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The Loyalsock School Board approved several additions to the district's faculty and approved several other items at its recent board meeting.
Richard Cummings was named as assistant high school principal, effective Aug. 1, with a prorated salary of $83,160.00 for the 2024-25 school year.
Other faculty appointments include: Jacob Golbitz as a health/physical education teacher, effective Aug. 20; Nicole Duarte-Turi as a secondary school counselor, effective Aug. 20; and Derrick Hicks as a mathematics teacher, effective Aug. 20.
Other staffing approved by the board include Tabetha Springman as part-time food service employee, effective July 11, at an hourly rate of $12.50.
After much discussion, the board approved the purchase of an elementary school sign from WJ Strickler Signs Inc., New Oxford, in the amount of $16,060.
While stating his support for a sign and the fact that staff were polled on which design they preferred, board member David Bjorkman expressed his concern for the cost of the project, while board member Tyler Richardson questioned the aesthetics of the sign versus the school building.
"The Schick school is built out of red brick, and there's no mountain stone anywhere on the school and architecturally, aesthetically, it just blends better to me," Richardson said, adding that cost was also a concern for him.
"When you look up square footage prices for supply and install compared to a veneer stone and a brickstone, you're almost $3,300 more than the stone veneer option for the brick," Richardson said.
"This is a great opportunity to work with any of a number of construction companies within the district. They can come and hire someone to put up a lock masonry piers and then the sign company we can use the same sign company, but the sign company, I can almost guess probably does not have Mason's employed, so they're going to hire a generic company, they're gonna mark it up, and then they're going to send it to us. So I just don't agree with the pricing," he continued.
Board member Michael Zicolello also stated his difference of opinion over the design.
"I think all three pictures look really good on a computer screen, but I think when you put the mountain stone in front of the school brick building, that people are going to drive by for years and say 'what school board put that mountain stone in front of a brick building," he said.
In other business, the board approved the final/revised 2024-2025 school calendar, as well as an agreement with River Rock Academy LLC, 1220 Northway Road, to provide alternative educational services during the 2024-2025 school year; and an affiliation agreement with The Penn State University, College of Information Sciences & Technology, to allow for the placement of student interns within the district.
In financial matters, the board gave approval for the sale of two 2010 Thomas Freightliner 81 Passenger School Buses, for a cost of $5,000.00 and $5,200.00, respectively to Shawn Weaver, Everett; and the purchase of window tint from PA Window Tint, Bellefonte, in the total amount of $25,942.00. Funds for this project will come from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime & Delinquency School Safety and Security Grant.
The next school board meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Aug. 7.