Brookings School District board approves bids, personnel renewals and election agreement; Cassie named liaison to legislative network

The Brookings School District 05‑1 board moved through a series of routine and formal actions at its January meeting, approving bids, personnel decisions and an intergovernmental election agreement.

The board authorized staff to advertise requests for proposals for the high‑school roof replacement, seeking pricing for a single section and a larger section. Stacy, a district staff member overseeing the facilities work, said the district will advertise the RFP in the newspaper for the required two‑week public notice period; bids are due Thursday, Jan. 19 at 2:00 p.m., with the board reviewing responses at its March meeting.

In a consent vote, the board approved the consent agenda items (9.1–9.7), which included minutes, the financial report, bills and the personnel report. The personnel report acknowledged the upcoming retirement of Middle School staff member Todd Foster.

The board accepted donations from Hy‑Vee, the VFW auxiliary, Jean and Gerald Moriarty and several local businesses to support early‑childhood family night, high‑school life skills, child‑wellness and disability‑awareness programming.

The board approved an agreement with Brookings County to share use of county voting equipment and outline cost‑sharing for elections. Board members discussed the state’s recently changed election calendar and said the district has opted to hold its elections in June to coincide with primary elections when possible; members noted this could increase district costs but put operational questions to the secretary of state for technical clarification.

Cassie was appointed as the district’s representative to the Associated School Boards of South Dakota Legislative Action Network and will relay legislative updates to the board.

The board voted to renew Zach Thomas from interim to high‑school principal for the 2026–27 school year following positive feedback from staff and community members. The board also voted to move into an executive session to discuss negotiations pursuant to South Dakota Codified Law 1‑25‑2(4); no action was scheduled after the closed session.

Votes at a glance (tallies not specified in the transcript):
- Approval of meeting agenda: approved (motion moved and seconded).
- Consent agenda (items 9.1–9.7): approved.
- Acceptance of donated items: approved.
- Declaration of surplus property: approved.
- Authorization to advertise bids for high‑school roof replacement: approved.
- Approval of election agreement with Brookings County: approved (vote tally not specified).
- Appointment of Cassie to ASBSD Legislative Action Network: approved by voice consent.
- Renewal of Zach Thomas as high‑school principal: approved.
- Motion to enter executive session (negotiations): approved.

The meeting included multiple committee and administrative reports and several policy first readings that the board will vote on next month. Specific vote tallies were not recorded in the public transcript for these motions.