DISTRICT #1 SCHOOL BOARD EXPLORES WAYS TO MEET CHILDCARE SHORTAGE
 | Author:
Nancy Marks, Reporter
Nancy Marks: MT43 News Secretary and News Editor |
DISTRICT #1 SCHOOL BOARD EXPLORES WAYS TO MEET CHILDCARE SHORTAGE
Nancy Marks
Reporter
School board members listened to Elementary School Principal Christina Hartmann explain childcare shortages in Broadwater County and how she is responding to that shortage. “ The daycare issue in Townsend is huge. We have lost three daycare centers just this spring and only two preschool centers besides Head Start are open. We have had several calls from parents who would like to have their four-year-olds in a prekindergarten setting if we can make it work,” she said.
Currently, Townsend Elementary Kindergarten is planned with four kindergarten teachers and 71 students ages 5 through age 6. Hartmann explained some of those 71 students would qualify as prekindergarten since they are just over age 5 so could be listed in one of the four classrooms, along with the newly listed students. The child must be age 5 by Sept. 10 of the school year.
Hartmann will have a parents’ meeting on July 24 at the elementary school beginning at 6:30 pm to visit with parents of 4-year-olds who want and need their children to be in school. If there is enough interest, she will make the transition from one kindergarten class to a prekindergarten class.
Hartmann reported the afterschool program and summer camp are well attended with considerable family participation. Students in the camps are busy fishing and paddleboarding. Some of the group went to Whitefish, Montana for a camping trip. She is looking into an e-sports component and a school drone class for middle school and high school students for this fall. Those programs can be attended by students who might follow those work pathways or apply for scholarships in e-sport designing or drone training.
Superintendent Susie Hedalen presented the result of the questionnaire sent out to parents interested in the 5th Day program to be in place beginning in August when school starts. The seven-question survey asked if parents would be interested in having their child in school on Fridays. The questionnaire is on the school’s website. The 5th Day school program would also be funded through the 21st Century grant. Hartman is the director of the program. The nearly $ 1 million federally funded grant was awarded to Townsend Schools through the Office of Public Instruction (OPI.) The grant is used exclusively for after-school activities.
Board members fielded questions about the 5th Day program including how it would be sustained if the district was not able to renew the grant and whether homeschooled students will be able to attend the 5th Day program. The program is still tentative. The board approved a motion to outline of the program as long as it does not cost the district funds. “ If we can improve our educational process, then the program is good. We are not running a daycare with this program,” Board chairman Jason Noyes commented.
An ongoing lawsuit between School District #1 and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks(FWP) is in negotiation concerning the Townsend Elementary playground area. According to Missoula Attorney Elizabeth Kaleva who is representing the school, in 1981 and again in 2019 the school board entered into a permanent easement agreement allowing the school to receive a $32,000 grant for playground equipment. The easement stated the playground area would be used as a playground in perpetuity. The easements did not show up in the school’s property search so the new school was designed and built on that playground area.
Kaleva is negotiating with FWP to settle the provisions of the grant since the board terminated the agreement without due process. The school is obligated to pay back the $32,903 grant if an agreement is not reached on the easement.
Bulldog Buses owner Jeremy Rice and Ed Shindoll presented information on replacing at least one of the school buses. Shindoll researched propane-powered buses and looked at some electric buses. The cost would run between $120,000 and$140,000 to replace one of the current buses with a diesel or gasoline bus. Rice said they also were looking into grants to buy environmentally updated equipment.
During a job hiring and resignation review, new head football coach Joe Horne introduced Mike Van Diest former Carroll College football coach, who will act as an assistant coach with Horne. Also assisting will be Townsend athlete Jace Lewis, former linebacker for the University of Montana.
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PhotoCredit: Nancy Marks and Susie Hedalen. Let's use Susie Hedalen's headshot instead of Nancy
Image 1 Caption: Susie Hedalen - Superintendent, Townsend School District
Image 2 Caption: Townsend Elementary School playground will receive changes in fencing and location of basketball hoops to insure students’ safety.
