Student school board member added
FAIRMONT – Bel Lutterman was added as the Fairmont School Board’s third student representative during Tuesday’s board meeting.
Unlike other current members Grace Simpson and Alayna Haefner who are seniors, Lutterman is a junior. She will be on the board for the rest of the school year, with the offer open to stay on her senior year as well.
Lutterman said she is close with Simpson and Haefner, and they had recommended she give it a shot.
“I thought it was a cool opportunity to share my perspective as a student at Fairmont,” Lutterman said.
To join, she filled out an application and met with Superintendent Andy Traetow regarding goals and insights for student representatives. Lutterman said she is looking forward to being a conduit between school officials and the student body.
“I like to hear what’s going on within our building,” she said. “As a student, it’s nice to bring my perspective to meetings. Be able to communicate from the building to meetings and from the meetings to the building.”
After her first meeting, she said she had learned a lot about the different committees and how they operate. She had also heard rumblings about a girls’ flag football program, so to have that confirmed by the board was great.
Being able to share her vision and discuss issues with the school board is something Lutterman said is a really important opportunity.
“Fairmont has tons of students,” she said. “To be one of three able to bring their perspective to the board every single meeting is cool.”
Board Member Nicole Green said Lutterman came highly recommended by Traetow and shared the importance of student school board members.
“It’s invaluable the information and the insights they bring to the meetings,” Green said. “We look forward to working with [all] of you for this school year.”
In addition to the standard meetings, Traetow will meet with the three student members once a month to discuss student issues with them and hear their thoughts and concerns.
Green motioned to accept Lutterman onto the board, which Board Member Mike Edman seconded. The motion carried unanimously.
In other news
— Traetow announced Fairmont schools had received a grant from the Minnesota Vikings to institute a girls’ flag football team for spring 2025. The grant includes 25 uniforms which will look like their football jerseys. The sport will be on a club level and not through the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL). Traetow said they are one of the only southern Minnesota schools to be chosen for this grant program.
— A report was given by School Resource Officer Lily Paine. She said a lot of her job is educating students on the laws and rules, meaning she often has her door open. Paine also mentioned the adopt a cop program for first graders. She said it’s a great age for the program as they introduce themselves to the kids early and the kids are very enthusiastic about the police and what they do.