Teachers plead for help, support at latest Ames school board meeting
A middle school substitute believes an uptick in violence is directly correlated to a staffing shortage.
Current substitute and former Ames Middle School teacher Missy Springsteen-Haupt spoke on behalf of middle school faculty during Monday's Ames CSD school board meeting, asking for help with a staffing shortage and a recent surge in incident reports.
She was concerned about a "seeming disconnect" between the district and the current environment at the middle school. The teacher did not reference any specific incidents or content shared on social media, but said she was worried about how the current teacher shortage might increase.
"I’m not talking about the videos that get posted online," Springsteen-Haupt said. "I know at our middle school and high school we get a lot of flashy things related to fights and kids being kids type of things. Kids are always going to be kids, and there’s always going to be kids, and there’s always going to be issues when it comes to behavior.
She added, "I am worried if this board and this leadership doesn’t take action soon, we will not have enough people left to staff the middle school."
Springsteen-Haupt believes the decision to pull one of the associate principals from the middle school last year has contributed an increase in behavioral problems. The middle school used to have three associate principals in addition to a head principal, and now only has two.
She asked the board to consider returning an associate principal to the school.
"It’s very clear if you spend even five minutes in the middle school that people are drowning," Springsteen-Haupt said. "I think an immediate action that could be taken is if this board could look at things like referrals and incident reports, teachers and EAs who have been injured or harmed while working at the middle school. We need another AP back."
District-wide violence issues
Ames Superintendent Julious Lawson addressed several recent fights at the Oct. 23 school board meeting, pledging to curb the violence.
Lawson said recent scuffles were not exclusive to a single race, program group, gender, age or grade level he took a "deep dive" into the data.
"We are still actively working with school leaders to mitigate fights and all other acts of violence within our district," Lawson said on Oct. 23. "Fear has no place in our schools. The emotional and physical safety of our students and staff are paramount."
More: Ames district pledges to improve student safety after recent high school fights
Students expelled during October special sessions
Two closed special sessions were held within a week of the Oct. 23 meeting to discipline several Ames High School students.
Two students were expelled from the high school and consent expulsion agreements were approved for three students. The board would not confirm if the agreements meant the students were expelled from school or not.
An incident report for a fight at the high school on Oct. 17 was filed, and videos of the alleged scuffle circulated on social media.
Springsteen-Haupt also asked the board to repair its relationships with teachers. She said the faculty doesn't feel supported due to the recent troubles, dwindling special needs teachers and a need for more substitutes.
The teacher said the building-level administrators are doing the best they can with the current circumstances, but they do need additional support.
"Right now, our teachers' needs must be met before they can adequately lead those people who support our students," Springsteen-Haupt said.
Board approves AMES Center
A long-awaited multi-purpose learning center got the go-ahead during Monday's meeting.
The school board approved plans for the Ames Multi-Purpose Educational Center (AMES Center). The board approved the final blueprints and a contract with architect 10FOLD Architecture while they OK'd a notice for bidders.
The AMES Center will be located in the former Beloit Residential Treatment Center on Northwestern Avenue, a few blocks southeast of the Ames High School. The facility was purchased from Lutheran Services after the program closed in 2021.
A public hearing to determine the project contractor was set for Dec. 18.
The facility will serve students in the Ames Home School Assistance Program and students with disabilities in the Transition Alliance Program. It will also provide therapeutic classrooms to fit social, emotional and mental health needs and will be used as a central food pantry location.
Facility renovations are expected to begin in January and run through July. The plan is to have the AMES Center ready for full occupancy in October 2024.
More: Ames school board will decide fate of multi-purpose learning facility next week
More: Ames Middle School's Steph Schares receives Iowa Safe Schools' Educator of the Year award
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Three takeaways from the latest Ames school board meeting
