RHS Community Council
Richfield High School
495 West Center Street
Richfield, Utah 84701
Date: January 13, 2026
Place: RHS Conference Room
Time: 3:00 PM
In attendance: Kristin Perschon, Nate Blackner, Phoenix Aguilar, Leann Jessen, Brent Gubler, Dixie Farnsworth
Not able to attend - updated by email: Brittani Barton, Kimberli Washburn, Stefanie Anderson, April Kirschner
- Minutes from Last Meeting
- Reviewed minutes from last meeting - Mr. Gubler approved, Sara Shaddix 2nd it
- Review current plan
- Mr. Blackner showed
- 2026/2027 School Land Trust Plan
- Approve/vote on plan
- Additional funding for 26/27 - State school trust lands officials announced that during 2026-27 school year, Utah public schools will get a record $134 million distribution from trust land investments. This is a 20% bump from last year. This increase is from the state’s longstanding trust land system “reflects strong financial performance from trust land management. The jump also reflects the first year of additional money after Utah voters in 2024 approved a constitutional amendment, Amendment B. (Utah News Dispatch, January 7, 2026)
TSSA/Trustlands funds will be clumped together
- How can we use the extra funding to help support our goals?
- Biggest frustration for administration and teachers is attendance. Attendance is a habit that is set well before high school. All schools are having the same conversation on attendance.
- CAT time - every Monday morning an f report and truant list is printed from previous week. We have seen significant improvement. Graph side by side shows that we currently have 100 less fs than we did last year. The numbers are going down. We have noticed a spike before midterm.
- Incentives - Students are released early for lunch on Wed. for good behavior, Thursday for academic, Friday for wildcat pride clothing.
- Culture of the school? Rewards for students with attendance?
- Some of the TSSA money for the current year has been to add seating around the school for students to hang out and socialize.
- How can we make CAT time more positive and incentivize students to go to CAT time. Rewards that come sooner to keep them coming.
- Leann Jessen suggested the idea of a student advocate. The student advocate would target first level intervention. Help supervision in hall ways, CAT time, enrichment activities. This position would need to be a person who could relate well to students. This would require full access to student info and help take some of the follow up with students from counselors and administrative work. Student advocates would prioritze their responsibilities and assigned intervention each week. Introductory level. More focus should be on intervention on freshman and sophomores. Admin. Weekly… how to involve the whole school.
- Counseling/ Upcoming Calendaring Items
- Leann Jessen updated what the counseling office has been doing.
Meeting with seniors and making sure they are ready to graduate.
Preparing for UHED - all Juniors in February. Counselors have meet with 9th, 11th and 12th graders, hoping to a meet with all sophomores in classrooms.
- ACT Testing, March 10 for all Juniors, PTC 3:30-6:30 pm
- Midterms due March 11
- Next Year’s Scheduling Dates
- March 16 @ 6:30 pm Next Year’s Senior/Junior Parent Registration Meeting
- April 13 @ 6:30 pm Next Year’s Sophomore Parent Registration Meeting
- April 20 @ 6:30 Next Year’s Freshmen Parent Registration Meeting
Mr. Blackner asked parents on the council what is the biggest challenge for parents when it comes to registration?
- Identifying classes that will meet student’s interests and prepare them for careers.
- Counseling department suggested: Scheduling (YOU science) brain games - possibly during advisory and prepare them for CCR.
- 2026-2027 Community Council
- Parent opening