East Union plans new wrestling facility

AFTON - East Union’s Infant Toddler Center will be the site of an expanded wrestling training facility in the previously unused west wing of the building.

The district’s board of directors met Monday and approved the first step of the process after a few months of discussion. The board will be hiring Studio Melee, an architect firm from West Des Moines, to create the necessary architectural and engineering designs.

The board envisions the area as a wrestling/training facility and will require interior renovation, window and door replacement and designing new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems.

The west wing of the Infant Toddler Center was unused in the initial plans for the building on the northwest side of Afton. When East Union acquired the former nursing home, the wing was left unused with the hope of potential expansion.

As the design phase of the project begins, the district noted they plan to keep the project under a competitive bid threshold of $206,000. Melee has quoted their work with an hourly architectural fee not to exceed $21,750 and a fixed MEPS engineering fee of $6,500.

Last year marked the first year of East Union’s girls wrestling program; previous years the school competed under the Highway 34 agreement with Creston and Lenox. In 2025, East Union sent two female athletes and three boys to state competition.

In other East Union school board news...

With East Union adapting to the recommended polices of the Iowa Association of School Boards, the first readings of category 100 and 200 policies took place.

Some notable changes include the removal of “gender identity” from the Equal Educational Opportunity policy (keeping in line with federal guidelines), addition of policies for assistance animals and Title IX, new guidelines for board members’ social media use and revising election and meeting policies to match state guidelines.

Noting a few items found in the audit on East Union’s 2024 fiscal year, the board accepted the audit report. Sales tax was paid in error on some district purchases. Segregation of fiscal duties remained a challenge, which is common for rural areas with limited staff.

Gate admissions for school activities were noted as a deficiency, with a lack of control from the district not using pre-numbered tickets. In their response East Union detailed how they will be transitioning to a cashless administration system, and in the meantime, work to make fund reporting more accurate.

Moving forward, the middle-high school will use Xello as a college and career-readiness platform for students. The platform helps advise students on their planned career path with recommended courses and other academic planning.

The necessity of using Xello comes as My Academic Plan, a similar program supported through Iowa State University, sees eventual discontinuation. Although My Academic Plan was free, Xello will come at a cost of $3,100 per year. East Union approved Xello for a full term from January 2026 through June 2029.

A motion to update a job description for East Union’s activity director failed to receive a second. The description would have removed requiring a teaching certificate from Iowa and instead replace with a “current certification through the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners.

Although the motion was attempted by board member Jamie Buffington, with no second, the board tabled the item for a future meeting.

A public hearing was held for extending student transportation ride time limits. Iowa Code typically limits the ride time students spend on transportation to school to 60 minutes, with the option for districts to extend to 75 minutes following a public hearing.

East Union approved this extension with the recognition the higher limit will not be utilized extensively. With several students in rural homes in the district, the full 75 minutes will only be used when necessary.

East Union approved the Dropout Prevention and At-Risk Plan for the 2026 school year. Required by state code, the plan details how East Union will identify students who are at risk of academic failure or dropping out. The plan also details programs to support students and encourage attendance.

Three buses were designated as obsolete equipment. These buses have already had replacement purchased in a previous meeting. The obsolete buses will be disposed in accordance with district policy and state regulations.

Board President Adam Tallmon was approved to be a delegate to the IASB Delegate Assembly. Tallmon said he was unsure if he would be able to attend but said he would represent East Union if he could.

NEW Cooperative was accepted as the district’s fuel provider. Gasoline will be provided at $2.3284/gal with propane at $1.27/gal. Both types of diesel were cheaper than a bid presented by Agriland FS.

The following contracts and resignations were accepted:

Contracts: Mike Cooley, JH boys basketball coach, head softball coach; Kristina Dike, assistant girls wrestling coach; Kelsey Pope, ITC childcare provider; Kyra Robey, ITC part-time childcare provider; Pam McKee, ITC part-time childcare provider.

Resignations: Brandon Parsons, custodian.