Our Hometown
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Newark School Board meets Last night, the Newark School Board announced the resignation of Jim Henderson. The High School dean of students for the past three years, Henderson plans to retire effective July 1. Board Vice President David Honness asked for a moment of silence for Ashley Henkel, seventh-grade student who passed away suddenly Monday. In public session, Ange DeJohn asked questions about the use of Roosevelt Children's Center on Peirson Avenue. She was told that the rental of space from that facility was on a temporary basis only. Newark school district has no control of the Roosevelt facility. Former Board member Mary Moseley asked for more information about an incident involving problems with a boiler at Lincoln school a few weeks ago. Business Manager Robert Fogel stressed that the accidental activation of the heating system at the school should not have happened and that the system should have been locked out. Fogel insists that the rumor that massive heat had built up in the furnace room is untrue. Fogel stressed that all alarms worked properly when th heat built up and did send proper notification to the fire department. Moseley also asked about an agenda item approving a one-year extension of Supt. Robert Christmann's contract through 2004. She was told that his contract, a five-year (renewable on a yearly basis), is common in area school districts. Matias resignation Options were discussed about filling a vacancy on the board of education created by the resignation of Gloria Matias. The vacancy could be left until next year, the board could appoint a person to fill the one year remaining, or the district may schedule an election in September for that one-year seat. The board also discussed the option of appointing the third-highest vote getter in the recent election, or soliciting applications from the public. Board members expressed their views on the vacancy. Russ Harris advised the board to review the application process now. Jeff Snow said the void should be filled as soon as possible. Dave Honness and Barb Wheeler both pushed for a speedy replacement, with Nancy Rohlin indicating that leaving the seat vacant for a year might not be a problem. Honness then made a motion to appoint the third-place vote getter in the recent election (Dr. Louis Jasper) to the one-year vacancy, with a second to the motion by Snow. More discussion followed with School Board President Dave Howard favoring a poll of interested parties. Honness disagreed, saying this would circumvent the democratic process. The motion was tabled while Fogel checked to see what the official process involved, to replace a board member. After looking into the state regulation on the matter, Fogel said the board cannot act until June 11, when the Matias' resignation is official. Safety in schools A proposal was unveiled for board consideration regarding the safety of everyone who uses schools. A handout of the proposal described the possible funding of a video security system which would be used primarily at the high school and, to some extent, at Kelley School, due to its proximity to the high school. The system would monitor in-school activities as well as building access. Under the system, as many as 16 cameras would be strategically placed in the high school hallways, parking lots, and areas behind the school. The cameras would also be installed in selected locations at Kelley. Christmann explained that the system could save images recorded on the cameras and those images can be later referred to and magnified. For example, a car license plate could be read at a distance of 200 yards from the camera. Christmann said that the system would not be monitored on a continous basis. Many board members felt that without monitoring, the system would be re-active, and not pro-active. A discussion was held concerning other safety proposals, including a hotline, which would enable students and residents to air concerns or problems without having to be indentified. Dave Howard, who admits he's not a proponent of cameras, would like to see a total package of safety programs. Student Abbey Nedvesky said she feels safe at school and questioned the need to spend money for cameras. Joanne Mincemoyer said that she understands the need to monitor the buildings, given that they are open for community use on wide scale, but she is not in favor of the cameras. The vote was held approving the installation of the monitoring system at a cost of approximately $6000, with Howard casting the lone no vote. The school board: - Okayed scholarships by the Garlock Field and Gun Club and the Marbletown Auxiliary. (Board member Jeff Snow disliked the gun club reference and voted no on the Garlock proposal.) - Approved summer school music lessons as part of Continuing Community Education. - Announced that the Village of Newark will hold a Shareholders Meeting on Tuesday, June 1, at 7 p.m. concerning a proposed skateboard/recreation facility. The meeting will be held in the high school auditorium. - Approved a one-year extension of Supt. Christmann's contract through June 30, 2004. - Announced a Neighborhood Meeting at Perkins Elementary school on June 15, at 5:30 p.m. This meeting is to allow neighbors, and other interested parties to ask questions about the Perkins School project. Copyright © 1999 |
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