Scabby Face at $16 per hour (MOTION by Katie Merdanian, second Lance Tlustos), and an increased hourly rate for Denise Drake to $18 effective Nov. 3, 2025 (MOTION by Marty Schommer, second Dave Osmotherly). The board declared Clayton Hamilton s having abandoned his job after failing to report as scheduled (MOTION by Katie Merdanian, second Lance Tlustos). The board also approved a hiring agreement with Emmanual Black Bear, prorated per the negotiated agreement (MOTION by Dave Osmotherly, second Lance Tlustos); all such motions carried.
The board entered executive session under South Dakota Codified Law SDCL 1-25-2.1 to discuss employee matters at 7:03 p.m., returned to open session at 7:07 p.m., and took no action as a result of the executive session. The meeting adjourned at 7:07 p.m. (MOTION by Lance Tlustos, second Marty Schommer; motion carried).
Votes recorded in the minutes are listed as "motion carried" for most items; where the minutes explicitly identify abstentions those are noted above. The minutes do not include roll-call tallies for individual yes/no votes beyond the abstentions noted.
