School Board Awards Bus Contract
 | Author:
Nancy Marks
Nancy Marks: MT43 News Secretary and News Editor |
School District #1 board members awarded a school bus contract to Bulldog Buslines owned by Jeramy Rice at last Tuesday’s regular meeting. All board members were present, including Kevin McDonnell, who participated virtually. The contract will include routes four, five and six. Route six will use the District’s special needs bus to pick up special needs students.
Superintendent Susie Hedalen reported she had been able to hire another first-grade teacher. The first-grade enrollment is at 54. That number is over the limit allowed under state regulations. She also reported enrollment for the 5th grade is very high. She has not been able to fill a third teacher position for that grade. She will use paraprofessionals to help until she is able to fill the position.
Hedalen approached the board about signing on to a teacher residency program for rural schools offered through the Office of Public Instruction. The one-year program would be a substitute for a graduating college senior’s student teaching experience. She will give the board more information on that program at a later meeting.
Hedalen is asking for a full-time Assistant Clerk to help Administrative Assistant Kristie Sangray with payroll, budgeting and working with Broadwater County officials to keep up with the expanding workload. Board member Shaun Scott suggested a temporary worker. No action was taken.
A certified American Sign Language coordinator position has not been filled. She is in contact with Montana School for the Deaf and Blind to ask about a lead to fill the position.
“We were fortunate to have a certified sign language person who lived in Townsend and worked with us. She retired. Now we are finding it very difficult to fill the position because there are no certification programs in Montana’s university system,” she said.
Following Hedalen’s report, Chairman Jason Noyes turned the meeting into a budget session which ran into a late-night session. By law, the board must put forth an approved budget by the start of school. Hedalen said she and the board will work again Thursday night beginning at 6:00 p.m. at the Community Library room.
The meeting is open to the public.
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PhotoCredit: Townsend Schools
