The Trenton R-9 Board of Education hired two individuals to fill vacancies, heard a report on MAP tests and approved several policy updates during a meeting on Tuesday night.
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The Trenton R-9 Board of Education hired two individuals to fill vacancies, heard a report on MAP tests and approved several policy updates during a meeting on Tuesday night.
On a 4-3 vote, Pat Arthaud of Trenton was hired as the vocal music accompanist at an hourly rate of $10. Mrs. Arthaud would be in the classroom 4 1/2 hours a week and would also provide accompaniment for concerts, show choir and music competitions.
In making the recommendation, Trenton High School Principal Fred Boland said that Mrs. Arthaud had requested $20 per hour, but that he had indicated he wasn’t sure the board would be willing to pay that amount. In meeting with vocal music instructor Sherry Whitt, Boland said he would recommend that a maximum amount be placed on the number of hours that Mrs. Arthaud would work, then negotiate the salary.
Board member Cathy McKay said that with the recent budget cuts made, she would like to see if there was someone in the district that perhaps would be able to fill the position, perhaps on a voluntary basis. Boland noted that because of the time that would be necessary for that individual to be in the music classroom, it would not be feasible to have another district employee leave his or her job to fill that responsibility. Board member Laura Meek expressed her concern about the salary for the position and board member Don Sager recommended the $10 per hour salary figure, noting that the board needed to be “good stewards of the public’s money.”
Voting in favor of the motion were Sager, Mrs. Meek, Terry Blattner and Dr. John Holcomb. Opposed were Mrs. McKay, Jim Cox and Denise Hamilton.
The board voted 7-0 to hire Melissa Tungate of Trenton as the special education paraprofessional at the high school. She will spend six hours per day as a paraprofessional and one hour as a job coach.
Dorothy Allnutt presented information on the Missouri Assessment Program test, given last spring, and discussed the scores as related to the “No Child Left Behind” federal legislation and the district’s annual yearly progress report. Mrs. Allnutt reiterated information that had previously appeared in the Republican-Times, which showed the district having met AYP requirements in communication arts at the high school and in communication arts and math at the elementary school as well as having met the overall requirements in math. She noted that there are several subcategories for each test and if one of the subcategories does not meet the minimum standard, the whole test group does not meet the requirement. Superintendent Craig Noah and Mrs. Allnutt both agreed that areas in which the district did not meet the standards were correctable and that the district would be working to improve in those areas.
Director of Special Services Louise Reasoner also gave a report on the English Language Proficiency Assessment, which was given to 11 students in the district who use English as a second language and said all 11 met the requirements. It was the first time the test was given in the district.
The board approved several policy changes as recommended by the Missouri School Board Association. Two concerned procedures for public complaints involving the federal programs and gifted identification while 15 involved policy changes ranging from legal status and educational beliefs and mission to early graduation and superintendent evaluation. There were also changes involving five forms the district uses for various programs.
In other business, the board:
? was told that a committee was being formed for the Proposition C rollback waiver issue that will be placed on the November ballot. Volunteers from the district are being sought to participate on the committee, with Noah saying the district wanted individuals who were both for and against. Among the items which the committee would work on would be to formulate a list of priorities for which the money would be used should the issue pass. Noah said those who would like to be on the committee should contact the district office by Sept. 19. It was noted that there would be no school board members or district employees on the committee.
? was told information was being gathered for the possibility of formulating a student activity fee for the 2004-2005 school year. Noah said the fee, if approved, would be for all extracurricular activities. There are several areas that will be examined before any decision is made, including how to make sure all students have the opportunity to participate even if they can’t afford to. Several board members expressed support for making sure that the participation is not affected because of costs.
? heard reports from the principals concerning various activities and enrollment figures.
? heard that the Foundation Trust for THS had made a $16,000 donation to the school district for the high school commons air conditioning project. The air conditioning has been installed with the final cost being $32,250.
? was told that time clocks were being installed for use by all non-certified personnel to provide more accurate records of time being worked.
? was introduced to the 2003-2004 Rissler Elementary School Student Council officers and members.
? was told the state MSBA meeting would be Oct. 24-26 at Tan-Tar-A and the Region 2 MSBA meeting would be Sept. 23 at Chillicothe.
An executive session was held following the regular meeting for personnel, legal, real estate and student concerns. Noah said an announcement involving personnel would be forthcoming within the 72-hour timeline allowed by the Open Meetings Law.