Business As Usual For The School Board As Referendum Closes

By Eliza Hallabeck

While the May 18 referendum came to a close, the Board of Education was conducting its regular meeting at the Newtown Municipal Center.

Board of Ed members unanimously approved each motion before them during the meeting, from applying for Race To The Top funds to approving a memorandum of understanding with the town for self-insurance.

Clapping and a standing ovation from the school board and members of the public greeted the Newtown High School valedictorian and salutatorian at the start of the meeting, as NHS Vice Principal Jason Hiruo introduced them to the school board.

Amar Agashe was named as the NHS 2010 class valedictorian and Zoe DeStories was named as this year’s salutatorian.

“This is a very exciting time for us,” said Mr Hiruo.

“Congratulations to you, and to your parents,” said school board Chair Lillian Bittman.

Superintendent Janet Robinson said, during her report to the board, the district is within two weeks of finding replacements for both Sandy Hook School Principal Donna Pagé, who is retiring at the end of this school year, and Middle Gate Principal Judith Liestman, who is relocating at the end of the school year.

During a presentation by Middle Gate School representatives, finishing the school presentations to the board that have been happening all year, Dr Robinson received word of the May 18 referendum results. After the presentation was over, she delivered the news to the school board. The referendum failed by 97 votes.

Self-Funded Insurance

Finance Director Robert Tait explained to the school board where the process of setting up self-funded insurance between the school district and the town is.

“The contribution to a self-insurance fund is an estimate,” said Mr Tait. “It is based on 12 months of prior claims.”

The process will become easier as the town and district move forward, according to Mr Tait.

“It is a continuous estimate,” said Mr Tait. “If we are slightly wrong at the end of next year, our medical consultant is going to take that into account and will create a premium rate for us in which to contribute to the fund the year after.”

Over time, a balance will accrue and will be used to smooth out bad years.

“I think this year we really had no choice, because of the budget year,” he said.

The school board later unanimously approved a self-insurance memorandum of understanding with the town.

Ms Bittman said the goal is to have the self-insurance process to last beyond anyone in the room on Tuesday.

According to Dr Robinson, the Newtown High School expansion and renovation project is still about two weeks behind schedule, but the contractor who is behind is working weekends and other times to get everything caught up.

The existing gym roof is scheduled to be removed later this week, she said, and the new roof is scheduled to arrive June 7.

Later, board member David Nanavaty reported the contract negotiations with the school district’s owner/operators are considered over.

Ms Bittman said the district would still be open to future negotiations with the district’s independently contracted bus drivers, but felt the current negotiations were at an end.

While Mr Nanavaty said he would prefer to maintain the owner/operators in the school district, there was no meeting of the minds during the negotiations.

There are two years left on the school district’s current contract with the owner/operators.

School board member William Hart said he would like to see the district stay with the owner/operators also, but would prefer a competitive bid process. Agreeing the owner/operators are important to the town, Ms Bittman also said the purpose of the negotiations was to see if the owner/operators would be a more competitive group, so the district could work with them.

“Unfortunately,” she said, “in this round of negotiations, this is where we are at.”

During her budget update later in the meeting, Dr Robinson said the district is trying to establish what savings from retiring positions in the district will be this year.

“We were counting on getting 22,” she said. “We did not get 22.”

In other news, the school board unanimously approved applying for a Race To The Top grant through the state. Regardless of whether the state is granted money for the program from the national level, Dr Robinson said the town would have to comply with state-imposed regulations. Applying for the grant would give the district funds in the event the state receives money for its program.