Mt.View students warned about vaccines

BY ROBERT L. BAKER

Around 80 Mountain View students will risk being shut out of school if they don’t have the correct vaccines by May 1.

Elementary principal Robert Presley made the announcement during a school board work session Monday night (Apr. 9), noting he and high school principal Andrew Doster had been working with the school district nurse to get all students in compliance with the state’s immunization requirements that changed at the beginning of the 2011-12 school year.

All students are to get a second dose of the chicken pox vaccine and seventh graders should receive two vaccines: tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis and miningococcal conjugate.

Superintendent Andrew Chichura said the students would not be allowed back in school until the vaccination issue has been resolved.

Presley noted that a vaccination clinic was available in Montrose.

Much of Monday’s work session was, in fact, an opportunity to delve into some issues that will impact the 2012-13 budget.

Early on Patty Baresse of the Nutrition Group which contracts to provide meals atMountain View, spoke to new federal regulations for school cafeterias.

She noted that national standards for school breakfast and lunch programs were introduced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in January as part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act.

Some of the changes that must take place in school lunches at the start of the next school year as required by the USDA, include:

*Can’t serve whole and 2 percent milk.

*Larger portions of fruits and vegetables. For example, at the elementary level, the cafeteria offers one-half cup of vegetables to students, but next year they will be required to serve three-quarters cup of vegetables. At the high school, the cafeteria currently offers one-half cup of vegetables and one-half cup of fruits, but the new requirement will be a full cup of fruits and a full cup of vegetables.

In order to receive a reimbursable meal, students will be required to take a fruit or vegetable with their lunch. In the past, a student could decline both the fruit and vegetable component of their meal.

*Whole-grain food choices will be increased. At least half of the grains offered in the cafeterias will have to be whole-grain.

*The amounts of saturated fat, trans fat and sodium will be limited.

Baresse noted that while on a daily basis the food changes are modest, it is expected they will add $50,067 toMountain View’s costs next year.

She estimated that the school serves about 140,000 lunches each year, and the changes will add about 35 cents meal.

Lunch prices for the school district are presently $1.50 for the elementary school and $1.75 for the high school.

Chichura said the district would have to increase the lunch prices a minimum of 10 cents and also establish new prices for ala carte menu items, probably at its April 23 voting meeting.

New business manager Janice Finnochio also provided overhead presentations with historical data leading into 2012-13 budget discussions.

She noted that in the special education area “I don’t see a lot of wiggle room.” What was budgeted for 2011-12 is $329,400 compared to what is projected for 2012-13 is $331,300.

In the information technology area what was budgeted for 2011-12 is $170,000 compared to what is projected in 2012-13 at $180,000.

Finnochio said, however, the change doesn’t take into effect two looming issues that will need to be addressed.

Flat screen monitors which are more energy efficient should replace the present 265 workstations in the district, she said. At a cost of $100 each, that alone would cost $26,500. Finnochio said after August of this year the district would also have to pay a recycling fee to get rid of old monitors.

She also noted that the Windows XP operating system used on the computers will no longer be supported after August 2014.

In response to a question by board member Thomas Stoddard, Finnochio said licensing or upgrading for a new operating system could run as much as $400 a station.

In the maintenance area, $684,700 is budgeted for 2011-12 and $740,200 is projected for 2012-13.

Robert Taylor, who oversees maintenance for the district noted that the federal Environmental Protection Agency is now mandating regular water testing to the tune of $3,100 each time it’s done because the school buildings are within 160 feet of the road (Rt. 106) and salt had been regularly used on the road for winter maintenance, although not so much this past winter.

Later in the meeting,Taylornoted a preconstruction meeting would take place in May regarding a roofing project this summer. He said it had to be done by August 19 and was projected to start the week of June 18.

Finnochio provided an updated budget summary to what had been provided by the previous business manager in December, and noted an original deficit coming into 2011-12 of $898,977 had been pared down as of April 9 to a structural deficit for the current school year of $475,534.

Superintendent Chichura also provided an overview of three options the board could look at regarding scheduling school day changes, which he said would be posted online for the public’s perusal.

The first option which started each school day with a self-directed period for teacher in-service- 7:35 a.m. at the high school and 7:45 at the elementary school, was the most logical solution to revamping the school schedule, Chichura said.

However, he noted that the district has received a letter from the teacher’s bargaining unit that stated the potential change in start of day was not what had been established in teacher’s contracts and could constitute a labor grievance.

Board member Todd Adams asked how the teacher’s group could be approached.

Chichura said the board would need a memorandum of understanding.

“If we can successfully renegotiate it between now and June 30, it can be done,” he said.

However, he noted the board would probably need to make a decision April 23 on hard facts not on what might be done.

In the principal’s comments’ section, Doster turned his time over to Charlene Olcese, who moved over to the high school to direct music efforts after decades of working at the elementary school level.

She noted that more than 200 students in the high school were involved in music this year and she was especially proud of the students who auditioned for districts and regionals and the seven students who were selected with some of the region’s finest to give an honors concert at Marywood.

Graduating senior Kelly Purdy, who was one of the seven to perform at Marywood, addressed the board members by thanking them for caring enough to promote the music program.

Noting budget cuts, she said, “I just want you to know how important it is to keep music in our schools.”

Purdy will be studying music atMansfieldUniversityand said it was an awesome experience to go to the various music festivals this year and meet up with great conductors, and students from other schools.

Olcese received a round of applause after board president James Zick thanked her for coming over from the elementary school and “having done such a wonderful job.”

She said it was the students like Purdy who deserved the credit. “We just help them along,” she said.

Board member Christine Plonski-Sezer, said that Olcese need not sell herself short. “You decided they were worth your time. You motivated them, and that’s all that matters.”

Olcese noted she would be directing her 35th and final stage concert in the weeks ahead.

 

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