KO School Board Notes

The following items were discussed and/or voted on at the Dec. 7 meeting.

• The board requested a status report on discussions of a four-day school week. Acting Superintendent Kathy Foster said a four-day school week was briefly considered when state subsidies for education funding were reduced, but that there was no status update on it because there has been no further discussion or action. Discussions were internal, she said, and did not involve the state. She said the school is not currently considering making this change.

• Foster said the school improvement plan is underway at the high school. The plan address needs shown by PSSA test scores such as curriculum gaps, remediation and mentoring programs for at-risk students and other educational programs. Although all five schools made adequate yearly progress, Foster said, the district must create an anticipatory improvement plan for next year. That plan is due by July 1. Board member David Hommrich suggested that parents should be more involved in the school improvement plan. Board president Gary Alward said the best way to include parents would be for them to attend education committee meetings.

• The board unanimously approved Kelly Beck as a fulltime speech and language therapist for Myrtle and Aiken elementary schools, at a rate of $200 per day. Beck will serve as a replacement for speech and language therapist Elizabeth Salimbene, who will take a leave of absence from Dec. 15 to mid-March.

• The board voted 8-0 to add Susan Thiebaud to the substitute teacher roster for elementary school for the 2011-12 school year. Hommrich abstained from the vote. He was not given information on the matter, he said.

• The board voted 8-0 to approve Erin Wright as the eighth-grade girls basketball coach for the 2011-12 school year. Hommrich abstained from the vote because he was not given information on the matter, he said.

• The board voted 7-0 to approved compensation, payable in December, to the following individuals for cross country: Erin Wright, $100; Judi Fritz, $50; Kaitlin Yasko, $50. The board also approved compensation for girls tennis to David Bender for $100 and Heather Hruby for $50. Hommrich and Domalik abstained from the vote. Both said they had not received information on the matter.

• The board voted 8-0 to approve Jerry Jeannett for intramurals at Dormont Elementary and Lauren Obringer for bus duty at Myrtle Elementary. Hommrich abstained from the vote.

The board will hold a meeting Dec. 20 at 7 p.m. to discuss the budget. The next regular meeting will be Jan. 19.