Bremen Public Schools is a step closer to issuing about $4 million in bonds for its upcoming renovation project. To do that, Superintendent Dr. Jim White says the school corporation is amending its existing lease with the building corporation. It’s a legally-separate entity that actually owns the building and borrows the money on behalf of the school corporation. “We had an existing loan out that falls off in 2022,” he explains, “so it was just as easy to amend that lease with the existing building corporation than to try to form something different.”
Drug Free Marshall County Awards Over $62,000 in Grant Funding to Local Schools, Law Enforcement & Treatment Providers
In an effort to combat drug and alcohol misuse, Drug Free Marshall County awarded more than $62,820 to area schools, criminal justice agencies and local treatment providers.
Drug Free Marshall County is a citizen board established in conjunction with the Governor’s Task Force on Enforcement, Treatment and Prevention. Funding is received through court-ordered fines from individuals who are convicted of drug and alcohol offenses in Marshall County. Continue reading
Marshall County Community Foundation Awards First Round of 2018 Grants
Second Row: R. T. Henke, Dr. Jim White, Jerry Chavez, Virginia Henke, Bruce Snyder, Matt Guard, Brian Pohl, Linda Rippy, Eric Anderson, Joan Hundt, Joe Stiles, Greg Giczi, Kathy Clark, Ted Hayden
The Marshall County Community Foundation announced grant winners for the first round of 2018 grants from the Community Fund and the Ralph C. Vonnegut, Jr. Fund on Wednesday afternoon.
Jeanette Rarick Memorial Scholarship Open To Bremen Students Seeking Various Post-Secondary Options
Bremen students are being encouraged to apply for the Jeanette Rarick Memorial Scholarship before the deadline of Friday, April 13th.
According to Marshall County Community Foundation representatives, Jeannette Rarick spent about three decades working with Bremen students and will be remembered most for tutoring math. After she passed away from cancer last May, her husband, Max Rarick, worked to create this scholarship fund to honor her teaching legacy. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Approves Wage Increases for Classified Staff
A raise for classified staff at Bremen Public Schools was approved during the school board meeting last Monday.
Classified employees include any position at the school corporation other than teachers and administration such as cafeteria, transportation, maintenance and custodial staff.
School Board President Brian Teall explained that the increased wages for classified staff were approved in coordination with the raises that were included in the master contract for teachers. Teall said a raise of approximately 2.4 percent was approved for teachers a couple of months ago, but some issues at the state level postponed the payments. Continue reading
Bremen Public Schools to Work with Boys and Girls Club to Expand Summer School Program Thanks to IDOE Grant
Officials at Bremen Public Schools will be collaborating with the local Boys and Girls Club to provide more summer school services after the school was recently awarded a grant through the Indiana Department of Education’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers program.
According to school board president Brian Teall, the school was awarded $120,000 for the next four years, meaning that they’ll receive a total of $480,000.
Bremen Schools will have a contract with the Boys and Girls Club in order to expand the summer school program to give students an opportunity to get caught up before the start of the school year. Continue reading
Audit Update Provided at Bremen School Board Meeting
Bremen School Board members received an update about the 2014-2016 audit during their meeting on Monday.
Superintendent Dr. Jim White explained that audits are a pretty standard procedure that all schools must go through on a semi-regular basis. He told board members that the school was found to be in compliance but there were some suggestions that were made about internal controls. The superintendent mentioned that he’s noticed that other schools in the area are commonly cited for the same matter. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Adopts Bond Resolution
Bremen Public Schools will be undergoing some renovations over the next few years, now that school board members have officially adopted a resolution to have a bond of approximately $4 million issued to pay for the proposed work.
According to School Board President Brian Teall, a 1028 Hearing was held over the bond resolution during their Monday night meeting and it was adopted by a vote of 4-1.
Dr. White said with the board members’ approval, he will now be coordinating with the building corporation about bond issuance procedures over the next few weeks. The superintendent explained that schools are not legally permitted to directly borrow money so they utilize a building corporation as a pass-through entity. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Approves Bond Pursuance, Addresses Community Safety Concerns
Bremen School Board members voted to proceed with securing bonds for facility upgrades at their most recent meeting.
Superintendent Dr. Jim White explained that they are looking to make a few different improvements and school board members took the next big step in the process last Monday by agreeing to obtain the necessary bonds to tackle the proposed projects. Continue reading
Bremen Superintendent Works with NEOLA to Update School Policies
Bremen Superintendent Dr. Jim White alerted school board members last Tuesday that updates to the school corporation’s policies are currently being made.
He explained, “For years and years and years we have written our own policies and the result of that is, over time as the more laws are passed and more complex things are, the further behind we became.” Continue reading
Over 260 lbs of Food Donations Collected Through Bremen Public Schools’ Open Gym Program
When Bremen School Board members met Monday, Superintendent Dr. Jim White provided an update about the open gym program that has been held at Bremen High School since January.
A unique aspect of Bremen’s open gym program is that community members are asked to bring along a food donation as an “entry fee” Dr. White said that to date, they’ve donated about 263 lbs of food to the local food pantry. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Adopts Uncharted Learning Entrepreneurship Program
The Bremen School Board approved the adoption of the Uncharted Learning Entrepreneurship Program when they met on Monday. Superintendent Jim White said program development is still ongoing. However, they plan to offer it at various different grade levels.
He explained, “That is an entrepreneurial program for what probably is going to be fourth or fifth graders, one of those two and then either seventh or eighth graders and then in our high school.” Continue reading
Bremen School Board Approves 2018-2019 Calendar
When Bremen School Board members met on Monday, they approved a calendar for the 2018-2019 school year.
Superintendent Dr. Jim White explained that he provided the members with three options and they selected the option most similar to this year’s school calendar.
Dr. White said they will be starting a little sooner than some other local school corporations and shared some of the factors that influenced the decision to begin earlier. Continue reading
Bremen Superintendent Holds Work Session to Discuss Building Improvements
Bremen Superintendent Dr. Jim White held a special work session on Monday to discuss potential building improvements with school board members.
During their January meeting, Dr. White suggested looking into the possibility of taking out a bond in order to make some renovations to the school buildings.
Superintendent White called the work session because he said he wants members to have ample time to consider the option, with some of the proposed projects in mind, before they vote on whether or not to move forward with the bond during their next meeting. Continue reading
Bremen Public Schools Receive Funds to Invest in Community Learning Centers
The Bremen Public School Corporation was recently awarded $120,000 through the Indiana Department of Education’s 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program.
The federally-funded program provides at-risk students a safe environment during non-school hours. This program includes multiple centers and sites which can be located in schools, community facilities, or faith-based facilities.
All centers much provide a range of high-quality services to support regular school-day academics and development. Continue reading
Bremen Public Schools Open Doors to Residents for Weekend Recreation
Bremen Schools have opened up facilities at the High School to community members during the months of January, February and March.
Superintendent Dr. Jim White stated that two gyms and the weight room are open from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. every Sunday.
Superintendent White said, “Any residents that want to come by and play basketball or learn the sport of pickleball or do weight lifting, feel free to come by and we’re taking food donations for the local food pantry as an entry fee.” Continue reading
New Contracts for Coaches and Club Sponsors Approved at Bremen School Board Meeting
The Bremen Public School board members established club sponsors and coaches when they met last Monday.
As a part of the personnel portion of their meeting, board members approved new contracts with Jessica Klingerman and Tara Ton, who will serve as National Honor Society Co-Sponsors and Sabrina Wickens, who will be the sponsor of the Robotics Club and Coding Club. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Reorganizes at First Meeting of 2018
Some changes were made to the officer positions of the Bremen School Board during their meeting earlier this week. According to Bremen Superintendent Dr. Jim White, Brian Teall was elected to the president’s position and Suzanne Ginter was elected to serve as vice president.
The secretary position, on the other hand, was unchanged with Jesse Bohannon retaining that spot. Continue reading
Bremen Superintendent Presents Bond Proposal to School Board for Consideration
When the Bremen School Board met for the first time this year, Superintendent Jim White presented members with some information about acquiring a bond in order to make some capital improvements around the building.
During Monday night’s meeting, Dr. White suggested that the school look into utilizing a solar generation system as a way to help defer energy costs over the next 25 to 30 years. Continue reading
Bremen School Board Reviews New Attendance Policy
When Bremen School Board members met last Monday, they reviewed the new attendance policy that was implemented at the start of this school year.
The biggest difference between this year’s policy and the policy of the past is that when parents call to notify the school that their child is staying home, those absences are no longer counted as excused.
Bremen Superintendent Dr. Jim White said the policy also includes specifications about what to do when the school receives no notification whatsoever. Continue reading
