The Eureka Springs School District board re-elected its existing slate of officers during its regular meeting on June 13, and board members drew for terms, a move made necessary by changes in the district’s zone borders in the wake of the 2020 Census.

“We did reorganize our board,” said superintendent Bryan Pruitt. “We left our officers the same as. Chris McClung is still the board president with Al Larson vice president and Gayla Wolfinbarger is our secretary. Then they drew for terms after they had the election.”

In Zone 1, Joe Hill drew a five-year term. Larson, who serves Zone 2, drew a two-year term; while McClung, the Zone 3 representative, drew a three-year term; Jason Morris drew a five-year term in Zone 4; and Candace Spaulding drew a threeyear term in Zone 5.

“We have seven board members with two of them at-large,” Pruitt said. “Jayme Wildeman has one year left on her term, so she’ll have to run next year, which will be for a five-year term. [Wolfinbarger] has two years left, so those [at-large seats] will be back-to-back.

“From now on, everyone will be a fiveyear term.”

Pruitt said the longer terms should prove a benefit for the board and the district as a whole.

“In the past, they’ve had three-year terms in Eureka, so we’re kind of excited to have five years,” Pruitt said. “That way, [board members] can understand more about what goes on at the school board, how the school’s run and also learn our terminology, all of our acronyms for everything we do in education.”

The board also voted to approve a resolution regarding Inn of the Ozarks, which is owned by Wolfinbarger’s husband, Randy, and often serves as the venue for school-related activities including prom.

“Every now and then, we’ll have them cater an event for us at school or we’ll hold prom or something like that at the convention center,” Pruitt said, adding that state law prohibits the district from spending more than $5,000 in a calendar year in such a case. “We have to have a written resolution stating that we do business with a board member.”

In other business, the board approved its annual improvement plan, along with a few changes to the handbook as suggested by the state school board association.

“They send them to us, we approve them and make sure we’re being good citizens in our handbooks,” Pruitt said.

The board also voted to accept a bid for HVAC systems at the elementary and middle schools. Pruitt said the winning $520,000 bid — awarded to Crawford Builders Inc. — will cover replacing approximately 50 heating and cooling units.

“It’s not every unit, but I’d say 80 percent of them will be new,” Pruitt said. “These new units are more outside air intake and they meet all the new COVID specs and things like that, with the filtration systems and moving more fresh air.”

Pruitt said the project will be paid for through the district’s allotment of funds received under the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief program.

“Every dime of it is ESSER money,” Pruitt said. “It’s all been approved from the state.”

After meeting in a closed session to discuss personnel matters, the board accepted the resignations of band director JonPaul Dean and middle school teacher Kyndal Saverse before voting to hire Rachel Crowley as a band teacher, Leslie Purdy-Holt as a seventh- and eighth-grade science teacher, Adrian Jesse as child nutrition director, Karen Halper as registrar and bookkeeper, Debbie Oviedo as a food service worker and Kelly Swofford as a bus driver. The board also voted to rehire the district’s classified staff.

The board’s next meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m., July 11, at the district administration building.