EMPORIUM — The Cameron County School District will be looking to fill several positions for sports programs and support positions following resignations from five individuals.
The resignations of head football coach Scott Burnside and head softball coach Ralph McKimm Jr. were both accepted, effective immediately, during Thursday night’s school board meeting. The district will advertise for both positions. No reason was given for either resignation. Softball will be the more pressing matter, as games typically begin at the end of March.
Two coaches were retained. James Cooney will continue as the head baseball coach, and Shawn Bidwell will stay on as head track coach for the 2017-18 school year.
The district will also be seeking a custodian and two cafeteria workers. Head cook Jean Zuback has retired, effective at the end of the school year. Charles Umbenhauer will retire from his position as custodian, effective Feb. 2. Cafeteria worker Sarah Jackson will also retire at the end of this school year. The board voted to advertise for all three positions.
Dave Sullivan was promoted to the position of director of technology at a salary of $65,229, effective Jan. 12. Sullivan has been serving as a network specialist for several years, despite serving as head of the department. When hired, Sullivan was under contract for 220 days each year at a salary of $57,229. Several years ago, he began working 260 days per year but did not receive additional compensation, according to Superintendent Dr. Keith Wolf. Sullivan is also taking on additional duties, including overseeing the phone and security systems, the local area network (LAN), and will in the future be tasked with backing up files and systems, maintaining firewalls and content filtering, Wolf said. Those services were handled through the Intermediate Unit (IU), but that will likely not be an option going forward. The measure passed by a slight margin, with five members voting for the promotion, one individual abstaining, and members Christy Bennett, Kelli Farabaugh and Robert Lininger voting against.
A resolution was adopted that results in disciplinary action against two unnamed students. The discipline will be carried out according to provisions set forth in the Agreement(s) in Lieu of Expulsion Hearing dated Jan. 11. No further information was disclosed by the district regarding these actions.
Approval was granted for coach Kevin Shunk to supervise an overnight trip for members of the wrestling team to attend the North East Varsity Wrestling Classic on Jan. 19 & 20, at an estimated cost of $300 plus transportation. Meals and lodging are paid for by the BAGUBA wrestling booster club. Wolf stated that no more than nine students will go on the trip, and they will be accompanied by two coaches. Transportation will be by school van. Lininger cast the lone dissenting vote, with the measure passing by a vote of 8-1.
Principal Amy Schwab stated that the Junior Achievement program has begun at Woodland Elementary School. Previously, the program was administered locally by the late Jan Hampton; this year, the regional director of the program is overseeing Woodland’s activities. The program was five volunteers short this year, but three teachers will instruct students in order to allow all students to be involved in the program.
The board approved payment of $353,619.75 in bills. This month’s payments were larger than they are typically, as the annual payment to the Career & Technology Center (CTC) was included, according to discussion held by members.
A resolution was approved per Act 1 of 2006, limiting the increase of any school district tax to an index determined by the Department of Education, set this year at 3.3 percent.
The next regular meeting of the Cameron County School District Board of Directors will be held at 7 p.m. on Feb. 8 in the high school library. A workshop meeting has been scheduled for 7 p.m. Feb. 1. Meetings are open to the public.
