At Monday’s school board meeting, progress was made in the search for a buyer of the old middle school, Superintendent John Cain announced to the board.

“I believe we’ve got a bid, that we’ll talk about a little bit later,” he said, alluding to the closed session following the regular session to discuss the potential sale of property.

“We’ve been working with this individual actually for quite some time. So we’ll see what the bid has to offer, but I have put them in touch with the City of Toledo, and I know he’s been in contact with city leaders in Toledo. I also put him in contact with the Tama County economic developer,” he said. “I know this individual has a lot of experience in rehabbing old schools and old buildings and turning them into apartment style complexes. I know he’s got a pretty well laid out plan or portfolio to share his experience.”

It was also shared that Megan Thiessen has made the decision to step away from the school board effective July, 1. Her resignation will open up the Board Director 3 position to be filled later in the year.

The class of 2026 was approved by the school board as having 109 graduates for Sunday’s commencement activities and all have met the requirements of a high school diploma.

Dixie Forcht presented to the board about the accomplishments of STC’s Thespian troupe. Forcht listed numerous scholarships that have been claimed by members, as well as other successes.

Activities Director Chelsea Ahrens presented a proposal to add a full-time athletic trainer position for STC, noting the district has operated without a trainer since early 2021. Ahrens said the district has relied on nurses, coaches and volunteers to fill the gap after outside providers stopped offering contracted services due to staffing shortages. Under the proposal, the trainer would serve students in grades 7-12 by covering practices and home events, managing concussion and return-to-learn protocols, conducting wrestler body composition testing, assisting with injury prevention and treatment, and helping oversee medical and safety procedures for athletics.

Ahrens said seven WaMaC Conference schools already employ full-time trainers and eleven of twelve schools have a contract for athletic training coverage. Also noted that the position would improve athlete performance while also easing responsibilities currently placed on coaches and nursing staff. The proposal will return to the board soon for potential action.

During board shoutouts at the end of the meeting, Board President Elizabeth Dolezal highlighted teachers.

“I think this has been a year for the books. We’ve made lots of positive progress on district goals and our unity towards those goals. I think we’re seeing those things ripple across the district in really positive ways. We appreciate the extra time and effort,” she said.

The board’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, May 26 to accommodate Memorial Day.