The Greene County School Board met last night.
The Board discussed the 2014-15 budget. The total amount for all the funds is estimated to be at $22,588,295 with a tax levy rate of $12.67 per $1,000 of property valuation. The total general fund revenue is $15,874,459 and that only 9% of the total budget comes from the school board directives. With the tax levy at $12.67, Jefferson-Scranton residents would add $.17 and East Greene residents would subtract $.39 for that to pay for the start of next school year.
The Board set April 9th at 6:30pm for the public hearing and finalization of the budget that has to be submitted to the state by April 15th.
The Board approved a $181,388 bid to Brockway Mechanical and Roofing to replace part of the roof with the high school auditorium and purchase a new suburban from Karl Chevrolet for $36,616. The Board also approved the Region XII Council of Governments Hazard Mitigation Plan.
The Board is expected to vote on the first reading to accept a new tiered diploma program that was presented in full detail at a previous Jefferson-Scranton School Board meeting. The amount of credits that will be required to graduate high school for a basic diploma will be 42 credits with an honors diploma to start with the freshmen class in 2018.
Superintendent Tim Christensen discussed the possibility of offering a three year-old preschool program for next school year. There will be a registration event on March 26th to gage how much interest there would be for a program. No action was taken by the Board on the topic.
A presentation was made about the student construction housing project. Instructor Chuck Wenthold said that the total cost ended up at about $202,000 and that there still needed to be drywall hung, plumbing done and other areas to be completed by the end of the school year. The Board suggested to have a floor plan mapped out for the Board to vote on whether or not to do another house by the July meeting.
To hear more about last night’s meeting, tune into today’s Let’s Talk Greene County program at 9am, noon and 5pm hours on KGRA with superintendent Tim Christensen.