Highlights of the April 28 Lincoln Board of Education and ESU 18 regular meetings

April 28, 2026

The Lincoln Board of Education and Educational Service Unit (ESU) 18 held regular meetings on Tuesday, April 28, at the Lincoln Public Schools Steve Joel District Leadership Center, 5905 O Street. The Board of Education meeting started at 6:00 p.m. with the ESU 18 meeting following immediately after. You can watch the full video of both meetings here.

Lincoln Board of Education regular meeting

Special reports, presentations and celebrations of success

Lindsay Pierce – Northwest High School

Lindsay Pierce, Lincoln Northwest High School social studies department chair and teacher, received the Nebraska State Council for the Social Studies First Congressional District Outstanding Social Studies Teacher of the Year Award. The award recognizes one outstanding social studies educator that rises to the challenge of making social studies education relevant today while engaging students with activities outside of class that promote civic engagement and enhances learning opportunities in the public and private sectors.

You can watch a highlight of Pierce’s resolution here.

Annual sustainability update

The LPS Sustainability team, as part of LPS Operations, provided an update about efforts across the school district.  LPS Sustainability Coordinator Brittney Wees and Assistant Sustainability Coordinator Alex Coffelt shared highlights from the annual sustainability report.

As part of the presentation, it was shared that 51% of waste is diverted from the landfill with 2.12 million pounds being recycled and 1.24 million pounds being composted. In addition, 38 school buildings have received Energy Star certifications. LPS has five school campuses with solar arrays and there are four all-electric fleet vehicles in the district. 

The LPS Sustainability team is also engaging students, staff, and families through their program. They have assisted with walk and roll to school initiatives, creating and maintaining gardens and outdoor learning spaces, farm to school outreach, tree planting and hosting the annual Students of Sustainability Summit.

You can watch a highlight of the sustainability presentation here.

Annual Indian Education Program update, Title VI grant application

American Indian students are enrolled in all Lincoln Public Schools representing about 80 tribes as designated by the parent. 

The U.S. Department of Education, through Title VI, provides funds to fulfill the federal government’s responsibility to the Indian people for the education of Indian children. These funds support LPS efforts in creating and executing educational programs and culturally relevant activities to empower every American Indian student to achieve their highest academic potential.

Lincoln Public Schools has received federal funds for services for American Indian students since the mid-1980’s. Grant award amounts vary by year according to the total amount of Indian Education funds available at the federal level and are not based only on the number of students per program.

Estimated funding from Title VI for 2026-2027 is approximately $215,303, and is based on the current student count of 794. Decisions regarding the use of these funds are made in consultation with the American Indian Advisory Committee.

You can view a highlight of the American Indian Education Program presentation here. During first reading, the Board waived second reading and voted to approve the grant application due to the grant deadline being May 1. 

First reading

Proposed two-year negotiated agreements with Custodial Employees Association

Each year, the district recognizes and meets with representatives from the Custodial Employees Association for the purpose of negotiating salary, benefits and working conditions. This year, a two-year proposed agreement is brought before the Board for consideration. 

Custodians:

  • The total package for 2026-2027 is 4.36%, which includes a 3.93% salary increase.
  • The total package for 2027-2028 is 4.44%, which includes a 3.32% salary increase.

All agreements also include increases in FICA and retirement costs and an estimated 7.44% increase in health insurance premiums. The District will cover 80% of the out-of-pocket health insurance increase for the 2026-2027 and 2027-2028 years. The full negotiated agreement can be found online.

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

Proposed contracts with the associate superintendents and ESU administrator

Annually, the Board reviews the contracts of the associate superintendents and the ESU 18 Administrator. 

It is recommended that the proposed current contracts for the Associate Superintendent for Business Affairs, the Associate Superintendent for Human Resources, the Associate Superintendent for Teaching and Learning, Associate Superintendent for Civic Engagement and the Administrators for Educational Services be amended and extended for a period of two years. It is also recommended that a total salary increase of 4.26% with an overall total package increase of 3.87%, be approved for 2026-27 for each contract. 

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

Education Quest College Access Grant - Lincoln High School

EducationQuest Foundation awards College Access Grants through a competitive application process every other year. All Nebraska public and private high schools are eligible to apply if approved or accredited to issue a high school diploma. High schools are funded for four years and may use grant funds to develop and support college access activities. Previous College Access Grant recipients may reapply two years from the last year of funding.

This is a grant that all LPS high schools apply for and this grant application is for Lincoln High School for the amount of $20,000. 

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

High school theater lighting project

Staff recommended the Board approve the lowest responsible bid that met the requirements for theater lighting projects at North Star and Southwest high schools. 

Due to project timelines, the Board waived second reading and voted to approve the bid for $1,037,131 to Gopher Stage Lighting Inc.

Second reading

Newly Annexed Property to the City of Lincoln

The Board of Education assigns school attendance areas to property newly annexed to the City of Lincoln. This action establishes school attendance areas prior to the sale of residential lots, allowing purchasers to know what schools their children will attend.

There are three areas recently annexed into the City of Lincoln. The proposal assigns the newly annexed areas of Grandview Estates 18th Addition, South 91st Street and Yankee Hill Road and the Woodlands at Yankee Hill to Wysong Elementary School, Moore Middle School and Standing Bear High School. 

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve assignments.

Tuition Charges for 2026-2027

Each year, the Business Affairs Office makes recommendations to the Board of Education for tuition charges for regular and Special Education programs.  This is done in accordance with Policy 3300 and Regulation 3300-1. This is not paid by individuals, but by other school districts who are sending their students to Lincoln Public Schools for services.

The proposed rates for 2026-2027 include:

  • Grades K-6: $73.43 per day or $12,850 per year
  • Grades 7-8: $88.00 per day or $15,400 per year
  • Grades 9-12: $102.86 per day or $18,000 per year

The Special Education program rate will be determined using the calculation provided by the Nebraska Department of Education.

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve the tuition charges.

Math Expressions curriculum materials

The Math Expressions curriculum was approved by the Board in 2017, and is strongly aligned with Nebraska state math standards and utilizes best practices in mathematics education. It is a mix of print and digital resources that develops procedural fluency from conceptual understanding. 

Current subscriptions expire at the end of the school year. This purchase will be used at elementary schools that are not currently piloting the new math curriculum for the 2026-2027 school year. Staff recommend the purchase estimated at $663,993 for physical activity books and digital access to curriculum from Heinemann. 

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve the purchase.

Proposed two-year negotiated agreements with technicians and administrators

Under Board Policy 2120, the district recognizes the administrator and technician groups as similarly situated for the purpose of bargaining. Representatives from both groups met with the LPS chief negotiated and propose the following two-year negotiated agreement:

Technicians 

  • The total package for 2026-2027 is 4.35%, which includes a 4.21% salary increase and an increase to the service year stipend.
  • The total package for 2027-2028 is 4.43%, which includes a 3.49% salary increase and an increase to the service year stipend.

Administrators

  • The total package for 2026-2027 is 4.14%, which includes a 4.26% salary increase.
  • The total package for 2027-2028 is 4.21%, which includes a 3.53% salary increase.

All agreements also include increases in FICA and retirement costs and an estimated 7.44% increase in health insurance premiums. The District will cover 80% of the out-of-pocket health insurance increase for the 2026-2027 and 2027-2028 years. The full negotiated agreements can be found online.

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve the two-year negotiated agreements.

Informational items and reports

Superintendent update

LPS Superintendent John Skretta opened his remarks by highlighting some of the spring school events he has attended so far. Those events included the Arts and Humanities Focus Program art show, Home Builders Association of Lincoln Tribute to Youth and Construction Careers Day, the annual African American Participate 2 Graduate celebration, TeamMates senior celebration, Bay High Skate-Art-Music-Fashion Spring Festival and the Extra Mile Walk on Saturday.

Public comment

There were no individuals that addressed the Board during the public comment period. 

Glimpses of LPS

We open every Board meeting with a video that highlights LPS. Tuesday’s Glimpses highlighted the robotics class at Standing Bear High School. You can watch the Standing Bear Robotics Glimpses on YouTube.

Educational Service Unit (ESU) 18 regular meeting

Contract and appointment of the ESU 18 Unit Administrator

The ESU 18 Board appoints and reviews the contract of the ESU 18 Administrator each year as required by law. At the next regular meeting, the ESU Board will consider confirming the ongoing appointment of Takako Olson as the ESU 18 Unit Administrator.

You can watch the full ESU 18 meeting here.

 

Published: April 28, 2026, Updated: April 28, 2026