GENTRY -- The Gentry School Board, on Aug. 17, approved the purchase of a mini-van for use to transport students to therapeutic day treatment centers. The state bid price for the Dodge Grand Caravan is $21,003, according to Jason Barrett, Gentry School district's transportation and maintenance director.
According to Barrett, the purchase would save the school district more than $40,000 per year over the cost of transporting students to the treatment centers in a bus, making the purchase a significant savings for the district in the first year even with the purchase cost of the van. In future years, the savings estimated were more than $60,000.
Barrett said the transportation by bus currently costs the district more than $87,000 per year. He estimated the cost using a minivan at $21,182 per year plus the additional cost to purchase a minivan in the first year.
The only extra features being purchased on the minivan were running lights, which were an extra $40, Barrett said.
Barrett presented the board with options to purchase a Grand Caravan, an all-wheel drive or front-wheel drive Chevrolet Traverse or a 29-passenger gasoline-powered school bus. The Grand Caravan was the least expensive and reported to have the best fuel mileage. The school board also recommended having a sliding side door rather than individual doors for each seat.
Barrett reported that the school district would be given a free subscription to WeatherCall so that administrators and teachers would receive warnings of severe weather when the schools are in a more narrowly defined warning area. According to information made available to the board in its board packet, the service makes use of improved services of the National Weather Service which have a higher degree of accuracy and smaller warning areas to notify school officials when schools are in the path of severe weather. Warnings will be delivered to the schools by email, text messages and voice calls.
The service has been made available to schools without charge by Dr. Gregory Hiebert, of Hiebert Dental Care in Lowell, in cooperation with KNWA/Fox 24, which offers the service to subscribers.
Barrett also reported to the board on completed summer projects and said the schools received an excellent back-to-school safety inspection from the Gentry fire marshal.
Panic Button
To comply with Act 950 of 2015, the school district is making use of the Rave Panic Button application, according to items reported to the board. The Rave Panic Button is a system with a smart phone application which allows teachers and administrators, with the single touch of a button on a wireless device, to call 911 and simultaneously notify school officials of an emergency on campus. Act 950 requires such a plan to be in place by Sept. 1.
The smart phone application has separate buttons to call for police, fire, medical, other 911 emergencies and a large active shooter button. When a button is activated, a call goes to 911 and other teachers and school staff on the system also receive alert notifications of the emergency for a speedier response.
Visitor Screening
Also discussed briefly by the board was the possible use of the Raptor visitor management software. If the school district were to purchase and use the software, all visitors to campuses would be required to present a government-issued photo identification to be scanned. The software would not only be used to log the visitors in and out of facilities, it would print a photo visitor badge and instantly screen and notify school officials if the visitor is a registered sex offender or the subject of restraining orders or child custody disputes.
Of concern to board members was the possibility that parents or grandparents would come to the school to pick up a student and not have the proper identification and be denied access. Randy Barrett, superintendent of Gentry schools, said the district, if it purchased the program and put into effect, would have to follow through and make everyone follow the same screening procedures.
The board requested more time to consider the software and more information before a decision is made.
Personnel Changes
The board approved the resignations of Malynda Russell, special education teacher at the high school; Elizabeth Raiford, fifth grade teacher; Beau Collins, high school teacher and coach; Sophia Barrett, special education teacher at the intermediate school; and Patricia Wilmoth, fifth grade teacher. Hired were Jim Clelland, fifth grade teacher; Agnes Bailey, intermediate school special education teacher; Brittany Ayers, third grade teacher; Jo Simmons special education instructor at the middle school; Cassie Duncan, special education teacher at the high school; and Caitlin Gallion as athletic trainer for $38,500 per year (a cost initially shared by Siloam Springs Regional Hospital). The board also approved a contract adjustment, adding junior high volleyball to Fabrizio Campagnola's coaching duties.
Future Meetings
In response to a request made by Al Lemke, a patron of the district who regularly attends meetings of the board, school board members chose to hold next month's meeting in the community room of the new Pioneer Activities Center building on the high school campus. Lemke suggested that the board meet in a setting where board members faced visitors and visitors could better hear their comments and statements. Lemke also suggested that visitors from the public be allowed to share comments with the board at meetings immediately preceding the board vote on matters.
The next school board meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m., Sept. 21, in the PAC building. Randy Barrett suggested trying the PAC building but also suggested the possibility of, if the PAC building does not work well, setting up one of the classrooms in the wing buildings on the intermediate school campus as a permanent location for board meetings.
General News on 08/26/2015