School Board Considers Grant, Takes First Look at 2013–14 Budget

by K.G. Beavers, Messenger Staff Writer

The Franklin County school board met in a work session on March 4 to discuss the telemedicine grant opportunity and the first draft of the 2013–14 school board budget.

The Franklin County school system has been awarded a two-year $499,000 telemedicine grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Mike Lay, an education sales consultant with PCS Inc., gave a presentation to the board about the equipment used with this grant. The telemedicine program is a way to connect a student to medical providers while the student is at school. 

“This program is not designed to replace medical professionals, but helps parents, students and schools to provide another layer of health care,” said Lay. Telemedicine is a type of walk-in clinic, where common ailments are diagnosed through audiovisual equipment connected to a doctor’s office. The doctor’s office handles all insurance claims and prescriptions, as needed. Parents would sign up for the service at the beginning of the school year. Parents are also contacted before, during and after the service.

“We applied for this grant as an opportunity to do better, not to say that nurses are not doing a good job or that our students are not getting adequate care,” said Rebecca Sharber, Franklin County director of schools. “We will also have an opportunity to teleconference in all the schools,” said Sharber. 

Teleconferencing includes attending meetings, classes and professional development opportunities without having to travel.

The school board postponed making a decision about this grant until the April meeting. 

“We need a specific plan in place detailing this is what we are going to do, this is what we are going to test and this is how we are going to implement the program,” said Kevin Caroland, chairman of the school board. “We also need to consider privacy issues,” said Caroland.

In new business, Sharber presented the budget amendment resolutions. The County Solid Waste program has been paying the school’s disposal fee for at least the last three years, totaling $98,500. This is money owed to Solid Waste this fiscal year. The disposal fee will become a new budget line item for the school board. The board postponed passing this resolution amending the general surplus school budget until the April meeting, in order to get more information.

Sharber presented the first draft of the 2013–14 school board budget, which included new expenditures.

“In the governor’s budget, he has added a 1.5 percent salary increase. This is not a mandated salary increase and does not have to be applied across the board,” said Sharber. She explained that this money could be used for possible merit raises or applied to benefits.

Increases to health, property and worker’s compensation insurance are also expected in the new budget. Several new positions were added to the draft budget, including hiring an additional social worker, a full-time middle school art teacher and a full-time counselor at Decherd Elementary. The current full-time counselor at Decherd would move to the Huntland Elementary and Middle schools.

Sharber reported there would be additional expenditures added to the budget, including technology purchases to replace existing equipment, purchasing equipment for the mandatory PAARC online testing and purchasing walkie-talkies for each school. Because of the national sequester cuts, the school board will be receiving $150,000 less in Title I grants, including disadvantaged students programs and individuals with disabilities programs. This budget cut will not affect special education teachers or assistants, as those positions are essential to the programs.

The next school board meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m., Monday, March 11, at the board office, 215 S. College St., Winchester.