The Mena School Board held their regular November meeting on Monday in the Mena Middle School Library.
The meeting began with the Superintendent’s report and Dr. Lee Smith immediately turned the meeting over to Mena Middle School Principal Todd Coogan. Coogan shared information on “Project Lead the Way”. The program was made possible through the efforts of Assistant Principal Teresa Warner, who wrote and was approved for a grant from the Arkansas STEM Coalition. PLTW provides hands-on learning opportunities using research supported approaches that allow students to discover and explore interest, imagine and design solutions to real world challenges and become independent, confident problem solvers.
The board adjourned to the PLTW Lab where students were waiting to display and explain their projects to those in attendance.
Dr. Smith then concluded his report by updating the board on the shortage of bus drivers in the district. He stated that no off campus trips have been affected so far but that may become an issue should the problem persist.
Next, the focus turned to the updating of the Aramark menus for our district's schools. In October a parent, Meghan Thompson, voiced her concerns to the board, particularly highlighting the limited amount of protein and high amounts of sugar in the school's breakfast offerings. Susan Bodey, Aramark Food Service Director, and Amy Bartow, District Food Service Director, responded at last night’s meeting by outlining the federal guidelines that shape school menus. They emphasized that these guidelines are stringent about calorie content, which directly impacts the amount of protein that can be included in breakfast items.
To address these concerns, Bodey and Bartow revealed new additions to the breakfast menus, primarily focusing on protein-rich items. They assured the board and attendees that, despite the challenges, they are committed to enhancing the breakfast menu within the existing framework. They also clarified that while the names of certain menu items might not seem indicative of healthier options, they are in fact aligned with USDA nutritional standards. For example, the pop tarts available in the school cafeterias are a healthier variant than those commonly found in grocery stores, being based on whole grains and containing less sugar.
Currently, around 370 students at Louise Durham Elementary and over 300 at Holly Harshman Elementary benefit from the free breakfast program. The board was informed that returning to cafeteria-based breakfast services could potentially allow for more protein in the meals. However, this change would necessitate charging for the meals and could lead to a decrease in the number of students participating in the breakfast program. This aspect of school nutrition continues to be a balancing act between adhering to federal guidelines and meeting the nutritional needs of students.
District Maintenance Supervisor Danny Minton then addressed the board about project updates. Dirt work on the Hensley Activity Center is expected to be completed on Tuesday which will be followed by the installation of piers. All bulbs in the Union Bank Center have been replaced with LED bulbs. L&M Plumbing of Mena will be replacing a boiler at Mena Middle School. Bids were received for the construction of an awning at Louise Durham Elementary and the low bid was $49,649.15 by T&D Awning of Fort Smith. The board voted to accept that bid.
The board then approved the most recent financial reports.
In personnel the board accepted the resignation of Mena Middle School Special Ed Paraprofessionals Crystal Reed and Amanda Nash. They also voted to add pay for an added class period, five days per week, for Cheer Coach Rachel Dover the remainder of this semester.
Before the board adjourned, discussion returned to the Aramark menus and a general consensus was that food services are doing well despite the federal restrictions on menus but that more time and effort is needed in order to arrive at better meal options. The board also addressed the need for advocacy at the state and federal levels to assist schools with this issue.