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The Chisago Lakes School Board began the process of regrouping after the two failed voter questions in early November. At their regular meeting Thursday, November 16, Superintendent Brian Dietz said the district is thankful for all the help and support received in the process and that they would  see what the next steps will be. 

“We will start those conversations now and going into the new year,” Supt. Dietz said when asked about the district’s plans going forward with some of the referendum projects needing repair and replacement. “We need to look at all of our options and make some decisions as to our next step. I’m hoping for some clarity in the next two to three months.”

In other school board agenda items, the district board adopted an agreement with the custodial union for their next contract.

The average increase in salary was 4.68 percent, and there was a second shift differential raise as it’s a “chronically unfilled” position, according to Director of Human Resources Cory Becker. Second shift is defined as any shift that starts after 2 p.m. 

“I think we should be proud of how both sides handled negotiations,” Board member Jeff Lindeman said. “You can build a lot of good culture through negotiations, so it was good to see the process go so well.”

“Cory [Becker], Robyn [Vosberg-Torgerson] and Brian [Dietz], you guys did a fantastic job, and it was really clear you guys cared about staff in the negotiations,” Board member Josh Soderlund, who was part of the district’s negotiating team, said. 

“We all recognize the work that custodial staff do. It’s not flashy and doesn’t get accolades, but you guys made it clear that they mattered to this district. And the staff were awesome to work with and it was a great experience.”

The board approved creating and hiring a new paraprofessional position to aid multiple new students at the primary school. The para support is beyond what was budgeted for this year, but because the building has to remain compliant with all services in established individualized educational plans, the hire is required. 

“It’s a band aid and we’re following federal law, and even if it doesn’t get funded federally, it comes out of our budget and we have to do it,” Lindeman explained. “I hear this ‘live within your budget’ all the time and this is an item that is beyond our control and our budget, but we will pay for it and support it. It’s the right thing to do. So when someone tells us we need to live within our budget, it’s an impossibility. If it was your child, you’d want the same amount of money dedicated to them. We are trying to live within our budget but our budget changes.”

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