On Monday, Sept. 27, the USD 489 School Board met at Toepfer Board Room for a meeting lasting an hour and a half, passing 11 motions.

Board members in attendance included Board President Tammy Wellbrock and Vice President Craig Pallister, as well as Lori Hertel, Allen Park and Mike Walker. Lance Bickle was absent from this meeting.

Among the more notable happenings of the evening was the acceptance of a grant totaling $387,045 for “additional testing and needed supplies and equipment to provide another layer of prevention to protect students, teachers, and staff and slow the spread of COVID-19.”

Also, superintendent Ron Wilson announced that a job has been posted for a Technical Assistant in the district.

“We are just low on tech assistance,” Wilson said.

Wilson continued by explaining the significance of the role, which includes closing tech tickets.

A bid by Paul Wertenberger Construction was approved for the replacement of windows at O’Loughlin and Wilson elementary schools, as well as at the Rockwell Center.

Towards the end of the meeting, the board voted to appoint the recipient of the most votes in the election this November to the empty seat on the board after holding interviews for several candidates. The recipients of these interviews included Cathy Hopkins, Chris McGowne, Curt Vajnar and Meagan Zampieri-Lillpopp.

At 8:07 p.m., the board motioned to dismiss and concluded their meeting. The board’s next meeting will be a work study session on Oct. 12 at Wilson Elementary School.