The Mitchell School Board rejected a proposal by Superintendent Joe Childs to re-add synthetic turf to the MHS project scope as originally planned.
Childs told the board the addition would cost around $1.3-million dollars, however it would pressure the capital outlay and general fund budget reserves. “And we knew that would take reserves out of the capital outlay reserve,” said Childs. “We also know that due to the decrease in student enrollment, we’ve already seen some decrease to our general fund reserves. And so there was just some concern that we would be, you know, kind of stressing both of those reserves at the same time.”
Board president Brittni Flood pointed to other budget priorities. “$1.3-million is a lot in teacher salaries and a lot in, you know, those upcoming things and there’s always cost of, we have air conditioners, it seems like they go out every two months around here,” Flood pointed out.
The turf would be used at the site of the old high school mostly as practice fields.
The Board voted four to one against the plan.
In other business, the board recognized the student artists who earned blue ribbons at the South Dakota State Fair, held a lengthy discussion regarding three board policies and congratulated Hannah Wehlander as South Dakota Young Music Teacher of the Year.