Students at the Nobleboro Central School (NCS) will have a slightly longer school day, this year. The school day has been extended by 20 minutes with a new schedule designed to increase student learning.
Principal Ann Hassett reported the change to the Nobleboro Central School Board when it met Aug. 20. The board also approved two staffing changes.
They approved the creation of a half-time school health coordinator position, following approval by the AOS 93 board at their Aug. 14 meeting. The position will be paid for through district-wide shared health services funds.
AOS 93 Supt. Steve Bailey said, Aug. 28, that a slight excess in those accounts made it possible to fund the position that will fill the void created when the school health coordinator positions across the state were cut from Department of Health and Human Services programming funds in June.
The one-year position, which is a reduction from the full-time position previously funded, will coordinate the health program throughout the district. Funding for future years will need to be obtained through grants or built into the AOS 93 shared health services budgets.
The board also approved the expansion of the current library educational technician II position from three days per week to full time. The person in that position will serve the library three days each week, and the Center for Alternative Learning and Resource Room for one day each. The position is to be paid for through salary savings.
A misunderstanding between the AOS and the Maine Department of Education led to an inaccurate estimate of funds available to NCS through the Federal Jobs Bill.
Supt. Steve Bailey said the district’s former business manager allocated funds among the district’s five schools in “a way we thought was proper, related to the percentage of kids in each.” Under that determination, NCS was budgeted to receive $16,583. Bailey said the Dept. of Education set the actual amounts for each school and that NCS’s share was $411.82
In spite of the difference, savings on expenditures left an estimated fund balance of $288,433 for fiscal year 2013.
As in districts throughout the state, AOS 93 schools are adopting federally-mandated changes to their Student Computer and Internet Use and Internet Safety policies, as well as policy and procedure changes in regard to the use of physical restraint and seclusion.
Both of these policies will receive their second reading and be adopted, if approved, at the board’s next meeting.
A law passed by the 125th State of Maine Legislature allows AOS budget approval to occur at the board level rather than at an annual public meeting, as has been the practice. This potential change will be reviewed and acted upon by the AOS 93 board later this fall.
Meetings will be scheduled with town officials to alert them to the law change and to solicit input as to the pros and cons of adopting this process. Approval must come from a majority of voters in the AOS.
A vote on the proposal must occur during a statewide election, and is tentatively planned for the Tues. Nov. 6 presidential and general election. If passed, the new budget protocol would take effect in December 2014 for the fiscal year 2015 budget.
The Nobleboro Central School’s annual K-3 ice cream social is scheduled for 6-7 p.m. on Thurs., Aug.30.
The next regular meeting of the School Board will be on Mon., Sept. 17 at 6 p.m. at Nobleboro Central School, due to the Labor Day holiday. Please note the change in the week for this meeting only.
Meetings are held the second Monday of each month, except on holidays.
