Melcher-Dallas Comm School District Packet Summary — 2026-08-17
Regular Board Meeting
Monday, August 17, 2026 — 5:00 PM
JH/HS Library
Key Items on the Agenda
The Melcher-Dallas Comm School District Board of Education is scheduled to consider a consent agenda containing meeting minutes, the monthly list of bills, monthly financial reports, and the district's CFPM financial report.
The business agenda centers on board policy updates, procedures for eighth-grade students participating in high school sports, implementation of Iowa Senate File 2428, the district's 1:1 technology program, and personnel recommendations.
Eighth-Grade Participation in High School Sports
The board is scheduled to consider a district protocol for allowing eligible eighth-grade students to participate in high school athletics. The proposed process would evaluate requests individually and by sport rather than establish automatic eligibility.
Before an eighth grader could participate at the high school level, the protocol calls for:
- A written recommendation from the head varsity coach addressing athletic readiness, safety, the student's anticipated role, and effects on both the middle school and high school programs.
- A conference involving the student, parent or guardian, varsity and junior-high coaches, Activities Director, and, when needed, a building principal or guidance counselor.
- Review of academic expectations, physical and emotional readiness, safety, team expectations, and the responsibilities of high school competition.
- Parent or guardian approval followed by a final administrative determination.
Approved students would have to meet the same academic and athletic eligibility standards as high school athletes. Once an eighth grader begins participating with a high school team in a sport, the student could not return to the eighth-grade team in that sport during the same season.
The packet notes that rules governing eighth-grade participation had not yet been finalized when the protocol was prepared and that additional state policy or regulatory language could require further consideration.
Senate File 2428 Procedures
The agenda includes district procedures for implementing Iowa Senate File 2428, which the packet says establishes new requirements beginning July 1, 2026, involving classroom removals, student discipline, parent communication, and student readmission.
The district's procedural manual distinguishes between nonviolent and violent classroom disruptions and assigns responsibilities to teachers and administrators. Among the procedures:
- Parents or guardians are to be notified following classroom removals.
- Teachers and principals or their designees must meet before a student returns to the classroom.
- Students are to have an opportunity to make up instruction and assignments missed during removal.
- Repeated removals can trigger additional parent meetings and student supports.
- Students in grades 6–12 who are removed from a classroom may not return to that specific teacher's classroom until the next day, although they may attend another teacher's class if ready to return.
- Following a violent disruption, a student may not return until the required parent meeting has occurred.
- If a student assaulted a teacher and the teacher does not consent to the student's return, an alternative learning environment must be considered.
The manual also addresses students with IEPs and Section 504 plans. It states that an IEP team meeting is required when a student with an IEP is removed by a teacher for a violent or nonviolent classroom disruption, while other IDEA and Section 504 requirements remain applicable.
The district identifies designated student-removal locations at both the elementary and junior-high/high-school buildings and outlines a readmission process covering parent communication, documentation, teacher consultation, missed instruction, and additional behavioral or academic supports.
Board Policy Readings
The board's business agenda includes a second reading of a large group of policies covering numerous areas of district governance and operations. Policies listed for second reading include:
- 201
- 210.05
- 401.01
- 409.02
- 501.15
- 502.03
- 503.01
- 503.11, 503.11R1 and 503.11R2
- 504.06
- 507.02, 507.02E1 and 507.02E3
- 603.01, 603.03, 603.06 and 603.10
- 604.01, 604.03, 604.03R1 and 604.05
- 605.04 and 605.04E1
- 607.01
- 713
- 804.05 and 804.05E1
- 901
A separate group of annual policies is scheduled for first reading, including policies and related regulations or exhibits in the 103, 505.8 and 506 series.
The agenda also lists a first reading of Board Policy 605.4 R1 concerning the district's 1:1 Technology Program. The packet text identifies the item on the agenda but does not provide enough accompanying detail to summarize specific proposed changes.
Major Financial Items
Monthly Bills
The consent agenda includes the monthly list of bills. The packet's invoice report shows $55,817.20 in General Fund invoices, $6,056.95 in Student Activity Fund invoices, and $14,552.50 in Local Option Sales Tax invoices.
Notable individual expenditures listed in the packet include:
- $9,800 to Roof, Gerdes, Erlbacher, PLC for audit completion.
- $8,000 to Twin Cedars School District as reimbursement for half of a turf tank project.
- $7,450 to Dannco for high school and junior-high football helmets.
- $7,119.38 to Premier Furniture and Equipment, LLC for 25 sixth-grade student tables.
- $6,552.50 to IP Pathways, including outsourced IT director services, managed SentinelOne services, and security-related services.
- $4,921.88 to Apptegy, Inc. for a Thrillshare Rooms quote.
- $4,185.96 to Iowa Communications Network for July network services.
- $1,625 for July communications professional services.
The Student Activity Fund invoices include $5,665.95 to Dannco for football equipment and apparel, including practice jerseys, game pants, shoulder pads, mouthguards, and related items.
General Fund Financial Report
The CFPM report provides a year-end FY 2026 comparison of General Fund actual results and budget.
The report lists:
- $4,697,138 in total FY 2026 General Fund revenues.
- $4,959,831 in total FY 2026 General Fund expenditures.
- A $262,693 year-to-date loss based on those revenues and expenditures.
- An ending General Fund balance of $1,541,658.
For comparison, the budget report shows $4,747,384 in revenues, $4,809,798 in expenditures, and a budgeted year-end loss of $62,414. The variance analysis reports actual expenditures $150,033 above the budgeted expenditure total and actual revenues $17,256 below budget.
The spending-authority analysis projects FY 2027 unspent authorized budget at $2,601,288, compared with $2,396,127 for FY 2026.
District and School Updates
Enrollment and Five-Year District Goals
The superintendent's report says preliminary registration numbers indicate fewer students for 2026–27 than the previous year, primarily because the district graduated 34 seniors while bringing in 24 kindergarten students. Other class sizes are expected to remain generally similar, and all available preschool slots are filled.
The district is also launching a five-year strategic vision organized around five areas:
- Curriculum and student support, including strengthening Multi-Tiered System of Supports.
- Staff collaboration focused on student achievement.
- Social, emotional, behavioral, and mental-health support for students.
- Professional development and instructional practices.
- Partnerships with families and community stakeholders.
The superintendent's report says progress on district and building-level goals will be shared with the board and community each quarter.
School Resource Officer
The superintendent reports that the Marion County Sheriff's Department has hired a new school resource officer for the 2026–27 school year. Officer Justin Kingrey, who served the district at the end of the prior school year, is expected to be on site with the new SRO during the first couple of weeks for training.
Facilities and Transportation
The transportation and facilities report highlights several projects completed or underway before the new school year:
- A diesel fuel barrel has been purchased, hard-wired, and is ready to be filled.
- Fuelman fleet cards have been acquired for gasoline purchases at Casey's, with driver PINs used for tracking.
- Summer cleaning and waxing have been completed.
- Repairs associated with the elementary school's water leak have been completed.
- Concrete work has started but has been slowed by rain.
- The high school's ice machine is operational.
- New rubber mulch has been installed and secured around the high school's new wing.
Teaching, Professional Development and Student Recognition
The secondary principal's report says professional development will center on The Will to Learn, with an emphasis on teachers combining supportive relationships with high classroom expectations and improving student motivation.
The district's Saint Pride initiative is also being adjusted. Rather than primarily recognizing individual students through separate posts, the plan is to use monthly pep-rally celebrations and group recognition while continuing to emphasize positive student behavior.
The elementary report says curriculum materials have arrived, pre-service days have been scheduled, classrooms are being prepared, and a new piece of equipment has been added to the preschool playground. The PTO also plans to install a "Buddy Bench" intended to help students signal that they would like someone to play or spend time with.
Athletics and Activities
The Activities Director reports preparations are underway for fall sports, including updated coaching materials, equipment and uniform orders, verification of student-athlete registration documents, scheduling of officials and travel, and coordination of game-day staffing.
Upcoming high-school season dates identified in the packet include:
- August 21: Football scrimmage at Murray.
- August 27: Cross country at Albia.
- September 1: Volleyball home opener against Mormon Trail.
- September 4: Football home opener against Twin Cedars at 7:00 p.m.
The report also says HUDL cameras have been ordered for football and gym events. Kinetic Internet is scheduled for installation at the football field on August 19, which is expected to support the HUDL camera and could also support online payments at the gate and concessions if the district chooses to use that option.
What to Watch at the Meeting
Several agenda items could establish or refine district procedures for the 2026–27 school year:
- Eighth-grade athletics: The proposed protocol would create an individualized approval process focused on academics, readiness, safety, and the student's best interests, while acknowledging that state rules were still developing when the document was prepared.
- Student discipline: The SF 2428 procedural manual translates new state requirements into specific district processes for classroom removal, parent involvement, special education considerations, and student readmission.
- Board policies: A substantial set of policies is returning for second reading, while annual policies and the 1:1 Technology Program policy are scheduled for first readings.
- Finances: The board's consent materials include FY 2026 financial results showing General Fund expenditures above both revenues and the budgeted expenditure level.
- New school year: Administrative reports outline enrollment expectations, a new five-year strategic framework, staffing and professional-development preparations, facilities work, and fall athletics preparations.
Civic Translator summarized publicly available meeting materials.
