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Meeting room filled to capacity; sixth-grade staff cut may lead to class sizes of 30 students
By DEB BENTLY
Staff Writer
NRHEG School board members voted in reluctant favor of proposals to reduce teaching staff for the 2024-25 school year during their regular meeting the evening of March 18. The Ellendale media center had no open seats as the board voted not to renew the contracts of non-tenured kindergarten teacher Nicole Seberson and high school math teacher Randy Muske; to reduce the third-grade teaching staff by one individual; and to place only two teachers in charge of next year’s sixth-graders, leading to potential class sizes of about 30 students–at least 10 more per classroom than are currently together.
The vote to reduce the sixth-grade staff was especially reluctant, with three of the seven board members responding “nay.”
Five individuals’ statements were shared during the public comment portion of the evening’s meeting. Teacher Mark Domeier urged board members to “walk a mile” in the middle school teachers’ “shoes” before finalizing a decision to reduce sixth-grade teaching staff.
Current sixth-grader Emily Delacruz told board members that students her age “get noisy” and “have a hard time sitting still.”
She went on to say that, as difficult as it might sometimes be to concentrate this year, she has trouble picturing what it would be like with “another 10 to 14 students in our rooms.” She asked, “Why do [next year’s sixth-graders] deserve less support than we have gotten?”
Fifth-grade teacher Marcus Fischer could not be present at the meeting, but sent written notes to be shared by fellow elementary instructor Jennie Bunn. He expressed concern about whether, with the big move from the elementary to the secondary building, and with a significant number of students who are not “at grade level” in reading and/or math, “I hope you think of other ways to make reductions that are not directly impacting the success of our students.”
Recognizing that the administration’s recommendation to retain two teachers at the sixth-grade level is based on the fact there are currently only 58 students in the group, Fischer’s statement concluded, “I see more than a number. I see 58 students who need all of our support to have the best chance to succeed.”
Angela Gehrke told board members she was speaking in a two-fold capacity, both as the mother of two boys about to advance into sixth grade, and as a substitute teacher who sometimes supervises sixth-grade classrooms.
She shared that one of her sons has already asked to be home-schooled if he would otherwise be assigned to a class of 29 students. “My 11-year-old recognizes that is too many kids,” Gehrke said. “Shouldn’t the adults making decisions think about this very seriously?”
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After nine years of service, SaraJo Vulcan is leaving her position as Assistant City Administrator in New Richland to become Deputy City Clerk in Janesville. “It wasn’t an easy decision to get a new job,” she said of her time in New Richland, citing career growth as the reason she ultimately made her choice. About her new job, she says, “It’s exciting for career advancement - I’ll be learning more about city government.” Vulcan is pictured receiving a plaque from with Mayor Chad Neitzel. Photos by Tristan Gehring
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Locally run, family owned
tradition continues with Arnold family
By ELI LUTGENS
Publisher/Editor
The time was right.
Travis Blake, former owner of the Willows restaurant in New Richland, liked to joke that if he ever sold the place, he knew who he would offer it to first.
“I asked if he was really serious this time,” Julie Arnold, the new owner of the Willows said. “When he said he was really going to sell it, I asked myself, ‘If I’m not gonna buy it, then who?’
“It’s something to pass down to my son Chris, an opportunity for our family.”
Arnold, 57, originally from Denver, Iowa, settled in New Richland in the late '90s; she and her then husband Mark O’Brien raised three children, all of whom graduated from NRHEG. In 2008, only a year after the Willows was established, she applied with owner Jim Blake for a job at the restaurant.
“I’ve enjoyed the last 16 years getting to know all the different people,” Arnold said. “If it weren’t for the Willows, I wouldn’t know them. I’m looking forward to the years ahead.”
Arnold said former owner Travis Blake, who took over the business from his dad Jim Blake in 2016, plans to help through the transition in ownership, staying until the end of March when he plans to go full time with his own food-truck business.
“I think it would be different if I went out and said, ‘I want to buy a restaurant in an unknown community.’” Arnold observed. “I’m serving the community. I’m looking forward to [...] the future.”
Arnold first got her start in the food industry in the late '80s at McNamara's Pub and Grill in Faribault. She quickly rose from server to bartender to bar manager before leaving. She recalls holding nearly every job there is in the restaurant businesses, a career she says spans 25 years, broken apart only by her time as a stay-at-home mom.
Her children, Arnold stresses, are the most important element in her life.
The first person she consulted when deciding whether owning the restaurant would be desirable was her youngest son Chris and her husband John Arnold.
“I wanted John’s support because this job has long hours,” Arnold said.
“Chris, he’s the full-time cook,” Arnold said. “And I can teach him the rest of the businesses over the coming years… In five to ten years, he can take over.”
Chris, a 2021 NRHEG graduate, has worked for the Willows since he was 14 years old. His brother Nathan also helps out with various roles. “Nathan is our fix-it guy,” Arnold said. “He’s our maintenance man, always willing to help however he can.”
Asked if she had any plans for change, Arnold said no.
“Nothing huge, nothing dramatic,” she commented.
A new sign and logo as well as an updated back deck are the only things Arnold plans to do over the coming months.
“We’re in the same boat as Travis. If it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” Arnold explained. “I get told, ‘Okay, whatever you do, don’t get rid of this (menu item)… Because that’s why I come here.”’
The Willows’ hours will remain similar to what they were.
Sundays: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Mondays: Closed
Tuesday-Saturday: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Bar hours subject to change.
Arnold said she hopes to put together some type of celebration in the coming months, nothing anytime soon, however. In the meantime she plans to continue enjoying her favorite aspect of the job, social interaction.
As a first-time business owner and one who built her skills from the ground up, she enjoys the opportunity to encourage members of the youthful community members who apply with her for their first-ever jobs.
“I tell them nobody’s perfect. Mistakes are going to be made. It’s nothing to be scared of. It might be a little scary at first… This too shall pass.
“The biggest hurdle is figuring out where everything is,” Arnold added. “And I always remind everyone, I only live a mile up the road. I can be here in five minutes.”
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Progress continues on Ellendale Mural
Artist Chandler Anderson works on the “meat and potatoes” of the new Ellendale mural: three of the town’s most revered residents. The 12-foot-by-10-foot mural is being painted inside, then will be installed this summer in the outdoor community garden. Anderson will add buildings, a train, and more detail before finishing the piece later this month. Photo by Kay Fate
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Nearly 2,000 acres of grassland in Waseca and Steele counties were burned Sunday, March 3, while firefighting agencies from around the state, including planes and helicopters dropping fire retardant material, fought against the high winds and dry conditions which had prompted the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to issue a “red flag” warning–meaning that the public should light no fires because of the high potential they would spread.
Firefighting efforts began before noon in an area northeast of Waseca near the county road known as the Snake Trail and continued until about 10 p.m., according to a release by the Waseca County Sheriff’s office. By the time it was under control, the fire had spread from northeast of Waseca to Deerfield township in Steele County.
Two firefighters were treated and released; one homeowner was also injured. Numerous residents were asked to evacuate their homes. The sheriff’s office reports that no structures were damaged or destroyed.
According to information shared by Waseca Fire Department chief Jason Forshee during a press conference on Monday, roughly 60 workers from the DNR, Minnesota State Fire Marshal’s Office, the Waseca County Sheriff’s office and Waseca fire department followed up Monday morning to “assess the area” and “cool down any lingering hotspots.” At the same press conference, DNR representative Jake Froyum stated that the cooler, damp day on Monday was helpful in decreasing the likelihood any smoldering spots would reignite, but that staff would be making day-by-day decisions regarding continuing efforts at “mopping up.”
Law enforcement personnel from Waseca and Steele counties and firefighters from 11 local agencies, as well as planes from Brainerd and units from the state Fish and Wildlife Service all took part in efforts to control Sunday’s fire, which encroached “within feet” of about 12 area homes. A small number of area farmers also brought large-scale tilling equipment which helped protect homes and property by exposing bare earth over swaths of land 50 or more feet wide. According to Forshee, at the height of firefighting efforts more than 20 fire trucks were on site and up to 50 water-carrying vehicles referred to as “tankers.”
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Minnesota State Fire Marshal's Office, the Waseca County Sheriff’s Office, the Minnesota Department of Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and the Waseca Fire Department.