The board’s decision to move forward with an electric school bus initiative was one of the most notable developments. Funded by a $1.2 million grant from the Minnesota Department of Commerce, the district plans to acquire three electric buses along with the necessary charging infrastructure. Transportation Director Sean Schneider detailed the benefits of the electric buses. Schneider emphasized the financial upside, projecting annual savings of approximately $150,000 due to lower operating costs.

The grant will cover 90% of the bus costs and 95% of the infrastructure expenses. Schneider outlined an implementation plan involving state funding, a contract with Highland Fleets for support, and driver training. The contract with Highland Fleets, at a fixed cost of $24,000 per bus per year, also includes maintenance and disposal management. The district expects the buses to be fully operational by the 2026-2027 school year, with infrastructure installations scheduled to begin soon. During discussions, concerns about battery performance in cold weather were raised, but Schneider assured members that the buses will be stored in heated garages and equipped with electric heaters to maintain optimal temperatures.

The school board also tackled a comprehensive revision of its grading policies. The new system will allocate 20% of a student’s grade to homework and 80% to assessments, allowing for reassessment opportunities to improve grades throughout the year. This change aims to provide students with multiple chances to succeed and address concerns over the impact of poor performance in one quarter on overall grades. The update is part of an initiative to standardize grading practices across all high school grades, from 9 to 12. Feedback on the new system has been mixed, with some educators expressing concerns about its effectiveness and the removal of extra credit options.

In addition to grading policy revisions, the board discussed changes to the pass/fail grading option. A pass will now count as a C (2.0) grade, a move intended to prevent GPA inflation. This change is designed to ensure that students do not exploit the pass/fail option to artificially maintain high GPAs despite inconsistent academic performance.

The meeting also included discussions on the district’s emergency operations plan. Updates included refreshed first responder maps, a new communications toolkit, and training resources. Changes were primarily administrative, such as updating enrollment numbers and relocating the alternate emergency operations center to the media center at Propes Field. The board unanimously approved the updated plan, with appreciation expressed for its thoroughness.

The Moorhead Online Secondary Academy (MOSA) was another focal point. Initially established during the COVID-19 pandemic, the program is being reinstated for grades 9 through 12 after a pause due to funding constraints. The board anticipates growing enrollment from the current 25 students to 35 or 40, with plans to gradually reintroduce the program. The new Online Instruction Act allows the district to offer online classes without becoming an approved vendor, provided they are not full-time. This policy shift enables the district to offer credit recovery options aligned with Moorhead High School’s graduation requirements without the previous constraints.

Handbook updates for various schools were also reviewed, with minimal changes to the early learning and elementary handbooks. Notable updates included the inclusion of “wearable technology” in cell phone prohibition policies and the implementation of “hallway sweeps” to address tardiness and skipping classes. These sweeps involve support teams monitoring hallways between classes to ensure students attend scheduled activities.

The board also addressed several policy changes impacting student registration, graduation requirements, and extracurricular eligibility. Students returning to school after an absence are now encouraged to register at the high school first, with transitions to the Alternative Learning Center evaluated individually. Graduation requirements were updated to 26 credits, affecting eligibility for community release for seniors. A new personal finance class requirement was introduced for sophomores, aligning with state law.