Apr 17, 2008

The Ava R-I School Board was restructured last week following the April 8 election, and three men were voted into service on the board. Newly elected candidates taking the oath of office were Randy Spurlock, Bill Philpott and incumbent, Jeffory Davis, who was elected last year to fill an unexpired term. After the new members were officially installed, the board selected a new slate of officers for the year, voting Don Scrivner as board president, Jeff Davis, vice-president; Judy Lovan, secretary. Board members were faced with a variety of issues and decisions last Thursday, as the board not only reorganized, but also held an open meeting to vote on bid specs for a roof project, held a closed session to deal with student problems and personnel issues, and held a public hearing on the 2008-09 school calendar. The meeting lasted 2½ hours. The public hearing was convened to comply with legislation passed last year, a law which went into effect August 28, 2007, and applies to the 2008-09 calendar, and subsequent school years. The new standard requires each school year to begin no earlier than ten days before Labor Day; however, the bill also has an exception to the scheduling rule, and stipulates the district can set an earlier date if the board first holds a public meeting and votes to set the start date sooner. Last Thursday ten teachers and two parents attended the hearing to voice opinions about the calendar's early start date and to express displeasure in the way the calendar process had been handled this year. Several concerns were presented from the group, however, three issues appeared to be dominant. Those issues were –– the public hearing had not been publicized throughout the district; the 2008-09 calendar had not been developed by committee members as in previous years; and several had opposition to the early start date of August 13 Dr. Andy Underwood, superin¬tendent, addressed many of the concerns stating semester dates and vacation times had been based on a plan that would assist with overall student perform¬ance, with special consideration given to high school students. Underwood noted the school is required to meet 174 days, (or 1044 hours), consequently the calendar format did not allow for much change or "wiggle room". However, Underwood said Dr. Nancy Lawler has documented staff comments on the issue and that positive and negative feedback has been received. Public hearing concerns were resolved by tabling the issue, postponing a decision on the school calendar for one week. The hearing was rescheduled for Thursday, April 17, 6:30, and will be held in the administration building prior to the monthly business meeting Thursday evening (today). Displeased with development of the 2008-09 school calendar was another issue brought to the board. Group comments indicated the staff member in charge of the committee failed to convene meetings as has been done in past years, and that little effort was made to solicit opinions from the committee. In fact, two members of the calendar committee were present Thursday evening, and both individuals said they were misled on meeting times and confused about committee directives and leadership. During closed session, four resignations were accepted by the board, including two individuals retiring from the custodial staff–– Ralph Call, middle school and Karen Allen, elementary. Allen has worked in the school system 24 years. Fourth-grade teacher Jo Shrable tendered her resignation. Teaching 16 years, Shrable has devoted 12 years of her career to Ava students. Brenda Brown, an elementary aide, also resigned. The board filled two position in high school hiring Jeff Tabor of Ava, to teach biology, and Retha Lippard of Elsinore, for family and consumer science. Tabor, who has a degree but is not certified, was employed with a 2-year provisional clause. In a previous meeting, the board hired Connie Lee to fill the position of special education director, a job held by Terri Bengston who is retiring this year. Lee is coordinator of the second grade reading intervention program. Joe Venturoni of Sam A. Winn & Associates Architects, P.C., provided board members with an overview of bids submitted on the roofing project for the library and cafeteria in the middle school. In a 7-0 vote, the board agreed to accept a bid for $181,457 from Stiles Roofing of Lebanon. The bid from Stiles was not the lowest amount submitted for the project; however, after a discussion on work quality and use of the new TPO material on the project, board members determined the company was the best candidate for the job. Venturoni noted Stiles displayed a positive job performance record and has always provided excellent warranty work. Stiles is also the roofing contractor for the storm shelter/ performing arts center. The TPO material chosen for the project is a reinforced plastic fabric that is heat welded on site. The board opted to use this material because of recommendations given by Lennie Johnson, maintenance supervisor. In previous roofing projects, the school has used EPDM rubber sheets, a product that uses glue and caulk. However, according to Johnson, both products offer a 15-year warranty. School board members attending the meeting were Judy Lovan, Don Scrivner, Randy Spurlock, Randy Ross, Jeff Davis, Rick Ritter and Bill Philpott.