Highlights of the June 10 Lincoln Board of Education and ESU 18 regular meetings

June 10, 2025

The Lincoln Board of Education and Educational Service Unit (ESU) 18 met for regular meetings on Tuesday, June 10, at the Lincoln Public Schools Steve Joel District Leadership Center, 5905 O Street. You can watch the full video of both meetings on YouTube.

Lincoln Board of Education Regular Meeting

Special reports, presentations and celebrations of success

Athletics and Activities update

Lincoln Public Schools Athletic and Activities Director JJ Toczek provided a year in review for the Board. The core purpose of the LPS Athletics and Activities program is to offer students education-based opportunities to extend the learning experiences outside the classroom. These experiences aid in the overall growth of student-participants by promoting academic achievement, skill development, life skills, citizenship and competitive success.

Goals for the last school year included working collaboratively with school athletic and activities directors and providing them with support, carrying out the program’s goals through an equitable lens, and aid in the overall growth of student-participants. There was also a focus on sportsmanship, increasing safety and security at events and promoting positive student and adult behaviors through continuous communication and student leadership development.

Other highlights from the year included:

  • Girls wrestling saw an 82.8% increase in participation in two years.
  • Unified sports saw a 66% increase in participation in two years.
  • Overall number of students participating in NSAA/LPS activities was up 34%.
  • The overall four-year graduation rate for LPS athletic and activities student participants was 98.0%.

You can watch a highlight of the Athletics and Activities presentation on YouTube.

First reading

Elementary boundary change recommendations

The Board Planning Committee monitors city growth, building utilization, student enrollment trends, and development throughout the school year. Lincoln is thriving and continues to grow - especially the Northwest part of the city.

LPS staff continue to explore strategies to stabilize the growth at Lakeview Elementary School and balance school enrollments. As part of the process, the Board Planning Committee recommends changing the attendance area between the airport and Interstate 80 assignment from Lakeview to Arnold Elementary before housing is built in the area. The proposed attendance area shift would begin with the 2025-2026 school year if approved.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote at the next meeting.

Property purchase

The Board is considering the purchase of land located near Northwest High School in the area at West Vine between NW 48th and NW 56th streets. The property is approximately 20,68 acres and may be used as a future transportation facility and hub.

The Board Planning Committee recommends the Board consider entering into a purchase agreement of $2.9 million for the property.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote at the next meeting.

Proposed 2025-2026 pay rates for substitute and miscellaneous employees

Each year the Board reviews pay rates for substitutes and miscellaneous employees.

This year the recommended salary increases are dependent on the employee group and range from no increase to a 3.55% increase. It is recommended substitute paraeducators receive a 6.56% increase and substitute office professionals receive a 10.92% increase due to recruiting difficulties.

For intramural workers and coaches, athletic event workers, standard head clinician setup pay, clinical additional coaches, concessions workers, student workers, band workers, band camp workers and camera operators, the recommended adjustments are made in anticipation of the increase in the Nebraska minimum wage to $15.00 per hour effective Jan. 1, 2026.

The Board waived second reading and voted to approve the new pay rates.

Renewal of print and copy fleet service agreement with Xerox

The current Xerox production contract term is a base period of five years with an option to renew for additional periods upon mutual agreement and successful contract performance. The existing production contract expires in December 2025.  It is recommended that LPS renew the production copy and services agreement with Xerox Corporation for the period of December 2025 through June 2030.

This will be an annual estimated expenditure of $1,051,584 from the General Fund, Nutrition Services Fund, Federal Fund, Activities Fund, Special Grant Fund and ESU 18 Fund. The actual expenditures will be determined by usage.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote at the next meeting.

Second reading

U.S. Department of Justice Federal Grant - COPS School Violence Prevention Grant Program

LPS staff propose the school district submit a competitive application to the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), within the U.S. Department of Justice, for the School Violence Prevention Program grant. This program provides funding to improve security at schools and on school grounds through: coordination with local law enforcement; training for local law enforcement officers to prevent student violence against others and self; placement and use of deterrent equipment; and acquisition and installation of technology for expedited notification of local law enforcement during an emergency.

LPS has applied and received this grant before to assist with purchasing new two-way radios for elementary and middle schools. If awarded, this three-year grant for $500,000 would provide additional training for School Resource Officers and LPS staff. 

The Board voted to approve the grant application. 

Informational items and reports

From the Board

Finance Committee

Committee Chair Annie Mumgaard shared that the Board Finance Committee met prior to the regular meeting to preview the Preliminary Proposed 2025-2026 Budget Presentation. Staff will continue to make adjustments to the presentation after getting Board committee feedback.

The Preliminary Proposed 2025-2026 LPS Budget will first be presented publicly during a special Board work session on Tuesday, June 24, starting at 4:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend at the Steve Joel District Leadership Center, or watch the livestream available on the LPS website or LNK-TV Education Channel.

There will be many opportunities for the community to engage in our budget process that week and through the summer:

  • Tuesday, June 24: Regular Board Meeting, public comment
  • Wednesday, June 25: virtual public forum at noon (link will be on lps.org), in-person public forum at 6:00 p.m. at the Steve Joel District Leadership Center, or submit online questions/comments on the LPS website through July 11.
  • Thursday, June 26: virtual public forum at 6:00 p.m. (link will be on lps.org)

Board member Barbara Baier added “I want to emphasize that this is when the public should be involved in the budget process. There have been changes in the past because of public comments.”

The Career Academy

Board member Annie Mumgaard gave a brief report from the last TCA meeting. 

TCA exists as part of an interlocal agreement between Southeast Community College and LPS, and it will be celebrating a 10 year anniversary this year. 

There are 429 seniors and 395 juniors registered for the next school year, with more being added over the summer. 

The TCA student organizations saw great success in competition this year. Educator Rising had nine students place in the top three at state. The HOSA team had two state champions, and SkillsUSA had five state champions.

Superintendent update

During the Superintendent Update, Interim Superintendent John Skretta thanked Director of Athletics and Activities JJ Toczek for his presentation and highlighted the success of several LPS teams.

Lincoln East Baseball and Golf and Southwest Girls Soccer teams won state championships. LPS schools swept the podium at Girls Tennis with East winning the championship, Southwest bringing home the runner-up trophy and Southwest placing third.

Skretta also celebrated a successful interview day on Friday, June 6, at Scott Middle School. There were over 120 applicants interviewed throughout the afternoon. He encouraged anyone still looking for a career that makes a difference in a children’s lives to check out the current job openings on the LPS website, or attend the second interview day on July 15 at North Star High School.

Public comment

There was one individual that addressed the Board during the public comment period. You can watch public comment as part of the meeting video.

Glimpses of LPS

We open every Board meeting with a video that highlights LPS. Tuesday’s Glimpses featured highlights of senior speakers from each of the graduation ceremonies livestreamed by the LPS Communications Team. You can watch the Glimpses on YouTube.

ESU 18 Regular Meeting

The board of ESU 18 held its regular meeting immediately following the Lincoln Board of Education meeting to approve the consent agenda. You can view the ESU 18 meeting on YouTube.

First reading

Interlocal agreement with Lancaster County for educational services to the Youth Services Center

Each year, the ESU 18 Board approves an interlocal agreement with Lancaster County to offer services at the Lancaster County Youth Services Center. The Pathfinder Program provides educational services and classes to youth detained at the center.

The County agrees to reimburse ESU 18 for all expenses incurred in providing such services pursuant to the agreement, however, that the amount of such reimbursements shall not exceed $999,050.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote to approve the agreement at the next meeting.

Agreement with Nebraska Department of Education for SNRP for Hearing Impaired Students

The ESU 18 Board reviewed a continuing agreement with the Nebraska Department of Education to plan, coordinate and provide network enrichment activities for children who are deaf and hard of hearing in the ESU 4, ESU 5, ESU 6 and ESU 18 geographical areas. As part of the agreement, NDE agrees to pay ESU 18 up to $301,359.95 each year for providing this service.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote to approve the agreement at the next meeting.

 

Published: June 10, 2025, Updated: June 10, 2025