area education

The ROCORI school district is expecting to start fall classes before Labor Day this year. Labor Day is on September 7th this year, which is the latest it can land. ROCORI Superintendent Scott Staska says they are now expecting to start class on September 1st this fall, pending state action in a special session.

Six finalists have been selected for the open seat on the St. Cloud area school board. Hudda Ibrahim, Peter Hamerlinck, Hassan Yussuf, Shannon Haws, Scott Andreasen, and Debbie Erickson were selected as finalists by the school board on Wednesday night.

A new survey says a majority of voters would likely support a bond referendum to build a new Tech High School and update Apollo High School. The survey was revealed to the St. Cloud school board on Wednesday night. 625 randomly selected St. Cloud School District residents participated in the survey.

Eleven people have applied for the open school board seat in the St. Cloud area school district. The seat was left open after Cindy Harner resigned last month. Harner decided to step down after being arrested on suspicion of 4th degree DWI and 3rd Degree Test Refusal.

Instead of using her money for a retirement party, a longstanding Eden Valley-Watkins Elementary teacher left a lasting gift for future students. Mary Huberty taught in the Eden Valley-Watkins area for the past 28 years. She retired this spring and wanted to leave a positive gift for future students.

A Sauk Rapids-Rice teacher is retiring this spring after working in the district since 1971. Colleen Christenson is a 5th grade teacher at Mississippi River Elementary School. Christenson says she knew she wanted to be a teacher at an early age and that things have changed drastically in the classroom since she started.

The ROCORI school district is hoping they can start school before Labor Day in the fall. Labor Day lands on September 7th this year, which is the latest it can land. ROCORI Superintendent Scott Staska says the district made a request to the state to start on September 1st, but is now in limbo

The St. Cloud area school board is starting the process of filling an empty seat left by Cindy Harner. Harner was arrested on May 13th on suspicion of 4th degree DWI and 3rd Degree Test Refusal. There will be an open application process for the open seat.

The St. Cloud Area School District approved their 2015-2016 budget on Thursday night. The overall budget, including food services, community services, building construction, debt service and dental and health insurance, totals $185 million for 2015-2016.

School lunch prices will be slightly more expensive starting in the 2015-2016 school year. Lunches will cost 5-cents more. Elementary lunches will cost $2.55, secondary lunches would go up to $2.75 and Adult lunches will be $3.90. State and Federal law requires schools to charge a minimum weighted average price for paid lunches.