New Culver School Superintendent May Be Announced Nov. 25

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Corporation is continuing in their effort to hire a new superintendent for the school to replace current Superintendent Brad Schuldt who has announced he will be leaving the corporation at the end of the year. Board President Ryan Sieber explained that the board has gone through the application and interview processes, and on Nov. 18 at 6:30 p.m. ET, the board will hold a public input meeting regarding the contract that has been offered and publicized.

Sieber explained that after the input has been taken, the board will look to vote on the contract on Nov. 25 at their regularly scheduled meeting, and he said it’s likely that the new superintendent’s name will be announced at that time.

While there are no glaring differences in the contract for Schuldt and the new contract, Sieber said there are a few changes necessary to get the contract up-to-date. Schuldt’s contract, Sieber explained, included a grandfathered deal regarding annuities, and this new contract scratches that.

Sieber said the board feels very fortunate with the quality of the applicants that came forth, and they have narrowed it down to three possibilities.

The new superintendent would take over the position on Jan. 2.

Culver Schools Report Positive ISTEP+ Results

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Corporation reports continue growth in their ISTEP+ results, according to Superintendent Brad Schuldt, who explained the corporation reported the highest scores they’ve ever had in combined English/Language Arts and Math scores. In addition, the number of kids passing the test at the elementary school is the highest its been as well, with the highest percentage they’ve had at the high school passing the end-of-course assessments as well.

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Hiring of New Superintendent at Culver Community Continues

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Efforts to get a new superintendent hired at Culver Community School Corporation are still ongoing, and according to soon-to-retire Superintendent Brad Schuldt, a meeting was held last Tuesday with Administrative Assistants, a company hired to conduct the search for his replacement. He said the company will lead the board in the search and interview processes at a cost of $6000, and Schuldt explained the board held an initial meeting with the company on Aug. 27.

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Culver Schools Superintendent Retiring; Board Hires Company to Find Replacement

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Following Culver Community Schools Superintendent Brad Schuldt’s announcement that he will be leaving the corporation at the end of December, the school board this week passed a motion to hire Administrative Assistants, a company out of Central Indiana, to conduct the search for his replacement. The company will lead the board in the search and interview processes at a cost of $6000, and Schuldt explained the board has an initial meeting with the company on Aug. 27.

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Culver Superintendent to Retire at End of December

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
The Culver Community School Corporation will soon begin the hunt for a new superintendent as the current superintendent, Brad Schuldt, announced that he will be retiring at the end of December. Schuldt and School Board President Ryan Sieber recently discussed what tasks need to be done to replace Schuldt and the pair explained new state laws regarding approval of a superintendent’s contract.

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Culver Elementary School to Begin HVAC Project June 1

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Corporation is preparing for summer break which kicks off on May 30 but the corporation still has some work to do over the summer while the students enjoy their time away from school. Superintendent Brad Schuldt said the school board approved three resolutions at their meeting Monday night, beginning the process of selling bonds to finance a project at Culver Elementary School.

Schuldt said the corporation is looking to improve every single classroom in the building by providing better temperature control and indoor air quality through the heating, air conditioning, and ventilation system. Schuldt said the project is expected to start as soon as the school year comes to a close, with the work to be wrapped up before the beginning of the next school year.

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Culver School Board Approves Cut of Five Teachers

Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt
The Culver Community School Board at their meeting Monday night began the process of reducing force at their corporation – essentially cutting down on the number of employees. The board unanimously adopted a resolution to cut five teachers at the end of this school year, but Superintendent Brad Schuldt said the board has not yet decided which five staff members will be let go.

Schuldt said the resolution merely confirms that the corporation will perform a reduction in force by five teachers, but no specifics have been decided – that is, the board has not made a decision as to who will be cut nor what buildings will be affected. He said the board will know by their meeting in mid-June which teachers’ contracts will be canceled by the board.

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Culver School Board Approves Pension Bond Refinancing

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Board this week approved a motion to refinance the corporation’s pension bonds. Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained that the corporation had borrowed money many years back to establish a fund to pay off the retirement obligations of the corporation and have been making payments on that loan.

Now, however, Schuldt explained the corporation decided to refinance those bonds because of low interest rates. He said refinancing the bonds now would ultimately save the corporation more money.

The board approved a motion to refinance the bond – the total amount of which, Schuldt said, came to roughly $2.6 million.

Culver School Board Listening to Ideas for Monterey School Building

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
The Culver Community School Board this week met with individuals from the Monterey Christian Academy, which Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained is a group of people interested in using the old Monterey Elementary School building to house a Christian school. Schuldt said two school board members and the high school principal had previously met with the Monterey Christian Academy members and returned to update the rest of the board on what was going on.

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Culver Elementary School to Undergo $1.6M HVAC Project

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver School Board appointed two people to sit on the Wage Determination Committee, which Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained will meet in the Marshall County Courthouse to establish the prevailing wage for an upcoming elementary school project.

Schuldt said the corporation will soon be renovating the heating, ventilating, and air conditioning system at the elementary school. Schuldt said he and Francis Ellert will serve on the committee, and the project is expected to start as soon as the school year comes to a close, with the work to be wrapped up before the beginning of the next school year.

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Culver School Board Approves Purchase of Two Buses

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
The Culver Community School Board, in accordance with their 12-year rotation schedule, have accepted a bid from Midwest Transit to purchase two typical route school buses.

The Culver Community School Board gave their approval two weeks ago for the school to advertise for the purchase of two new school buses. Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained that this process is generally taken care of in the spring to allow the school to purchase two new buses over the summer.

Schuldt said the state currently has Culver schools on a 12-year service cycle for buses, allowing the school to purchase new buses to replace those that are 12 years old. Schuldt said that unless some catastrophic failure occurs, the buses are traded in after 12 years for credit on a new school bus, preventing the school from getting stuck with a massive unexpected bill for emergency repairs on several buses.

Culver Community Schools Looking to Buy Two Buses

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt
The Culver Community School Board this week gave their approval for the school to advertise for the purchase of two new school buses as part of their routine bus rotation schedule. Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained that this process is generally taken care of in the spring to allow the school to purchase two new buses over the summer.

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Culver School Board Soon to Make Staffing Cuts

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver School Board this week went through some tough discussion regarding reductions in force for the end of this year, which Superintendent Brad Schuldt described as a necessity due to funding cuts from the state. Schuldt explained that over the course of time since 2010, $1.7 million has been trimmed back from their General Fund due to cuts from the state and as a result, the board will have to make some staff reductions.

Treasurer Tom Bendy presented financial information to the board that highlighted the cuts and emphasized the need to cut back on spending. As a result, the board began to work on establishing financial goals and how many expenses would have to be reduced; however, Schuldt explained the board did not discuss any details regarding individual buildings or possible positions to be cut.

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Culver School Board Approves Expenditure Goals for 2013

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver School Board this week approved their expenditure goals percentages for 2013. The board approved 55 percent toward academic achievement expenditures, 20 percent toward instructional support expenditures, 20 percent toward overhead and operational expenditures, and the remaining 5 percent to go toward non-operating expenditures.

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Schools Around The Area Refresh Students On Lockdown Procedures

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

As the nation recovers from the unbelievable tragedy that rocked the town of Newtown, Conn., schools around our area have been taking extra precautions and conducting drills to ensure they know how to respond if the unthinkable were to occur.

At Culver Community Schools, students at the elementary school coincidentally conducted a lockdown drill the day before the Newtown tragedy occurred. After the tragedy, Superintendent Brad Schuldt said the middle school and high school conducted their lockdown drills, which is something the schools do annually.

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Culver School Board Re-appoints Brown to Library Board

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Board at their meeting last week appointed a member to the Monterey-Tippecanoe Public Library Board.

Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained that the school corporation is required to make an appointment for the Monterey Library as the appointing board for certain positions on public libraries within the district. They decided to re-appoint Melvin Brown, a man who has been on the library board for a considerable amount of time.

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Culver School Superintendent Responds to State-Issued Grades

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

With the recent release of state-issued grades for schools, corporations throughout Indiana now have an idea of what they need to work on to improve their scores. The Culver Community School Corporation is no different, having run the gauntlet on grades. The elementary school received an A, the middle school a D, and the high school returned with a C.

Superintendent Brad Schuldt said that these building grades highlight a number of issues that they need to take handle, and they’re already working on improvements.

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Culver Schools Adopt RISE Evaluation Model

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Board at their meeting this week heard a presentation from High School Dean of Students Brett Berndt and Elementary Principal Chuck Kitchell regarding the adoption of the RISE evaluation model. Superintendent Brad Schuldt explained that the board decided to formally approve the use of RISE to comply with state laws passed last year regarding teacher evaluations.

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Culver School Board Updates Policies to Comply With State

Culver Community School Superintendent, Brad Schuldt

The Culver Community School Board made a number of changes to its board policies with the help of Neola, the board’s policy company.

Superintendent Brad Schuldt said they changed approximately 25 policies, and many of them were minor typographical changes. However, he said a number of changes the board made to their policies were done to reflect new laws passed last year to ensure they are still in compliance with state law.

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