The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON – The Dayton School Board held its regular meeting in the high school library on March 15, 2023. School board members Chair Jefferey McCowen, Grant Griffen, Aneesha Dieu, and Zac Fabian were present. Korinda Wallace was absent. Superintendent Rich Stewart was also present.

The board approved the consent agenda, which in addition to administrative items, included a Gear Up field trip to visit college campuses, donations, the resignation of an elementary para-professional, and the resignation and hiring of coaches.

Approval of June 3, 2023, as the high school graduation date, was also included in the consent agenda.

The Dayton FFA made a presentation to the board on its current activities. The group has been focused on career and leadership development programs, having already completed events on job interviewing, soils, tractor driving, and potato and apple judging.

The FFA arranged a trip to Olympia for some members to gain first-hand exposure to the legislative process.

The group scheduled its annual plant sale at the high school greenhouse for May 25-27 to raise money to support FFA activities. Stewart said he was confident the district would receive a $50,000 grant to refurbish the high school greenhouse.

The ASB secretary, Parker Brown, gave that organization’s report describing plans for Spring Spirit Week, ASB officer elections, and an update to the constitution.

Sam Korslund, the District Athletic Director, reported on the following participation in spring sports:

HS Baseball 24 MS Baseball 9

HS Softball 23 MS Softball 17

HS Track 19 MS Track 7

HS Golf 5

He said many students participated enthusiastically in the meeting with the uniform supplier and enjoyed helping select the designs for the Dayton teams.

The AD Director said 27 boys signed up for football and 18 girls for volleyball as opposed to only five boys and no girls from Dayton on last season’s DW Combine teams. He said, “the future is definitely looking bright.”

Elementary School Principal Amy Cox said this year’s Family Night was a big success. Unfortunately, the students did not meet their Read Across America goal, which would have triggered a series of unfortunate events for the principal, including being wrapped by a snake, eating insects, and so on.

Stewart mentioned the possibility of a mini-skill center process by establishing a cooperative between Dayton and other school districts, such as Waitsburg and Pomeroy, to “take advantage of each other’s strengths, so our kids can take advantage of those strengths.” He said, “We need to expand our programs.”

The board voted to move the regular meeting to April 5, 2023, in the school library and add a study session on April 19 in the elementary school library. The board does not typically meet during spring break; the change accommodates the later work session on the 19th. Stewart said he should be able to provide the board with the information necessary to consider program and staffing changes based on next year’s budget.

The board approved the purchase of a new 78-passenger bus for delivery before the start of the next school year.

The meeting adjourned at about 7:34 p.m.