Members of the Iola Underhogs barbecue team were recognized at Monday’s USD 257 board meeting for their standout performances at the National High School BBQ Association National Championships in Gardner. Team members Kevon Loving, Rohan Springer, Drake Genoble, and recent graduate Kenleigh Westhoff helped prepare championship-level barbecue for the board’s dinner prior to the meeting. The meal consisted of ribs, chicken legs, grilled cheese sandwiches, burnt ends, and baked potatoes.
Coach Doug Kerr shared that the boy team’s brisket earned 13th place nationally, while their chicken legs were national runner-ups. The girl team’s grilled cheese entry, led in part by Westhoff, earned three perfect scores in its first round and ultimately placed sixth in the country. The all-girls team earned third in their category and 16th overall, while the boys team finished 24th overall.
Most notably, Kerr added that Iola was one of the few teams at nationals without a paid professional coach. “We went toe-to-toe with teams coached by barbecue legends like Todd Johns of Plowboys and Heath Riles, the current world champion,” Kerr said. “There were a lot of people there that were world champions. Iola kids held their own and I was really, really proud of them.”
Looking ahead, the team has been invited to the American Royal barbecue contest in Kansas City this October and is exploring the formation of a middle school team to support growing interest. “We’re trying to figure out how to do a middle school team,” explained Kerr. “There is a middle school division, but four teams may be a little much for us. We’re trying to adjust and keep it at three teams.”
WESTHOFF, who represented Iola at the National FCCLA (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America) conference in Florida, also gave a report on her recent trip. Westhoff competed in the STAR (Students Taking Action with Recognition) event, earning a gold rating for her birthday celebration kits project. “That was a pretty big accomplishment because it is very difficult to even place at the state level,” Westhoff said. “To be able to move on from state to nationals was a great experience.”
She added that going to SeaWorld and Universal Studios were two highlights of the trip.
“This is the first time in a long while we’ve had someone qualify for nationals,” she noted of her accomplishment.
Following the student presentations, the board conducted its annual organizational business, adopting several resolutions:
• Official USD 257 board meeting dates were set for the 2025–26 school year, with some dates moved to Tuesdays due to holidays or teacher in-service days. The school calendar for the 2025-2026 school year was also approved.
• A 33% Local Option Budget (LOB) rate was reaffirmed. The LOB in Kansas school finance is a supplemental budget that school districts can adopt, funded by local property taxes. It is calculated as a percentage of the district’s modified Total Foundation Aid, and the maximum percentage is determined by state law. “It has served the district well at that amount,” noted Superintendent Stacey Fager.
• District mileage reimbursement was increased to the state rate of $0.70 per mile.
• Depositories for district funds remain unchanged, staying with Emprise Bank, Great Southern Bank, Community National Bank, and Landmark Bank.
The board also heard a technology update from Technology Coordinator Ben Prasko, who outlined infrastructure improvements. These include a complete transition from Cisco to Ubiquiti networking equipment, significantly reducing costs. Prasko also reported progress on a new intercom system at the elementary school, which should be operational early in the school year.
IN FACILITIES news, Fager reported on a tree trimming project at the high school. He noted that while the board had approved some routine trimming, the tree service uncovered more serious issues with several trees.
“Basically, it’s been an ongoing process, and it’s just getting to the point where the district probably needs to act now and plan for the future versus something bad happening and then having to react from that,” Fager said. A number of trees on the south side of the high school will be removed due to concerns about their stability. Many are hollow or at risk of falling, posing safety hazards to pedestrians or vehicles.
Fager said the district will work to develop a replanting plan. “No one likes to see a tree come down,” he said, “And I realize when a number of these come down, there will probably be some calls to the school district or maybe even to the Register on what’s happening.” Ultimately, he said, the decision was made in the best interest of students and public safety.
