The next regular Board of Education meeting will be on February 9, 2026, at 6:00 p.m., at the District Office. All meetings are open to the public. Regular meetings are streamed live through YouTube and viewable on the District website. Special meetings, where there are action items on the agenda, will also be streamed live. Agendas for Board of Education meetings are posted on the district website the Friday before each meeting. Click here to view agendas and minutes.

The board members voted and elected the below members as officers for the Board of Education.

The Board President, Allyson Slobotski, appointed members to serve on the below committees.

Throughout the meeting, building and district administrators presented reports and updates to the Board of Education. Click here to view the agenda with each presentation attached.

Reports included:

During each regular board meeting, Dr. Plas provides an update to the Board on various topics. You can view the full report online as an attachment to the meeting agenda. Click here to view the agenda.

This month's report included an update on:

Dr. Thoendel and Mr. Feeney provided an update on the curriculum and personnel proposals for the 2026-27 school year. The Curriculum Committee met on November 10th to continue the process of determining which curriculum and personnel proposals to recommend for the 2026-27 school year. There were 50 proposals this year for consideration.

At the previous meetings, the BOE approved four of the 50 proposals while utilizing fund reallocations and special education reimbursements. The Curriculum Committee has continued to review proposals that were highly prioritized by both the Curriculum/Proposal Committee and the Administrative/BOE Committee with offsetting costs. The table below shows the proposals approved.

Dr. Plas presented the 2025-26 Cash Flow Report to the Board of Education during Monday's Meeting. This report is to show how the District is ensuring financial stability, reserving funds, showing projections, and complying with regulations.

The district relies on local property taxes and state aid for most of its revenue, with these two sources making up nearly 80 percent of our total funds. State aid is distributed over ten months from September through June. Our property taxes, which depend heavily on residential valuations, are received mainly in April and August. This creates understandable concerns about cash flow during the months of December through March. Although, this has been mitigated a bit by the new School District Tax Credit that is provided to the district in March and May. To support stability during that period, it is important that we maintain healthy cash reserves.

Tax receipts are typically received on the 15th of the month, and payroll is processed on the 15th or the preceding Friday if the 15th falls on a weekend.

The district strategically manages two key reserve funds:

These reserves can be temporarily allocated to the General Fund during lean months, offering a crucial buffer for cash flow.

Projections for the upcoming fiscal year show a strong starting cash balance, which means we will not need fund transfers or external borrowing. While we understand that variances can occur, our steady reserves place us in a favorable position and reflect years of responsible financial management. Last year we used a portion of these reserves to pay down $2,000,000 of bond principal, but we are not in a position to do the same this year.

State law and our BOE guidelines indicate that districts of our size should maintain no more than 25 percent of the budgeted general fund in cash reserves. We are beginning the year at approximately 24 percent. With the ongoing uncertainty related to state aid, keeping adequate reserves in place remains a responsible and recommended practice for the stability of our district.

The District has completed the annual housing count for 2025. Each year the district updates the number of homes occupied, under construction, and platted within the District boundaries. It is important that we continue to gather these data points as they can provide useful information for our decision-making regarding district boundaries, school additions, and anticipated growth.

The 2025 data shows the following:

The Board of Education approved the Strategic Plan, marking an important step in setting a clear direction for the district’s future. Developed through months of stakeholder input and collaboration, the plan provides a shared vision to guide decision-making, district priorities, and long-term planning. Beginning in the 2026–27 school year, the strategic plan will serve as the foundation for district work, with progress updates shared regularly to ensure transparency and accountability.

The strategic plan includes three goals developed by the committees. Under each goal are strategies that further define and support the focus of each overarching area.

The District will proactively plan for future growth while striving to foster community pride.

Every student will have access to effective instructional practices and expanded opportunities to achieve educational excellence for future success.

The District will build a team of empowered, engaged, and highly skilled staff so that every student benefits from exemplary teaching and support. 

The Board approved the next set of construction bids for the second high school. Below are the twenty bids that were recommended for approval by the Building & Finance Committee. The combined total of these bids is $44,814,508, which is $286,339 below the preconstruction estimate. With this approval, about 85% of the project’s construction bids are approved.

The Community Resources page on the BPS website shares information about local programs available to help families with food sustainability and other essential needs. From food pantries and meal assistance to community outreach efforts, these resources are here to help families have access to what they need.

Mrs. Johnson is planning a TRIP TO EUROPE for all Sophomores students graduating in 2028! The trip will be 14 days and include 5 countries: The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Italy. It will depart as soon as school is out for the summer in 2028. 

There will be an INFORMATIONAL PARENT MEETING in January. Watch the newsletter for more information. Attend with your parents so that you have all of the information about travel, safety and the entire adventure!  

Also, visit our exclusive website for more information or to sign up: www.bluedottours.com/Johnson-8Y73

The Bennington Public School District does not discriminate on the basis of sex, disability, race, color, religion, veteran status, national or ethnic origin, age, marital status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical condition, or other protected status in its programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Students: Mr. Dan Bombeck, Director of Student Services, 11620 North 156th Street, P.O. Box 309, Bennington, NE 68007 (402) 238-3044 (dbombeck@bennps.org). Employees and Others: Dr. Matt Blomenkamp, Assistant Superintendent 11620 North 156th Street, P.O. Box 309, Bennington, NE 68007 (402) 238-3044 (mblomenkamp@bennps.org). Complaints or concerns involving discrimination or needs for accommodation or access should be addressed to the appropriate Coordinator. For further information about anti-discrimination laws and regulations, or to file a complaint of discrimination with the Office for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education (OCR), please contact the OCR at 601 East 12th Street, Room 353, Kansas City, MO 64106, (800) 368-1019 (voice), Fax (816) 426-3686, (800) 537-7697 (telecommunications device for the deaf), or ocr.kansascity@ed.gov.

The Bennington Public School District is committed to offering employment and educational opportunity to its employees and students in a climate free of discrimination. Accordingly, unlawful discrimination, harassment and retaliation of any kind by District employees, including, co-workers, non-employees (such as volunteers), third parties and others is strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated.