Kathy Walker, Tammie George and Gail Drake submitted letters of retirement to the school board.

Walker is in her 40th year teaching in USD 464. Currently a counselor at Tonganoxie High School, Walker taught two years in her hometown of Baldwin City.

Tammie George, Tonganoxie Elementary School principal, also plans to retire at the end of the school year. She’s been a TES administrator since 2000, serving seven years as assistant principal before being hired as principal April 2007. She also taught at the school before moving into the administrative offices.

Drake, meanwhile, is concluding her second stint in the district office.

She worked in the central office for several years before leaving to take an advertising job at The Mirror. From there, she worked at First State Bank and Trust.

In other personnel moves, the board approved resignations from Kathy Jordan, regular route bus driver, and Charlie Lanza, THS east campus evening custodian.

The board also approved contracts for Vickie Henderson in TES food service. She replaces Pat Person. Lou Johnson was hired as TES evening custodian.

2014-15, 2015-16 calendars approved

Classes will start with a half-day in 2014-15 and 2015-16 in the Tonganoxie school district.

The school board approved calendars for the two school years at Monday’s meeting.

Weseman said teachers requested the half day, as it better works as an orientation day. Grades K-9 will start with a half day on Aug. 21, 2014, and Aug. 20, 2015. Students in grades 10-12 will join the other classes with the first full day the next day.

Winter parent teacher conferences were scheduled the first week of February both years.

Board member Leana Leslie said she’d heard from teachers that the conferences were too close to the start of the second semester. But Weseman said no teachers opposed the proposed dates when a teacher committee met with administrators to form the calendar.

Weseman said the calendars figure for about six built-in snow days. And, he said changes could be made if needed to the 2015-16 schedule.

“It doesn’t mean you couldn’t come back and do it,” Weseman said about making changes to the next year’s schedule. “Unless good reason (to alter the calendar), you don’t have to worry about it for two years.”

In other business, the board:

• Heard from Weseman about the Kansas Supreme Court ruling in favor of school districts in a lawsuit over funding of public schools. The ruling’s impact still is unknown, as the court is working to pinpoint how much funding is required to be considered “adequate.”

• Heard an update from Weseman about the Leavenworth County Special Education Cooperative. He said cooperative members would be meeting with the State Board of Education requesting to dissolve the cooperative. Weseman said he and other cooperative officials met with state board member Janet Waugh to discuss the group’s proposal. Cooperative leaders will present their case to the board in the coming weeks. If approved, Tonganoxie and Basehor-Linwood districts will merge to form their own cooperative. Their school boards would would have a special meeting to discuss the partnership. Weseman said that meeting would take place in late March or early April.