By Julie Johansen
After serving for 32 years on the Emery County School Board, Marie Guymon Johnson was honored at the board’s monthly meeting on Wednesday evening.
At her last meeting as an elected board member from District #4, she was presented with gifts and gratitude for her many years of service. A video from Huntington Elementary showed students giving thanks to “Nana Marie” was also shown during the meeting. The students thanked for her many years of teaching and providing accompaniment for various programs and activities.
Next, Westland Construction gave a construction update to the board. It was stated that the first phase at Emery High is still expected to be complete by July 2024. Work continues on the three areas with some problems in regard to manufacturing and engineering hampering progress. Materials continue to arrive and construction is moving forward. At Ferron Elementary, the playground equipment has arrived and crews are installing the equipment while the wood chips will arrive soon.
Considering action items was next on the agenda. Superintendent Ryan Maughan presented the following names for hire and approval from the board: Diane Jensen as a paraprofessional at Castle Dale Elementary and Dalen Johnson as softball coach at Emery High. The following assistant softball coach names were also presented: Joni Edgehouse, Mackell Cowley, Kerry Lake, Mike Taylor, Matt Bunnell and Tylee Norton. The names were all approved by the board.
Chandler Peacock, auto instructor at Emery High, then requested permission to take students to a competition in Hobb, New Mexico. Students Braxton Ward, Tyston Alton and Kanyon Allred then spoke of their desire and advances from being involved in the competitions. Permission was granted by the board for travel.
Next, Principal John Hughes presented the mission and vision statement from Cottonwood Elementary. He announced that 85% of the students at Cottonwood Elementary were on grade level according to last year’s core tests. The school also received a “A” grade from the Utah State Education Board for the 2021-22 school year.
Continuing, Superintendent Maughan expressed sympathy for the passing of several former employees of the district, including Reba Hansen, bus driver; Bruce Fish, elementary teacher; Richard Fairbanks, CTE teacher; and Mary Jo Gravely, lunch worker.
As the meeting closed, Emery School District Business Administrator Jackie Allred expressed her appreciation to the board for its support with several financial issues this past month.
