Mountain View hires business manager

BY ROBERT L. BAKER

Mountain View School Board approved Monday night the hiring of a new business manager.

Janice M. Finnochio of Saylorsburg was hired at an annual salary of $70,500 with a start date of March 12.

She is presently accounting manager at the Pocono Mountain School District and will replace James Mirabelli who resigned in the fall to become business administrator in the Abington Heights School District.

Resident Jay Wescott, who formerly served on the school board, asked, “How can the board afford that kind of salary when the previous guy had not had a raise in the whole time he was here?”

“We felt we had to pay it in order to compete with anyone else,” board president James Zick said.

“Plus she has a lot of experience in a much larger school district,” board member Dava Rinehart-Cowan said.

The board also heard from high school principal Andrew Doster who said only 39 students had signed up for the senior class trip this year.

“Can they go?” he asked.

“I say we let them,” board member Todd Adams said.

“No,” retorted board Cowan. “That’s just 39 out of 101?”

Board members discussed the matter and Adams said many of the seniors had been engaged in fundraisers since ninth grade, and it wasn’t fair to cut them out now.

The board took a voice vote with Adams the lone supporter and Cowan, Christine Plonski-Sezer, Sondra Stine, Thomas Stoddard and Zick the dissenters. Ellen Aherne and Roy Twining were absent and board member Kevin Griffiths recently resigned.

Based on questions from the public, Doster said the seniors were planning to take off two days to go to Virginia Beach at a cost of $459 pers senior.

He asked the board if 11 or 12 more came forward would the senior trip be back on?

Most of the board members seemed to nod approvingly, but no voice vote was taken.

In other business, Doster said he was concerned about scheduling courses for the fall and would like to get started sooner rather than later so as to not be happening while the district was planning for graduation.

The board could not reach any consensus and Stoddard said he’d like to have at least two meetings to study the matter.

The board voted not to close the Monday night meeting but rather have it set aside until the following Monday at 7 p.m. where the program scheduling matter could be discussed in full before the public.

Doster also reminded the board that he was at present the only administrator in the high school.

He said while he wanted to help teachers, and plan for the 21^st Century just day-to-day activities of discipline is occupying a big chunk of time, “and I’m spending my time just accomplishing tasks that have to be accomplished like discipline.”

“Something does need to give,” he said.

The board said they would also look into the time constraints placed on the principal in the next board meeting.

Superintendent Andrew Chichura shared with the board a 14-page document prepared by the Education Law Center which reviews the state budget submitted by Gov. Tom Corbett and how it affects education.

Board president Zick also briefly addressed the superintendent search process noting interviews a month ago and “we’re now negotiating a contract.”

The board acknowledged “notifications of intent to retire” by June 30 of Cynthia Singer, Sue Ann Wildrick, Susan Schaffer, Robert Fisher, Kathleen Kurosky, Mary Harrison, Cheryl Kerr, David Schulte, Constance Schulte and Sharon Kinney.

It also accepted letters of resignation due to retirement from Rose Borgna,  Marilyn Light and lauren Weilage.

The board also accepted the resignation of board member Griffiths from his Region 3- Lathrop Twp. position retroactive to Feb. 13, and authorized the board secretary to advertise for the position with applications due by March 9.

The resignation of junior high baseball coach Brion Stone was announced.

The following supplemental salary positions were also made: William Norton as junior varsity baseball coach, Anthony Borgia and Ernest Griffis and junior high baseball co-coaches, Ryan Hiller as junior high softball coach, Mark Hemmerly as boys’ volleyball coach, Jenny Ketaing in voleyball; and Diane Supancik as a mentor to Janice benedict, Anthony Borgia as a mentor to Ryan Hiller, and Debra Early as a mentor to Jenny Keating.

The board also approved a school calendar for 2012-2013 that calls for school start day of Aug. 29, last day of classes of June 6 and graduation on June 8.

Also approved Monday night was the green light for Mountain View to become involved with the Smile Pennsylvania Mobile Dentists program. Chichura said a mobile dentist office would be set up on school grounds at no cost to the school on selected days.