The Gilpin County School Board met in the school auditorium and online on December 14, 2021, to introduce new membe Kirsten Goodlett. The Board also chose as Board President, Joe Marr; Vice President, Tracy Krug; and Secretary/ Treasurer, Cherokee Blake. Joe Marr is continuing on the Mt. Evans BOCES Board.

During public participation time Aaron Beck welcomed all to the Board and commented about the mask mandate,

Art teacher Curt Halsted recognized two of his students: Kenzie Oliver, who, while learning about Australian animals, created a noteworthy picture including a koala. She was recognized for the month of November. For December, Halsted recognized Amelia Bushey, who was involved with paleo-art, including dinosaurs and meteors.

A holiday project for middleschoolers was Dr. Seuss-themed snow globes. Clay projects started before the pandemic were completed by students with assistance from teacher Victoria Stephens. These can be seen at the Gilpin Art Gallery in Central City through February. The exhibition is called “Lost Art,” as many students had forgotten their projects. Sixth and seventh graders did clay projects, while fifth graders did mobiles.

The Board heard Superintendent Dr. David MacKenzie explain how the mill levy correction was ratified by the Colorado Supreme Court, and House Bill 1164 was passed into law by legislators during the last session. The law corrects school property tax mill levy back to when the school district de-Bruced in 1996.

MacKenzie discussed COVID-19 and other school districts’ mask policies. The Gilpin County Commissioners, as the Health Board, were letting the mask mandate at the school expire on December 16. He was surprised that, with the Omicron variant spreading, the County Commissioners let the school mask mandate expire.

He said that staff and students have had a morning temperature and symptom check, and that no one has been sent home because of a high temperature. He commended parents who keep their sick children at home.

Several Board members had attended the annual Colorado Association of School Boards convention; they said they had learned a lot in the conferences. New Board member Kirsten Goodlett said that seminars on mental health were enlightening; that good mental health is important to good learning. When running for this Board opportunity in November, she had said mental health issues would be a strong concern for her. She noted that students were at this conference and said she would like to see more chances for students to interact with Board members, perhaps in a relaxed atmosphere.

During the discussion of future agendas, the Superintendent mentioned that his contract will automatically renew soon. Ms. Goodlett asked about the procedure involved in renewing his contract, and was provided the qualifications for renewal.

The Board adjourned to executive session.

The next meeting of the District Accountability Committee will be on January 18, 2022, in the elementary library at 5:30 p.m. or can be remotely accessed on Google Meet.

The next meeting of the School Board is planned for January 18, 2022, at 7 p.m. in the school auditorium or on the GCSB YouTube Channel. A work session has been proposed for January 4, 2022.