(NEWTON) The Jasper County School Board of Education met last night in Newton for its regular monthly meeting in March. The Board : approved the payment of all bills as presented : approved the amended District Calendar for the 2025-2026 school year with the last day of school for students set for May 22nd : approved the 2026-2027 District Calendar with the first day of school for students set for August 11th, 2026 : approved memberships for IESA & IHSA Sports : approved a 3-year contract with Wagner Photography for district-wide student pictures : approved the District’s Tech Lease for the 2026-2027 school year : heard a legislative update from Springfield : discussed budget information, noting that state funding for transportation will continue to decrease into Fiscal Year 2027, plus less money in Special Education Transportation funding as well : noted the Newton Elementary Building Project is expected to begin by the end of March : noted in the Building & Grounds Update, that projects include the replacement of access entry points at the Elementary School and a sewer project at the High School : and in personnel – accepted the resignation from Chad Farley as NCHS Boys Head Soccer Coach – hired Martha Kirts as the District Speech Language Pathologist, Sarah Coffin as an Elementary School Teacher, and Adam Kuhl as District Groundskeeper, all for the 2026-2027 school year – and approved eleven (11) volunteers for the Strong Girls Program and ten (10) volunteers for the Strong Boys Program : while the Board’s next regular monthly meeting will be April 20th, 2026, the Jasper County School Board will have a special meeting at 6:00 next Monday, March 23rd.
