BLUE EARTH — The Blue Earth Area School Board received an update this week on the “Next Level” campaign from Superintendent Mandy Fletcher.

“We emailed surveys last week asking district residents what programs or courses they would be interested in seeing offered at BEA,” she said. “We have compiled the responses and are sending out another email asking people to vote for their top five choices.”

Fletcher said the district will then study the feasibility and the costs associated with the proposals.

“We will use this as a guide as we go forward with a possible referendum in the fall,” she said.

Turning to another matter, Fletcher reported that most students have responded well to distance learning, given the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We took a survey of the students and 60 percent of those who responded were OK with distance learning and 33 percent did not like it,” she said. “We also found 76 percent of the students were very satisfied with the level of communication they had with their teachers.”

In other business, the board:

o Approved the hiring of Shannon Swanson as the new Community Education director.

o Approved the hiring of Samantha Landsteiner as a second-grade teacher.

o Approved placing high school science teacher Mark Franta and K-5 social worker Kelly Bleess on unrequested leave.

o Accepted the resignation of high school principal Greg Ewing, and voted to rescind a prior resolution relating to the termination and non-renewal of the teaching contract of Conan Shaffer.