On Monday, June 19, the STC School Board settled into what turned out to be a very long meeting. Stretching from 5 p.m. to well beyond 8, the board tackled issues ranging from vacancies, a new safety app, and graduation requirements.

It was previously announced that longtime board member Penny Tyynismaa would be unable to fulfill the rest of her term due to moving out of district. To fill out the rest of her term until the incoming fall elections, members of the public were invited to come forward and enter a pool of candidates, one of which would be appointed to fill the vacancy left by Tyynismaa.

Two hopeful community members came forward in hopes to fill the seat. Megan Thiessen and Chris Gustafson came before the board and answered questions. Ultimately, Thiessen was appointed with all aye’s except for Beth Wiese. Thiessen will be sworn in at the next board meeting.

High school principal Robert Boley came before the board to continue an ongoing discussion on graduation requirements. Boley has highlighted how high numbers of early graduation can negatively impact the district and further academic opportunities might be a potential solution. Nothing was set in stone but ideas of a seven period school day, raising credit requirements, and additional course offerings were all potential solutions to the ongoing discussion.

The board then took part in a new safety app demonstration. The Safe Track is a mobile app designed to increase interschool communication in the unfortunate event of a school shooting. Multiple STC staff worked together in making the app a possibility, with the app being placed on the marketplace in the last week. The board will look at the app in the future as being a possible district wide tool in light of the unfortunate possibility of a school shooting.

At the end of the meeting, Superintendent Cain honored Tyynismaa for her time on the board. Cain presented a lifetime activities pass and a cake for her family. Members of the district administration office found some trivia questions about Tyynismaa’s time on the board, and those in attendance were treated to ice cream bars.