Lamar RE-2 School Board meeting of August 11, 2025

On display at the August 11 Lamar RE-2 School District’s board meeting was the recently-won Corporate Cup, earned for the third year by Lamar School District 

All board members were present for the August 11, 2025 meeting, with Tress Gadash attending virtually.  The evening’s agenda, as well as minutes from the July 14, 2025 meeting (with the amendment reflecting Wallace Gas & Oil winning the fuel bid for the 2025/2026 school year), were approved unanimously.  No visitors wishing an audience with the board were present.

No were no board member updates to present.  Superintendent Dr. Chad Krug addressed an issue that has garnered some complaints from the community.  The area surrounding the new stadium has had problems with excessive weeds that have gotten a bit out of control over the summer.  He reassured the board and the community members that outside spaces within the district have not been overlooked and are being addressed.  In fact, he said, mowing around the stadium property started today and will continue until all areas have been mowed.  He reminded all that over the summer, there are only 80 available days to do maintenance and any needed repairs and that interior spaces were addressed first so that they could be completed before students started school again.  The grounds crews have hesitated using chemical weed killers because of the upcoming hydroseeding around the stadium which would be compromised by chemical weed control.

The board approved payment of June and July payroll and bills.  Also approved were three resignations, including an assistant principal at Washington Elementary and both the boys and girls golf coaches at Lamar High School.  Hirings of several positions were approved, including a third grade teacher at Parkview, a fourth grade teacher at Parkview, and an assistant principal at Washington. Two transfers were approved, both involving the assistant softball coach at LHS as well as the volunteer assistant softball coach at LHS.  One retirement was approved, as were certified and classified substitutes.

Dr. Krug also reported that he has met with Lamar’s interim Chief of Police Kevin Ridder to discuss school safety.  The police department will have maps of all campuses in the district and the district and the LPD are looking at the language used for any emergency situations, using language common to law enforcement so that all are on the same page for timely and accurate responses.  Also, as part of school safety, is the district looking to replace cameras in all schools.  The current cameras in use are dated and locale-based (i.e., a DVD player is needed to review footage) and the new system will be cloud-based, allowing for quick access by law enforcement as well as school administration.  The lifespan of these cameras is generally around 10 years so the district needs to develop a long-term, staggered replacement plan as needed.

On display at the meeting was the Corporate Cup that the Lamar School District recently won for the third consecutive year.  Krug jokingly assured everyone that the district “didn’t cheat and followed all the rules”. He told board members that September’s meeting will include this year’s student board members and will mark the return of monthly school principal reports.  He asked for board approval for a new pay system for activity bus drivers, which the district developed.  In the past, pay for these drivers was complicated and involved one rate for the first hour with many adjustments after the first hour, as well as per diem payments for meals and lodging for long distance drives.  The new scale would offer a flat rate for all trips with no per diems.  He said that while the overall hourly expense would be approximately $7,000 more than it currently is, when deducting the per diems and extra expenses for additional hours, the numbers work out to be nearly identical.  He said all bus drivers approved of the idea and that it would be much less of a burden on district staff who in the past had to keep extensive logs of each driver and each trip.  All board members were in agreement that this was a good idea.  Bus drivers are always in need and it is hoped that this new pay system will attract new drivers as well as allow current drivers to look at a trip and know exactly what they would be being paid.

The board has adopted a new monthly policy of reviewing CASB (Colorado Association of School Boards) training. CASB made a handbook which helps current and new school board members by outlining several expectations of all board members, which include representing the entire community, advocating for every student’s success, serving as stewards of district resources, focusing on district goals, conducting board business transparently, and supporting board decisions, among several other items.  Each month, the board will review aspects of this training handbook.  This August meeting’s topic was “Reflection and Lessons Learned” and revolved around what went well last year and was could/should be done differently.  Board members offered such positives from last year as the formation of the Athletic Review Committee (ARC) which, board member Rick Robbins stated “really helped to take pressure off of coaches” in regards to policies in the district’s athletic programs.  Board President Lanie Meyers-Mireles, said that she felt the stadium project was another great achievement last year, one which created a lot of positivity with both students and the community.  Another positive was the addition of an 8^th hour at the high school, allowing students to participate in courses like Home Economics and other life skills courses.  It proved very popular with students and helps the district decide what new courses should be offered based on surveys of students.  Next month’s topic will be “Student Achievement”.

Informal discussion after the formal meeting was prompted by Meyers-Mireles, who said she is concerned why public school populations, including Lamar’s, have been decreasing of late. Board members discussed several reasons why kids are leaving the school systems, including the rise of homeschooling, which doesn’t account for the total numbers in decline.  This is a statewide problem. Dr. Krug said that RE-2 performs exit interviews of all students who disenroll to try and ascertain the reasons, so that the district can find ways for retention.  “Kids normally shy away from things they don’t like and want to write their own narrative”, he said, in reference to high school students.  Meyers-Mireles added that it’s sad that many students feel the need to “rush off” and not savor their high school years and enjoy them.  Dr. Krug then added his opinion of the emphasis on CMAS scores, stating that schools need to try to reduce stress from the CMAS tests so that students don’t feel defined by poor scores on standardized tests which, he feels, aren’t the entire measure of a student’s success or abilities.  “Shaping good schools begins in rooms like this (referencing the board room), not in offices in Denver”.

By: Barbara Crimond