Board Meeting Recaps

The course, additions, deletions and revisions for the 2025-26 school year were approved by the Neenah Joint School District Board of Education at its meeting on November 4. The Board also reviewed the district’s communication plan and received an on-track data review.

The course deletions, additions and revisions for 2026-27 impact the middle and high schools. The middle school revisions focus on art and technology education to enhance relevance and rigor. The high school changes reflect curriculum modernization, dual credit alignment and evolving student needs, primarily in math, social studies and physical education. 

The communication plan was originally approved in 2024. The main focus areas of the plan were the creation of a new website, more consistent messaging platforms with a district app and consistent school newsletters. The website launched in July and the messaging platform will be in place by late December. Some schools will pilot a consistent newsletter this spring with full implementation targeted for the 2025-26 school year. The district will also hold community meetings this spring to gain feedback on these initiatives.

The on-track data review focused on district performance data aligned to the District Plan for Success. For 2024-25, the district earned an Exceeds Expectations rating on the state report card, with an overall accountability score of 72.8. Among the district's 10 schools, four were rated Significantly Exceeds Expectations, four Exceeds Expectations and and two Meets Expectations.

The presentation highlighted key findings from the report card data, examined data connected to the Plan for Success focus areas, and concluded with several action steps designed to strengthen instructional alignment and support ongoing improvement efforts. These include a 5K–6 ELA program evaluation, building staff capacity in essential ELA standards, strengthening principal leadership in early literacy, and implementing a multi-year professional development plan. 

The Board asked several questions related to the growth figure being lower than the previous year. It was noted that the district has put an emphasis on improving this score and that the school report card is one small measure of a district’s success that often gets more emphasis than others.

Several Board policies were adopted in a variety of areas. Policies included incapacity of the District Administrator, employment and benefits for professional and support staff, leaves of absence, job descriptions, ethics and evaluation of support staff, grievance procedures, at-risk students and the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The Board was informed of the hire of Amy Jorgensen as a health assistant at Spring Road and Coolidge.

The next meeting is set for December 2 at 6 p.m.

The 2026 health insurance plan and an update to the 2026-27 school calendar were approved by the Neenah Joint School District Board of Education at its meeting on November 4.

The district will remain with Network Health for health insurance during the 2026 calendar year. The renewal includes a 5.5 percent increase, which is lower than the 10 percent increase that was previously anticipated by the carrier. The proposal includes no changes to the plan design. The District will maintain four health plan options, with HSA contributions remaining unchanged.

Additionally, the plan provides the continuation of contracted services with the District’s current carriers for voluntary vision, dental, life insurance and short and long-term disability. The only notable change will be a premium increase of 9 percent for voluntary short-term disability with Reliance Matrix. The District will continue to provide paid critical illness, accidental and hospital indemnity insurance. The 2026 plan also provides an optional pet insurance benefit for the first time.

An error was recently discovered on the previously approved 2026-27 calendar. The number of instructional days in December was listed as 15 on the calendar, but there were actually only 13 days. The district will have school on December 21 and 22, 2026 to ensure it meets the Department of Public Instruction required minutes. Adding the two instructional days put the certified staff one day over its 190 contractual days, so certified staff members will not be required to work on August 28, 2026.

Requests for the Start College Now/Early College Credit Program were approved. The program allows students in grades 11 and 12 to take courses at institutions of higher learning at district expense to a maximum of 18 post-secondary credits. Additionally, teaching hires of Emily Ross at Taft and Kristin Russell (Woelfel) at the middle school were approved along with the resignation of Taft teacher Sydney Namoff, effective November 21. The Board was informed of educational assistant hires for Nolan Schimel at the middle school and Tabitha Prochaska at Tullar.

In other items, the Board reviewed the course deletions, additions and revisions for 2026-27. The middle school revisions focus on art and technology education to enhance relevance and rigor. The high school changes reflect curriculum modernization, dual credit alignment and evolving student needs, primarily in math, social studies and physical education. The Board will vote on the proposal at its next meeting on November 18.

High school teachers Ryan Walter and Nathaniel Blood provided information about a prairie restoration project taking place on the high school grounds. The group has partnered with Merjent Inc. and decided on a multi-year plan to restore nearly 107 acres of land to its natural prairie state. This month, Merjent, along with high school students, will be planting seed that covers approximately 10 acres near the outdoor classroom.

The 2025 summer school program was reviewed and showed significant increases in enrollment, including a 58 percent increase at the middle school level. Middle school students  had access to 49 different courses offered across two three-week sessions in June and July. The elementary academy program had 56 percent participation, which was an increase from 37 percent the previous year.

The Board honored the members of the girls cross country team on winning their second consecutive state championship last weekend. 

A proposed 2026 health insurance plan and an update to the Neenah Joint School District attendance and truancy plan consumed the majority of the Board of Education meeting on October 21.

The health insurance proposes the district remains with Network Health for the 2026 calendar year, with a renewal that includes a 5.5 percent increase, which is lower than the 10 percent increase that was previously anticipated by the carrier. The proposal includes no changes to the plan design. The District will maintain four health plan options, with HSA contributions remaining unchanged.

Additionally, the plan provides the continuation of contracted services with the District’s current carriers for voluntary vision, dental, life insurance and short and long-term disability. The only notable change will be a premium increase of 9 percent for voluntary short-term disability with Reliance Matrix. The District will continue to provide paid critical illness, accidental and hospital indemnity insurance. The 2026 plan also provides an optional pet insurance benefit for the first time.

The district’s current attendance and truancy plan was last comprehensively updated in 2016. In alignment with the new strategic plan, the district has a specific focus on reducing student absenteeism by 10 percent by July 2028. The district will be consulting with other key community stakeholders who play vital roles in supporting students with attendance challenges to develop an updated plan for consideration in the spring of 2026.

The Board was informed of the seclusion and restraint data for 2024-25 and noted that seclusions saw an increase from 24 to 43 from the previous year, while restraints were down from 44 to 27 over the past year. Overall, the number of restraints has decreased over the past five years.

In action items, the Board approved policies for ethics, board conduct and meetings. Alliyah Pillath was approved as a teacher at Taft. An end-of-school year retirement was approved for middle school teacher Andy Braunel and a resignation was approved for high school teacher Jennifer Redling, effective January 23. The Board was also informed of hires for Andrea Moore as a middle school attendance clerk and Pamela Less as a middle school educational assistant.

The annual district budget hearing is scheduled for October 28 at 6 p.m. The next regular Board meeting is scheduled for November 4 at 6 p.m.

An update to the Neenah Joint School District Plan for Success was approved along with the district’s at-risk plan for the 2025-26 school year by the Board of Education at its October 7 meeting.

Recognizing that a successful strategic plan must evolve alongside the needs of students, staff, families and the broader community, the district launched a process during the 2024-25 school year to update and strengthen the Plan for Success. The goal was to ensure the plan not only reflects the district’s ongoing priorities but also incorporates the voices and perspectives of a broader range of stakeholders through staff and community feedback meetings. The Board reviewed the plan at its two September meetings.

The at-risk plan is an annual update on how to address students at risk of not graduating from high school. Over the past year, a visioning team of K-12 educators and administrators met regularly to examine and refine the district’s approach to supporting at-risk students. The process prioritizes a sense of belonging and purpose as a key driver of student success.

The Board has been working on ways to strengthen communication, enhance the effectiveness of Board meetings and foster greater collaboration among members. As part of this effort, the Board reviewed policies related to Board member ethics, behavior, communication, code of conduct and meetings. These will be voted upon at the next meeting on October 21.

Resignations for Assistant District Administrator for Human Resources Dr. Mike Cyrus and Spring Road teacher Billie Munoz were approved. The Board was also informed of resignations of Sara Verhage and Jill Taylor at the middle school and Chelsie Makus and Kyle Kangas at Spring Road. Educational assistant hires presented to the Board included Claire Robertson at the high school and Brooklyn Komorowski at Tullar.

During the superintendent’s report, Washington School of Early Learning administrative assistant Britney Stobbe was honored by the Neenah Police Department and Neenah-Menasha Fire and Rescue for her life-saving efforts in assisting a student who suffered an allergic reaction from a bee sting.

September 16, 2025

A set of Board of Education collective commitments were approved and three aspects of the Neenah Joint School District’s Plan for Success were reviewed at the September 16 Board of Education meeting.

The collective commitments were recently updated following the Board retreat. The commitments represent decorum and operations for Board meetings.

The Plan for Success focused on the areas of well-being and responsibility as well as student success. Several Board members discussed the importance of feeling safe for the students’ and staff well-being and how to address this in the annual survey. The student success focuses on the district’s literacy rate, graduation rate and attendance rate. Some Board members discussed the importance of students being in school and how to address chronic absenteeism.

There were no hires, resignations or policies for approval at the meeting.

The next meeting is set for October 7 at 6 p.m.

September 2, 2025

A revised District Plan for Success was reviewed by the Neenah Joint School District Board of Education at its September 2 meeting. The Board also approved several Wisconsin Association of School Board sponsored resolutions.

The revised draft of the Plan for Success includes updated key metrics, action steps and progress monitoring procedures designed to bring greater clarity, accountability and transparency to the plan’s implementation. The revision was sparked by feedback from community and staff listening sessions with superintendent Dr. Steve Harrison. The Board reviewed the engagement and collaboration sections at the meeting and will look at well-being, responsibility and growth for all at its next meeting.

The resolutions included single stream funding, fine arts education, support beyond punitive discipline, vocational transition for students with disabilities, substance use disorder and treatment categorical aid, the federal education funding distribution amendment and the limitations on school district referenda amendment. These are stances being taken by WASB to influence the state legislature on issues facing education that are supported by the NJSD Board.

In other action, teaching hires were approved for Matt Elbe, Matt Zodrow and Angela Boivin at the high school. A resignation was approved for Naomi Lueddecke at Taft. Non-certified staff hires included Jill Taylor and Jessica Klauck as middle school attendance clerks and Rachel Fisher as an educational assistant at Washington. A resignation was accepted from Cynthia Pleshek at Tullar. Board policies were adopted for meeting procedures and employee leave and sick leave. 

The Board also reviewed a draft of collective commitments that was recently updated following the Board retreat. The commitments represent decorum and operations for Board meetings.

The Board welcomed Dominic Conroy as a new student representative to the Board.

July 22, 2025

The Neenah Joint School District Health and Wellness Center will transition its provider from Prevea to ThedaCare following action by the Board of Education at its July 23 meeting. The Board also heard reports regarding the 2024-25 parent and staff surveys and a proposal to begin exploring a full day option for four-year-old kindergarten.

The transition of the Health and Wellness Center from Prevea to ThedaCare begins January 1, 2026. Prevea informed the district it intended to more than double its rates and discontinue $0 claim submissions to insurance, prompting the change. The transition to ThedaCare is expected to result in minimal change for employees and offer a provider that most employees already use for primary coverage. The clinic will remain in the former Shattuck Middle School building and the rate for employees, their family members and retirees is expected to remain at $25 per visit.

Bill Foster, CEO of School Perceptions, which administered the parent and staff surveys last April, provided an overview of the responses. The district used a new format for this year, so comparison data to previous years was not available for most of the questions. The parent survey had an 11 percent response rate, which prompted Board members to ask ways to increase the responses for next year. Dr. Harrison noted that the district will share the data with school principals and inform the staff and public how the data is being used in decision-making over the next year.

The district is in the early planning stages to assess the feasibility and operational considerations of expanding our current 4K offerings. This includes evaluating staffing, facilities, scheduling, curriculum and potential impact on enrollment and transportation. A survey will be provided to families with children aged birth to three to gather feedback. Some Board members expressed concerns over increased costs, while others noted that any costs could be offset by increased revenue from additional enrollment and fewer families enrolling in private or other 4K options.

The Board also reviewed a crime statistics report from Neenah High School that is now required for the state report card. Some Board members noted that considering the number of students at the school and the number of instructional days, the total number of incidents was relatively low. It also represented fewer than 2 percent of the school’s student enrollment.

The Board made annual approvals of an independent hearing officer, legal services contracts, final 2024-25 budget amendments and 2025-26 academic standards.

In other action, teaching hires were approved for Brenna Ziegert at Taft, Brynn Herrera at Horace Mann, Kirstin Thompson and the middle and high school, Artina Vite at Lakeview, April Travis at Taft and Clayton and Dawn Welling at the high school. Devon Dictus was hired as a school nurse and Katy Kolgen was approved as an occupational therapy assistant. Non-certified staff hires included Dave Koeller as a high school custodian, Adam Liptow as a high school help desk technician and Kelly Backhaus as a health assistant. 

Teaching resignations included Kaelyn Altmann at Lakeview and Keegan DeBoer and Kayln Scaletty at the middle school. Rachel Schley resigned as District education access instructional coach. Thad Krause resigned as systems operations manager and Sarah Reynolds resigned as an educational assistant at Coolidge. Rachelle Gutschow was non-renewed as the middle school health assistant.

The Board also recognized students who won the recent New York Times student podcast contest, along with high school teachers Jennifer Cormier and Amanda Devries.

The next Board meeting on August 5 has been cancelled. The next meeting is set for August 19 at 6 p.m.