MOUNT VERNON — The Mount Vernon school board passed this year’s transportation service contract with Knox Area Transit (KAT) at its Monday meeting. The contract was scheduled to be approved last month, but the board opted to wait due to an unexpected price increase.
After further discussion with KAT, the board adopted the original contract, but with a start date of April 1.
KAT bills the district based on the distance between a student’s residence and the school, regardless of additional stops on the route, said Pam Rose, director of student services. This year’s contract, effective through December 31, charges $2.63 per student per mile for the first three miles, a 62 cent increase from last year. Rose said at the February meeting that the price increase was due in part to the new security cameras and iPads sign-in stations added to the KAT buses.
The buses provide transportation to approximately 47 children in the district. Most ride the bus because of conditions listed on an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), but the district also buses students in transitional housing who reside in the homeless shelter in Fredericktown.
“We try our best to keep our students that are homeless in their home school to keep something consistent in their lives,” said Rose.
This month’s meeting was held at Columbia Elementary, where Andrew Thompson is finishing up his first year as principal.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed coming back here and coming back to the elementary school I attended,” Thompson told the board.
Third grade teacher MacKenzie Scott briefed the board on how the Class Dojo app is being used to improve communication between parents and teachers. The app is designed like a private social network that includes a messaging feature and class story feed, where teachers can post pictures and information for parents.
Scott said that since the beginning of the school year, 361 parents or family members have used the app and 2,824 messages have been shared between parents and teachers. The app also has a feature that can help track student behavior by adding or subtracting points.
Other agenda items included:
• Recognizing kindergarten volunteer Linda Davis as the Columbia Elementary “Behind the Scenes” Person.
• Scheduling a special board meeting April 10 at 6 p.m. at Twin Oak Elementary. The gathering will be a joint meeting between Mount Vernon City Council, Mount Vernon Nazarene University and Mount Vernon City Schools to discuss upcoming collaborative projects.
• Giving official approval for the class of 2019’s graduation ceremony to be held May 26 at the Kenyon College Athletic Center.
• Accepting the retirement of Cheri Murphy, middle school social studies teacher, effective May 31.
• Accepting the employment of Annette Neighbarger as middle school track coach.
• Approving student trips for the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America state conference April 25-26 and a softball tournament in Lagrange, Ohio April 26-27.
• Accepting two foreign exchange student applications for the 2019-2020 school year. One student will be coming from Slovakia and the other from Italy.
• Accepting a donation of the children’s book, “I Am Sonia Sotomayor” from the district’s Memorial Book Fund to Wiggin Street Elementary. The donation was made in honor of Ora Jane Baer, mother of Ed Baer, a custodian at Wiggin Street.
• Approving multiple requests to use or rent district facilities. A building tour and executive session to discuss the appointment of an employee or official followed the meeting.
