The Mandan School Board held it's monthly coffee talk Saturday morning, with most of the discussion centering on the new junior high and legislative issues.

Board members Kirsten Baesler, Lynn Wolf and Dan Leingang sat down for coffee at Cappuccino on Collins, leaving a few open chairs for anyone who wanted to discuss school board issues. During the hour and a half session, there were four people taking the time to talk to the school board members.

Baesler said that a prebid meeting with contractors interested in the junior high construction will be held on Jan. 18 and then on Jan. 30 at 4:30 p.m. the bids will be opened. The new junior high is still on track to be open in the fall of 2008.

Wolf said he is hoping the bids come in low enough to allow a few of the alternatives to be included in construction.

Pat O'Brien, a teacher and coach at in the junior high system, indicated the need for a multi-purpose room that can be used for storage as well as a number of other activities. He said he is pleased to see a lot of green space is being included in the plans.

"It's no wonder we're having a few problems with the kids; they're sort of going stir crazy. All we've got at the junior high now is asphalt and concrete to play on," O'Brien said.

Baesler agreed, saying that elementary students moving into the junior high system are used to recess three times a day, which changes drastically when they go to the junior high. She said she feels the inclusion of playing and practice fields will not only benefit the students but the entire community.

Asked what the future holds for the current junior high, Wolf said that the newer portion will be refurbished for administrative functions, but no determination has been made on the original portion of the school building.

Turning to legislative issues, Baesler said that her top four issues are the school funding formula; full-day kindergarten classes; increased funding for participants in the joint powers act; and the school start date. She then said that a fifth issue involved changing the minimum age a student can drop out of school from 16 to 18.

Leingang said the school district probably will have no idea of what the funding formula will provide until the end of the legislative session in April.

Baesler said that there were concerns with funding of full-day kindergarten programs. While the school board generally approves of the idea, Baesler said she worries it might become an unfunded mandate by the Legislature, and the school board can't support the program without some funding source.

"But the funding formula is my first and most important issue," Baesler said. "We need a lot of help."

Baesler also said she supports increasing the age a student is allowed to drop out, but feels that if such a move is made by the Legislature, Mandan will have to develop an alternative campus.

The next school board sponsored coffee talk will be Feb. 17 from 8:30 to 10 a.m. at Hardees.