L’view board discusses technology issues

Van Wert independent

The Lincolnview Local Board of Education focused on technology issues, while also hearing a presentation from high school seniors on a proposal for a senior trip to New York City.

Superintendent Jeff Snyder first thanked district voters for their passage of Lincolnview’s 2.5-mill, five-year permanent improvement renewal levy earlier this month.

“It was a nice shot in the arm again for us to have our community support our district and know the value of the levy,” Snyder said.

Technology was a big part of Tuesday night’s abbreviated agenda, with board members approving a plan to create subcommittees for the district’s Technology Committee. Snyder said that, because of the amount of work involved in moving the district forward in the area of technology, it was decided to divide the work into five separate areas: website development, curriculum technology, five-year technology plan, 1:1 computer initiative and online testing.

Each area involves its own distinct set of parameters that need to be worked on, Snyder noted, with interested staff members volunteering to be a part of at least one of the subcommittees.

District Treasurer Troy Bowersock also discussed the district’s five-year forecast, noting a number of positives and concerns, including health insurance costs, the district could encounter over the next five years.

A group of Lincolnview seniors also made a presentation on a request that the annual senior trip be to New York City, rather than Chicago. The seniors talked about the cost of the trip and some of the sights they planned to see while there. The board decided more discussion is needed before a final decision is made on the trip.

In other news, the board:

• Authorized, retroactively, the Lincolnview cross country team’s overnight trip to the District III state cross country meet in Hebron on November 1-2, while also honoring the team for its 12th place finish in the meet.
• Honored 2012 Lincolnview graduate Jacob Staley for earning his 2013 American Farmer FFA Degree at the national FFA convention in Louisville, Ky.
• Authorized the sixth grade trip to Washington, D.C., from October 6-14, 2014.
• Employed Susan Calvelage as a substitute bus driver for the remainder of this school year.
• Renewed its membership in the Ohio School Boards Association Legal Assistance Fund, at a cost of $250.
• Hired Ann Nussbaum as a latchkey program assistant on an as-needed basis for the 2013-2014 school year.

The next meeting of the Lincolnview Local Board of Education will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, December 17, in the Neubrecht Lecture Hall.