Sergeant Bluff-Luton Community Schools Regular Board Meeting

Mission Statement

In partnership with parents and the community, the SB-L Schools will challenge students to take Attendance  personal responsibility for their education and to apply their learning to a diverse and changing world.

Voting Members

  Matt Britton, Board Director

  Tammy Matthey, Board Director

  Lillyan Rodriguez, Board Director

  Jeff Wright, President

  Absent - Jason Gehling, Vice President

  1. Call to Order

  The regular May 2025 meeting of the Sergeant Bluff-Luton Board of Education was ca led to order by  President Jeff Wright at 6:00 a.m. The meeting was held in the Elementary School Art Room.

2. Approval of the Agenda

Motion made by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

  Motion seconded by:

Voting:

  Tammy Matthey

  Unanimously Approved

  3. Welcome Visitors & Guests

President Wright welcomed the visitors and asked if anyone present wished to address the board. 

High School students Alex Wilson, Jayden Kneifl and Braulio Gonzalez were present to thank the  board for their support.  Alex Wilson said the board was a real blessing and thanked them for fighting  for us and supporting SBL athletics. Jayden Kneifl thanked the board for doing a lot for us.

  4. Approval of minutes from the previous meetings

  The minutes of the meetings from April 2025 were reviewed by the board.

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

5. Approval of the Secretary’s Monthly Reports

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

  6. Approval of Current Bills The current bills were reviewed by the board.  

Motion made by:

Matt Britton

Motion seconded by:

Voting:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Matt Britton - Yes

Tammy Matthey - Abstain

Li lyan Rodriguez - Yes

Jeff Wright - Yes

7. Recognition

The following recognitions were given:

Maddie Kneifl set a new school record in the discus with a throw of 125’11”.  Alex Wilson  set a new school record in the shot put with a throw of 56’06.5.”

Ms. Pomerenke and the High School TSA students for their great performances at the State  TSA competition.  The fo lowing qualify for Nationals by winning 1st place.

Fashion Design and Webmaster: Brooke Hanson, Elle Chandy and Isabelle Fetsch Digital Video Production: Brooke Hanson, Elle Chandy and Kendra Berglund

Video Game Design: Andrew Maclure

Miss Struck and the Kindergarten and 1st grade students for their concerts.  

The 8th Grade Math Bee was held at Northwestern College on April 10th, with 37 teams  participating in the competition. Representing our school were the fo lowing students:

Team 1: Easton Boettcher, Sara Ode l, Nigel Philips, Theo Tague, and Josiah  Mitchell

Team 2: Olivia Colfack, Aaron Hi l, Charlotte Timmons, and Quincy Timmons.

Both teams performed exceptionally we l, with Team 1 placing 5th and Team 2 earning 10th place.  

In addition to the team achievements, two students received individual honors.

Sara Ode l and Nigel Philips finished in the top 20 overall—and Nigel placed 1st  individually!

Three 6th Grade students participated in the annual Book Bash at Siouxland Christian School. There were more than 300 students at the competition.

8. Action Items

a. Resignations

Recommendation to approve the resignations as presented:

Adams, Jamie - High School Asst Boys Basketball Coach (pending a suitable replacement)

Scheitlin, Sheryl - High School Associate

Gacke, Jeff - 9th Grade Baseball at the end of the 2025-2026 school year (pending a suitable replacement)

Barto, Scott - Middle School Custodian

Motion made by:

  Matt Britton

  Motion seconded by:

Tammy Matthey

  Voting:

Unanimously Approved

b. New contracts

  Recommendation to approve the new contracts as presented:

Sudbeck, Emily - Kindergarten Teacher BA Step 0 $48,234

Hensley, John - High School Asst Softball Coach Step 1 $2,947

Motion made by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Motion seconded by:

Voting:

Matt Britton

  Unanimously Approved

  c. Open Enrollments

1. Open Enrollment ZE, KAN.E & KAL.E

  Open enro lments for ZE, KAN.E and KAL.E were reviewed by the board. and recommended for approval.

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Voting:

Matt Britton

Unanimously Approved

2. Open Enrollment - AC

  Mr. Janzen recommends Open Enrollment - AC be denied.   In accordance with Sergeant Bluff Luton School Board Policy regarding open enrollment, the request for open enrollment for the 2025–2026 school year is denied due to insufficient classroom space at the third-grade level, based on factors including, but not limited to, the nature of the district’s education program, available employees, instructional methods, and student-teacher ratios considered in light of the student’s current needs for academic and instructional support services. Therefore, the Lillyan Rodriguez request is denied.

Motion made by:

Motion seconded by:

Tammy Matthey

  Voting:

Unanimously Approved

d. TSA & FCCLA Trips

Motion to approve TSA's & FCCLA's trip to national competition in Nashvi le, Tennessee & Orlando, Florida.  

Motion made by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Motion seconded by:

Matt Britton

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

e. Approve Certified Teacher TA

Motion to approve the teacher contracts for 2025-2026 as presented.

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Voting:

Matt Britton

Matt Britton - Yes

Tammy Matthey - Abstain

Lillyan Rodriguez - Yes

Jeff Wright - Yes

f. Class of 2025 List of Graduates

Mr. Janzen provided a list of 2025 high school graduates for review.   Motion to approve the list of graduates pending successful completion of a l graduation requirements.

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Matt Britton

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

g. Approve Girls' Wrestling Sharing Agreement with Hinton for 2025-2026

Motion to approve the coop girls' wrestling agreement with Hinton for  2025-2026.

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

h. Approve Primary School roof bid

Motion to approve the Primary School roof bid by Winkler Roofing as presented.  Superintendent Janzen shared that this is the last scheduled roof that needs to be replaced. 

Motion made by:

Tammy Matthey

Motion seconded by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

i. Approve NWAEA Service Agreement for 2025-2026

Motion to approve the 2025-2026 Service Agreement with the Northwest Area Education Agency as presented.

Motion made by:

Matt Britton

Motion seconded by:

Lillyan Rodriguez

Voting:

Unanimously Approved

j. 2025-2026 Fees

Approve 2025-2026 fees as presented, including a $.30 increase for lunches and a $.20 cent increase for breakfast.

Motion made by:

Matt Britton

Motion seconded by:

  Lillyan Rodriguez

  Voting:

  Unanimously Approved

  k. Adult Meal Price

  The board approved setting adult meal prices at $5.00 for 2025-2026.

 Motion made by:

  Tammy Matthey

  Motion seconded by:

  Matt Britton

  Voting:

  Unanimously Approved

  l. SitelogIQ - Facility Update

  Ric D'Amica with SiteLogIQ presented the layout and the progress of the East Campus Athletic Complex.  He provided an updated timeline of when the fields and concession stand would be completed.  

9. Superintendent Report

  a. School Board Recognition

  May is National School Board Recognition month.  As part of School Board Recognition Month, we commend school board members for serving as a Guiding Light for Student Success. Thank you to the dedicated volunteers who serve on our local school board and help ensure smooth sailing for Iowa’s students! Please join us in saying thank you this month.

  b. District Social Media

Superintendent Janzen shared feedback regarding district social media use and the practices of other schools in Northwest Iowa.

  c. TAP Update

  Superintendent Janzen reported on the increased services offered to students eligible for the TAP program as a result of an additional staff member.

  For Oct 1, 2023-March 31,2024 one staff member provided 1035 services. 

For Oct 1, 2024-March 31,2025 two staff members provided 2655 services.

  d. 2025-2026 insurance update

  Superintendent Janzen reported on adjustments made to the replacement values of certain district property.

  e. District Resident Free/Reduced Percentage

  Superintendent Janzen reported on the free/reduced lunch percentage for district resident students.  The percentage is the highest the district has been at 36.2%.  The primary building is the highest building at 44.8%  The high school is the only building below 30% at 29.6%.  The increasing free/reduced percentage is a trend in the district, along with other demographic shifts.

  f. Career Academy

  Superintendent Janzen provided an update on the Career Academy planning with area schools. 

Programs and courses are being aligned with WIT.  Plans for a joint meeting with area schools are being developed.

  g. Board Meeting Dates for July & August 2025

  The regular July board meeting will be moved to July 10th.

  The regular August board meeting will be moved to August 14th due to a conflict with the SAI conference dates.

  h. Exempt Session to discuss non bargaining unit employee strategies, per Iowa Code 20.17(3), Negotiations Strategy Session.

  All visitors left the meeting.  The board and superintendent went into exempt session at 7:48 a.m.

  Motion made by:

  Tammy Matthey

  Motion seconded by:

  Voting:

  Matt Britton

  Unanimously Approved

  i. End Exempt Session to discuss non bargaining unit employee strategies, per Iowa Code 20.17(3), Negotiations Strategy Session.

  The exempt session ended at 9:00 a.m.

j. Approve non-certified contracts for 2025-2026

  Approve increase to the non-certified hourly schedule and a l other salaried non-certified staff as presented.

  Motion made by:

  Tammy Matthey

  Motion seconded by:

  Voting:

  Matt Britton

  Unanimously Approved

  k. Approve administrative contracts for 2025-2026

  Approve increase to the administrative contracts as presented.

  Motion made by:

  Tammy Matthey

  Motion seconded by:

  Matt Britton

  Voting:

  Unanimously Approved

  10. Adjourn

  Adjourn at 9:05 a.m.

  Motion seconded by:

  Matt Britton

  Voting:

  Unanimously Approved

  Board President

  Board Secretary