MAPLETON, N.D. — The Mapleton Public School and the union representing its teachers have accepted recommendations in a report from a state panel
to end a teacher contract impasse and deal with the district’s financial woes.
The North Dakota Education Fact Finding Commission called for a salary freeze for teachers and a one-year, 2025-26 contract, as a result of its public hearing in late May.
The Mapleton Education Association was pushing for a 3% cost-of-living increase.
The commission said a salary freeze is needed because an independent auditor is still trying to reconstruct previous financial statements from the district.
“Any increase in wages would be reckless without accurate financial statements. The District is on the path to failure if it is unable to issue accurate and timely financial reports,” the commission said in its report, obtained by The Forum.
Mapleton offers a fully paid single health insurance plan and dental plan to educators.
The two sides agreed to increase a stipend from $500 to $2,000 for teachers who elect not to participate in those plans, and choose a spouse’s plan instead.
The financially beleaguered K-6 Mapleton School, about 10 miles west of West Fargo, is trying to get back on its feet
following missteps by a former business manager and turnover in the office, school leaders have said.
Jenna Farkas, superintendent and principal, said they’re having to “clean up” accounting methods passed down multiple times.
“We are confident going into the next school year, but also very mindful of any areas (where) we can lower costs … to ensure that we are the most cost-effective with our taxpayer dollars,” she said during a Monday, July 28 interview.
The Mapleton Education Association represents 19 full-time certified educators.
Jennifer Helland, MEA president, said she came to the realization that teachers had to be part of the solution.
“We agreed to the one-year (freeze). But gosh, it’s just too soon to say much more in terms of where we could or should or want to be,” Helland said.
The district’s financial difficulties date back seven or eight years, School Board President Josh Radcliffe said previously.
A former business manager took payroll taxes out of employee checks, but those taxes were not paid to the state or to the Internal Revenue Service.
The Fact Finding Commission report states an independent auditor who recently issued the district’s audit reports for fiscal years ending in June of 2018 and 2019 “was unable to express an opinion because they were unable to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence.”
Wendy Reuer / The Forum
The report said the weaknesses identified in that audited report “are in violation of North Dakota Century Code and North Dakota Department of Public Instruction recommendations.”
A financial report submitted to the commission had a 17% carryover for 2022-2023 that dropped to 2% for 2023-2024.
“If that unaudited financial report was accurate, the extremely low carryover would make it nearly impossible to make timely payments for all the expenses of the District,” the report read.
Farkas said the district will continue to look for ways to cut costs.
They’ve lowered the supplies budget, and are looking at getting secondhand or donated furniture, she said. A part-time nurse position was cut and those hours will be absorbed by other staff.
“Our board is just at the beginning of trying to look and see what might be some options moving forward,” Farkas said.
Approval of a one-year contract means the two sides will be back at the negotiating table as early as February to negotiate the 2026-27 contract.
“We can’t look too far to the future, unfortunately,” Helland said.
Huebner is a 35+ year veteran of broadcast and print journalism in Fargo-Moorhead.
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