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School Board discusses possible changes


The Mobridge-Pollock School Board opened the door for changes Monday, Nov. 10, with discussions on GPA verses ACT scores and the possibility of selling district-owned land on Third Avenue West.

Superintendent Tim Frederick asked the board to consider information he presented them concerning the number of honor roll students in the senior class and lower ACT for some of those students. He explained that out of 47 members of the senior class, 43 of those were on the honor roll.

“We have tremendous seniors,” he told the board. “But in comparing the GPAs (grade point averages) of those students, verses their ACT (college readiness assessment) we are trying to figure out if what we are doing needs to be changed.”

He said there are some students in the senior class who have 4.0 GPAs, yet do not do well on the ACT exams. He said there were also students who fell below the 4.0 GPA, yet score well on the ACTs.

In comparing these GPAs and the ACTs, he said the students who took advanced and dual credit courses seemed to do well on the ACTS. Those students might not be the seniors who have GPAs of 4.0 but they are challenging themselves and preparing for higher education.

ACT scores are used when applying for college admission and accepted by four-year schools. Seniors can take the ACT assessment tests a number of times to improve their score and their chances for admission to institutes of higher learning.

GPAs are used in applying for and receiving scholarship funds for college. Frederick said some of those students who work hard, take advanced classes and prepare for college may miss out on scholarship opportunities because their GPAs are not 4.0.

“Our community is very generous with scholarship funding and GPAs play a big role in awarding that funding,” he said. “The kids who are challenging themselves may be penalized when it comes to scholarships.”

He showed the board statistics on the senior class with both GPA and ACT scores. He then compared those statistics with honor points given for the challenging courses. Those students with the GPAs lower than 4.0, but who took the challenging course, rose above the 4.0 mark with the honor points.

“Do we need to take a look at what courses our students are taking and which courses should be given the honor points?” he asked the board. “Should our students be penalized for challenging themselves?”

The board will further discuss the issue after Frederick meets with teachers concerning next week.

School land

The Mobridge-Pollock District owns a nearly 5-acre plot of land in north Mobridge, between Third Avenue West and Parklane, in a section of town known as Bellaire. In the past, there have been inquiries on the sale of that land or portions of it. The board, up to this point, has not agreed to sell any of that property.

Frederick, at the request of the board, asked three residents, Duane Martin, Harley Overseth and Robert Knudson, to appraise the land at current market value. There has been some interest in the purchase of that property for development.

At the Monday meeting, that appraisal, which was between $80,000 and $85,000, was presented to the board.

The appraisal was accompanied by an explanation of how the men reached what they considered fair market value, including using data from the director of equalization and local real estate professionals.

The last time the board asked for a valuation of that land, it came in at $67,000.

“We need to consider what to do with the land with the future in mind,” said Frederick. “We need to take into consideration the growth of the community and that the Freeman Davis building will not last forever.”

The board will discuss the issue further at a future meeting.

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