MA board approves $23M budget

BY PAT FARNELLI

The Montrose Area school board approved a final budget of nearly $23 million Wednesday evening at a special public meeting.

According to Superintendent Michael Ognosky, the $22,993,898 budget was $1,318,000 less than the previous year’s.

There was no increase in millage or taxes.

The district’s Capital 22 fund has a remainder of $759,268.10. In the bills to be paid fund, there remains about $55,000 for bills that are yet to be paid for the new administration building. Some work still remains to be done before the contractors can be paid in full.

Mike Boccella, who was recently named Dean of Students at the high school, was granted an unpaid leave of absence for the entire 2011-12 school year from the positions of assistant football coach and senior high student council adviser.

Ognosky said that Boccella wished to focus his efforts on the dean of students position.

Jennifer McPherson, learning support instructional aide at the Choconut Valley Elementary School, was granted an unpaid leave of absence Aug. 30-Dec. 22.

The operation of a 2011 summer library at the Choconut Valley Elementary School was approved, with Renee Hare as librarian for a maximum of 24 hours at the contracted rate of $29.08 per hour.

According to the district’s website, athletes in the Montrose Area School District will need to schedule physicals with a family physician.

At the PIAA State Board of Directors meeting on May 25, 2011, a longer and more detailed sport physical is called for. This apparently will no longer allow the district to complete the volume of physicals required at the school site. Therefore the school will no longer be doing physicals.

If you have any questions on this matter, please call the Joseph Gilhool, athletic director at the Montrose Area School District at 278-6204 or email him at jgilhool@masd.info.

Ken Gould of the Southern Tier Vet Association attended the meeting to recognize two high school students, Spenser Craige and Carolyn Myer for their contributions to local veterans organizations. Craige and Myer created stationery and logos for the veterans group in their graphic arts class.

A Buildings & Grounds Committee meeting was held immediately after the special meeting.

Several tasks remain in the completion of the administration building before contractors can be paid in full. The board also heard from the Choconut Valley Elementary School’s sports programs concerning a request about reassigning gym use in winter.

The next school board meeting will be at the Choconut Valley Elementary School on July 18 at 7 p.m.