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Votes at a glance: Ottumwa board approves insurance renewals, equipment transfers, OHS Phase 2 acceptance and Kidd Account purchase
Summary
At its most recent meeting the Ottumwa Comm School District board approved the consent agenda and voted to renew insurance coverage, transfer activity funds for athletic safety equipment, accept OHS Phase 2 final payment, and authorize purchase of a Kidd Account safety and reunification platform.
The Ottumwa Comm School District board handled multiple action items in a single meeting, voting unanimously to approve routine and operational items that staff said maintain district operations and safety.
Insurance renewals — Staff presented competitive quotes for property/liability and workers' compensation. Property coverage from EMC showed a 5.5% premium increase; for workers' compensation staff recommended moving coverage to Encova after receiving a quote of about $359,834 versus EMC's $407,394 (staff said EMC's quote also would have imposed a $10,000 medical‑only deductible). The district reported the Encova quote was about $50,000 less than EMC's and recommended the change. The board approved both renewals by roll call.
Athletic safety equipment transfer — Because student protective equipment must be paid from the student activity fund, staff asked the board to approve transfers from the general fund into the activity fund to cover reconditioning and purchases. The board approved transfers of $15,000 for 2025–26 and another $15,000 for 2026–27.
OHS Phase 2 final acceptance — Staff told the board that architects recommended releasing final retainage for the OHS Phase 2 renovation. The project was originally bid at $3,323,504 and completed for $3,312,536.96, slightly under the bid. The board approved final payment and acceptance.
Kidd Account (safety/reunification platform) — Staff proposed consolidating several systems (visitor management, hall pass, event registration and emergency accounting) into a single Kidd Account platform with additional emergency/reunification modules. Staff said current spending across systems is roughly $25,000 per year and the add‑on modules would cost about $7,813. After staff described vendor vetting and SRO involvement, the board approved contracting with Kidd Account.
Other routine items approved included second readings of board policies and the consent agenda. The meeting included a public comment urging the board to pass a resolution urging the state to increase SSA (school supplemental aid) and phase out ESAs; the board member thanked the speaker for attending.
