The Little Panthers Preschool’s first day of classes will be next Thursday, Aug. 19. During Monday’s Great Bend USD 428 Board of Education meeting, the board learned that the preschool has received $40,000 from an anonymous donor, through the Golden Belt Community Foundation. This contribution is unrestricted for educational needs at the new preschool.

The funds from the GBCF will pass through the USD 428 Foundation.

Little Panthers Preschool is located at the First Congregational United Church of Christ, 3400 21st St. This was the location of Head Start in Great Bend until it closed in 2019. The school district leases the property from the church.

The district has spent the summer preparing for the new preschool and Superintendent Khris Thexton said the state fire marshal’s office has approved it for use.

This story has been updated to correct the opening date of the preschool is Aug. 19.

Thexton reviewed the proposed 2021-2022 budget and the board approved its publication in the Great Bend Tribune as a legal notice. The final budget will be approved at the Sept. 13 meeting after a Revenue Neutral Rate hearing and a public budget hearing.

It is estimated that the district will levy $6,347,035 in taxes and the tax rate will be 41.094 mills. Last year’s total USD 428 taxes levied were $6,281,231 and the tax rate was 41.544 mills. In 2019-2020 taxes levied were $6,448,166 and the tax rate was 41.459 mills.

The budget starts with 20 mills levied for the general fund, plus 14.594 mills for the supplemental general fund, also known as the local option budget. The 20 mills is a flat rate assessed statewide and does not change. It will raise $2,925,983. The LOB will raise $2,366,899 this year. Last year the LOB mill levy was 15.012 mills and the year before it was 13.905.

There is also a 6.5 mill levy for capital outlay, which should bring in $1,054,163. Last year’s capital outlay mill levy was 6.532 and the previous year’s was 7.554. 

The district has levied no taxes for debt service for the past three years.

The published budget will also include line items for other taxing entities in the school district. In Great Bend, that means the Great Bend Recreation Commission and the GBRC employee benefits funds. This is not money that goes to the school district, it is simply a budget printed on the same legal notification, Thexton said.

The GBRC proposed budget calls for a flat 7.0 mills, as it has for the past two years. This year, it’s estimated that will bring in $1,135,253 in taxes, compared to $1,255,793 in 2020 and $1,308,753 in 2019. The employee fund calls for a 1.750 mill levy ($283,735), compared to 1.50 in 2020 ($269,072) and in 2019 ($280,012).

Salaries

The budget review included some salary information. For 2021-2022, the district expects to pay:

• 20 administrators, average salary $110,262

• 262 full-time teachers, average salary $46,389

• 21 other certified (licensed) personnel, average salary $44,919

• 380 classified personnel, average salary $22,424

This does not include substitutes and temporary help.

Enrollment

The materials shared with the board also included some enrollment information. Full-time equivalent enrollment includes students in K-12 and 4-year-olds in preschool. FTE for previous years and the estimate for this year:

• 2017 - 2,858

• 2018 - 2,816

• 2019 - 2,861

• 2020 - 2,823

• 2021 - 2,905

The 2021-2022 estimate is that 1,590 children will be eligible for free meals and another 350 will be eligible for reduced-price meals.

Thexton also reported on enrollment at Monday’s board meeting. Total enrollment this week is 2,694 plus 105 preschoolers. Thexton said some families always wait until the last minute to enroll and he expected final enrollment will be 2,800 by the time school starts. The preschools (Riley School, Helping Hands and Little Panthers) are all full, with names on a waiting list.

Here’s a quick look at what the Great Bend USD 428 Board of Education did Monday.

• Reviewed the proposed 2021-2022 budget and approved its publication in the Great Bend Tribune as a legal notice. The final budget will be approved at the Sept. 13 meeting after a Revenue Neutral Rate hearing and a public budget hearing.

• Approved extending the contract with Adams Brown Strategic Allies and CPAs (formerly named Adams Brown Beran & Ball Chartered) for auditing services through 2023. The cost is not to exceed $23,250 for 2021, $23,950 for 2022 and $24,665 for 2023.

• Approved the annual interagency agreement with the Educational Services and Staff Development Association of Central Kansas. The Barton County Academy offered by ESSDACK allows adults to earn a Great Bend High School diploma.

• Discussed strategies in response to reducing the spread of COVID-19 and provided the administration with guidance that includes making masks optional for now. (See Masks Optional but Recommended for New Year.)

• Heard reports on professional development, the curriculum adoption focus for 2021-2022 and personnel from Director of Teaching and Learning Tricia Reiser and Assistant Superintendent John Popp.

• Heard a Superintendent’s Report from Khris Thexton. Topics included enrollment, summer project updates, summer lunch program numbers, and the Kansans Can Success Tour.

- Summer projects included refurbishing gym floors at Eisenhower and Park schools; pouring concrete on the west side of Great Bend Middle School; finishing a new handicap-accessible parking area at Cavanaugh Soccer Field and adding new flooring and carpeting in the building there; and adding rubber mulch at a playground. Work has been going on for the replacement of the boiler at the Panther Activity Center but the new boiler hasn’t arrived. It has been delayed by three weeks but they hope to have it installed by mid-September. Delivery of rooftop HVAC units that were ordered for buildings back in January has also been delayed so they won’t be installed until after school starts. They will have to work around times when children are in school.

- In July the Food Service Department provided, on average, 314 meal packets (each containing breakfast and lunch) per day, for a total of 6,800 meals.

– More than 70 people, mostly educators, attended the Kansans Can Success Tour on July 30. Kansas Commissioner of Education Dr. Randy Watson and Deputy Commissioner Dr. Brad Neuenswander stopped in Great Bend as part of a statewide tour.

• Approved contributions and grant applications, including a $40,000 contribution to Little Panthers Preschools from an anonymous donor. This contribution is unrestricted for educational needs at the new preschool.

Other items approved:

- Deena Smith, Jefferson second-grade teacher, has applied for and will accept a Reading Center Grant from Animal Medical Center for $750

- Patty Holaday, Eisenhower Special Education teacher, applied for and will accept a Calming Island Grant from Animal Medical Center for $500

- Strawbridge Studios gave incentive contributions of $66.44 to Eisenhower; $333.48 to Jefferson; $100.33 to Lincoln; $207.85 to Park; $1,193.98 to Riley; and $469.46 to Riley. The photography studio that does school photos provides these funds, which can be used for school rewards to students.

- The Kroger Rewards program contributed $265.23 to Riley and $397.42 to Lincoln school.