By JARED HENDERSON
MEEKER | The Meeker School Board held its regular meeting earlier this week, all of the board members were present. Middle School Principal Katie Johnston and Elementary School Principal Michele Cheesman attended, while High School Principal Amy Chinn was absent.
The meeting began with district celebrations. Each year, the Colorado Department of Education rates school districts based on their performance framework. This year, the Meeker School District earned 79 out of 100 points, placing it among 17 of the 184 rated districts in the state. Superintendent Chris Selle emphasized the significance of this achievement.
“We were number five, which puts our school district in the top 3% of all school districts in Colorado for academic achievement. It’s a phenomenal accomplishment; we’ve been accredited with distinction eight out of the last nine years,” Selle said.
“This is the highest we’ve ever scored in terms of ranking relative to other school districts, which is a testament to the hard work of our teachers and the dedication of our students,” he added.
Selle also highlighted a student project involving the building trades class, which is constructing tiny homes in partnership with the Colorado River BOCES, which supplies materials. Once completed, the district can sell these homes.
“The school district has the first right of refusal. If we don’t want to purchase them, we can sell them in the community, or they go back to the Colorado River BOCES for resale,” Selle stated.
Next, the board recognized fifth-grade teacher Megan Shelton, who recently received her initial teaching license.
During the public comment period, three community members voiced concerns about some new school district rules, including the eight voluntary out-of-practice regulations that govern how much contact coaches can have with athletes outside scheduled practices. These rules were agreed upon by all high school varsity coaches last spring.
Newly hired head baseball coach James Romansky expressed concerns about the impact of these rules on specialized athletes. “I am concerned that athletes who choose specialization will be negatively impacted and may ultimately leave our community for training elsewhere,” Romansky said. He noted his experience coaching athletes from various local schools, including Moffat County, Hayden and Meeker baseball athletes.
“I’ve had a personal hand in training nearly three-quarters of the current Meeker program and many more that are freshly graduated,” Romansky said.
“Moffat last year would have not fielded a baseball program. Kids who had never played baseball came out in the off season for voluntary practices to meet the staff and get better early on, open and voluntary offseason opportunities saved that program,” Romansky continued.
Lindsay Romansky, the athletic trainer for the high school and middle school, echoed these concerns. “The current ruling preventing head coaches from participating in clubs outside of contracted hours is not correct,” she said. She highlighted the low percentage of high school athletes who advance to college sports and the importance of local training opportunities.
“Less than 6% of high school athletes make it to college essentially one in 57 athletes will make it to college and or want to make it to college so out of that one or two athletes not playing multiple sports is not going to break the system,” Lindsay said.
“Most importantly, in the human condition, ‘where there’s a will, there’s a way.’ Most athletes that want to specialize will find a way. They will travel to Grand Junction, away from our community and away from our private businesses that would prefer to help Meeker rather than push business to Grand Junction,” continued Lindsay.
Parent Ty Gates also raised issues regarding the rules, stressing the need for clarity between Colorado High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) regulations and school district policies. “As constituents, students, and parents deserve to know the difference between CHSAA rules and school district rules,” Gates said. He emphasized the importance of keeping business within the community and the negative impact of the current rules on local youth.
“On the heels of what Lindsay said, we preach over and over at the county level, we’re trying to keep business in Meeker, I’ve had a lot of conversations with a lot of you about that so why are we trying to kill a private business it’s not only hurting the business, it’s hurting our town, it’s hurting our tax base, and most importantly, it’s hurting our youth,” Gates said.
After the public comments, the School Board discussed various guidelines, and reports indicated no major issues. The next Meeker School Board meeting is scheduled for Oct. 14 at the district office.
