School lunch costs, cellphone policy, superintendent contract on agenda

McCOOK Neb. — McCook Public Schools Board of Education will vote on a lunch price increase for the 2024-25 school year. Part of the annual operations involves addressing the deficit between the schools’ lunch charges and the mandated rates set by the Federal Food Services.

The administration requests a ten-cent increase in student meals to narrow this gap. This adjustment is necessary to maintain access to free and reimbursable lunches for qualifying students under the Federal Food Services Program.

The Board will look at early retirement incentives, with an eye toward encouraging certified staff planning to retire to notify district administration early in the school year.

Early notification will allow a competitive employment market to secure high-quality staff to fill the vacancies. By financially encouraging staff to notify the administration between October and December, the administration’s ability to seek out and recruit high-performing teachers will be improved.

The incentive operates on a descending scale, with more significant incentives for those who notify us in October than those who inform the administration in December.

This incentive is available only to staff meeting specific requirements, such as age and years of service with the district. Funding for this program will come from the Early Retirement Incentive fund.

The fund, designated solely for this purpose, has not been used since the previous early retirement incentive plan ended over a decade ago. The fund has enough money to fund this incentive for several years, and cannot be used for any other purpose.

The board members will be able to see and test a Faraday bag. With the discipline policy change, students will be required to leave their cell phones at home, in their car, or inside Faraday Bags to block  the signal while in school. 

The board will review the superintendent’s contract and likely take action to approve the salary package.

Approve policy package 5000, which was previously held, and policy package 8000 regarding Internal Board Policies.