Unarmed security officers to patrol at CD High winter events

Central Dauphin School Board voted to hire A.K.A. Security Services, a private security firm based in Lower Paxton, to work at sports games and dances held at Central Dauphin High School this winter.

The vote was 6-1, with Brian Faleshock casting the no vote. (Linda Dallago and Kristine Leber were absent.)

This was the first time since I resumed attending meetings last spring that I witnessed substantial discussion prior to a vote, and it was the first no vote cast in my presence during the same time period.

I applaud the board on these counts! (Now, let's see if the behind-the-doors executive sessions can become the exception rather than the rule.)

CLICK HERE for a news brief from The Patriot-News, HERE for story by WGAL TV-8 and HERE for story and video by WHTM abc 27.

CD board approves two big-ticket items

Board members face decision Monday on security at winter events

Next board meeting Monday, Nov. 12
Central Dauphin East High School Lecture Hall
626 Rutherford Road
Harrisburg, PA 17109
7:00 pm

On Nov. 5, Central Dauphin administrators were given the green light to purchase nearly $343,000 of reading books and hired a new director of special education at a salary of $100,000 per year plus benefits. Both items had not been discussed during recent school board meetings.

The purchase of reading books completed an upgrade of materials started a few years ago and will be used for students in kindergarten through second grade starting next fall.

Dr. Shirley Hunter said the new books are designed to improve the odds of students being on grade with their reading skills by third grade, are more rigorous than current reading books and will better prepare students to take standardized tests.

The readers are designed to allow teachers to work with a class that has students at different reading levels, said Rutherford Elementary School Principal Deron Doi.

Superintendent Carol Johnson said an immediate decision was needed to purchase the books because the offer from the book publisher would go away before the board’s next meeting on Nov. 12.

Prior to the board unanimously voting to approve the purchase, board members Brian Faleshock, Chris Judd, Janis Macut and Jay Wenger asked questions about the books and the process used to select them, the level of teacher support for the purchase and the time-sensitive nature of the publisher’s offer.

In the other major vote of the evening, the board unanimously approved hiring Ms. Lynda Lupp as the district’s director of special education to replace Dr. Francine Rassouli, who submitted a resignation on Oct. 1. For more info on this vote, CLICK HERE for a report by Mary Klaus of The Patriot-News.

Other notable items from the Nov. 5 board meeting:

* At the request of Superintendent Johnson, AKA Security Services made a presentation on using unarmed, private security personnel instead of state troopers to work at winter athletic and special events. The district employed the firm at last school year's prom and its security guards were involved in the underage-drinking incident that occurred during the event.

Johnson said using AKA would cost less than troopers, may allow the district to stop using teachers to work security at winter school events and would provide a more well-rounded service than troopers.

ACTION ITEM — This proposal is on the agenda for a possible vote during the meeting this Monday, Nov. 12. The board faces a decision on whether to use unarmed security guards at winter events to save a few thousand dollars and possibly provide more well-rounded service than state troopers -or- continue to employ armed state troopers and teachers.

CLICK HERE for a news brief by Mary Klaus of The Patriot-News about the expected vote on hiring AKA Security Services. Be sure to check out what the AKA representative guaranteed that his company could do when it comes to guns and students.

* Community activist Eric Epstein warned school officials that PPL electricity-distribution charges are going up over the next five years and urged them to build the higher cost into their financial plans.

* Karen McConnell, the district’s Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Administrative Operations, reported that this year’s financial audit has been completed and there were no findings.

She also went over five-year budget projections with the board that showed revenue shortages with various tax hikes for the 2013-2014 budget ranging from $3.7 million to $6.7 million.

Speaking of tax hikes, McConnell said the district's maximum property-tax hike allowed next by year by the state most likely would be 3.4 percent.

The board needs to commit by the end of January to not exceed the maximum state-allowed tax hike of 1.7 percent or seek an exception from the state for a total hike of 3.4 percent. (The state is considering exception requests to help districts deal with spiking contributions for teacher and support personnel pensions.)

Last year's tax hike was 3.3 percent, which added an estimated $54 to the school tax bill for owners of property assessed at $117,000, the district average.
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DRIVING DIRECTIONS TO MEETINGS – Go to the rear of CD East High and park in the lot that is bordered by tennis courts and the gymnasium. Enter the building at the door located about 50 yards to the right of the gymnasium's main entrance. (You have to walk up a small flight of concrete steps to get to the door.) After entering the building, walk straight back the hallway to the Lecture Hall – the entrance is on the left side of the hallway.

Gazette publisher challenges CD officials to end 'Friday specials'

Below are comments that I made at Monday evening's Central Dauphin school board meeting prior to members voting to hire a new Director of Special Education at a salary of $100,000. (I'll post info on what took place at the meeting later this week.)

I’m not before you to object to hiring a Director of Special Education because I’m not knowledgeable enough about special education services offered by the district.

My comments are regarding the governmental process used to do the hiring.

I did a review of recent personnel reports and noted that the Oct. 15 report indicated that the current director had resigned effective Nov. 29, later changed to a Nov. 9 effective date.

No mention of the resignation and soon-to-come hiring was announced to the public during the Oct. 15 board meeting. The first notice of the hiring before the board tonight came on Nov. 2 when the Nov. 5 board meeting agenda was released to the public.

If things go per usual, the hiring will be done with a motion, a second and unanimous vote with no discussion or deliberation by board members.

This is what I call a “Friday special” — notice of a major vote under New Business shows up on Friday with a vote to take place on Monday evening.

This is a process that allows no room for citizen questions or involvement. As far as the board normally having no discussion prior to a vote, you as board members will have to explain that one.

Here are the questions I’d ask if there was time allotted for citizen involvement:

• Why the rush?
• Have parents of students who are in the special education program been given an opportunity to weigh in on the new hire?
• Given the financial constraints facing the district, are that other options for providing oversight of the special education program other than hiring a big-ticket employee?

Here’s the bottom line: If the board wants citizen involvement in the school district’s affairs, the way you govern will need to be tweaked.

I have two suggestions:

I’d like to start a dialogue with board members to make sure everyone is on the same page about the provisions of the state’s Sunshine Law.

I recommend that the board not take a vote on agenda items that appear under New Business so the proposal or issue can be properly introduced and discussed in public by board member and administrators. The earliest a vote could take place is the second time an issue is on an agenda.

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SAVE THE DATE — Citizens for CD Schools, a new group that aims to advance local public education, will be holding a kickoff meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at the Lower Paxton Township Municipal Center on Prince Street.

CD to board asked to hire big-ticket staffer

CD School Board meeting canceled Monday, Oct. 29 has been rescheduled for Monday, Nov. 5 at 7 pm in the Lecture Hall of CD East High School.

Regular meeting of the Central Dauphin School Board
Central Dauphin East High School Lecture Hall
626 Rutherford Road
Harrisburg, PA 17109
7:00 pm

The top agenda items on Monday evening’s school board meeting are:

• A briefing by Karen McConnell, the district’s business executive, on next school year’s budget that will be adopted early next summer.
• A vote to hire Lynda Lapp as the district’s special education director at a salary of $100,000. CLICK HERE for commentary on this agenda item.

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DIRECTIONS TO THE LECTURE HALL – Go to the rear of CD East High and park in the lot that is bordered by tennis courts and the gymnasium. Enter the building at the door located about 50 yards to the right of the gymnasium's main entrance. (You have to walk up a small flight of concrete steps to get to the door.) After entering the building, walk straight back the hallway to the Lecture Hall – the entrance is on the left side of the hallway.

B² commentary: Why CD officials get bad rap

Agenda item to hire special education director

at $100,000 per year comes out of the blue

I want to make few things crystal clear before getting into the meat of this column:

• I’m a booster of Central Dauphin schools.
• I’m not looking to take shots at members of the school board or administration.
• I believe board president Ford Thompson and the rest of the board should be applauded for doing what they do on a volunteer basis.
• And I understand school officials have a tough job and get a ton of grief for making tough decisions. It’s not my intention to add to the pile of crap thrown at school officials. In fact, I want to make doing their jobs easier.

With that said, I do have one piece of constructive criticism for CD officials based on Monday’s board meeting agenda:

The district informing the public about the planned hiring of a high-paid administrator three days prior to a board vote is the kind of practice that gets the district in deep doo doo with the public because it smacks of behind-closed-door dealings.

Sure, no one expects the board or a subcommittee of the board to conduct interviews for prospective employees in public.

But, information on the need to hire a special education director and how the hiring fits into the district’s financial plan could and should have been discussed in front of the public long before a vote to fill this position. I’ll bet dollars to donuts – and you buy the donuts – that “general information” about staffing needs is not listed under the state’s Sunshine Law as a topic permitted to be discussed in executive session, which is a behind-closed-doors meeting.

Sadly, many local governments, with the blessing of their lawyers, extend the “personnel matters” exception of the Sunshine Law way beyond the intent of the law, in my opinion.

Holding “public” workshop meetings to allow administrators to discuss upcoming agenda items with board members without the pressure to vote would go a long way toward CD improving its relations with parents and all taxpayers.

A little tweak in the district’s standard operating procedure – conducting monthly public workshop meetings – likely would help board members get less doo doo thrown their way.


Bill Bostic has published Linglestown Gazette on a volunteer basis since May 2006 and recently spearheaded the formation of Citizens for CD Schools, a taxpayer group that aims to improve local public education.

CD again faces big budget challenges

The Central Dauphin School Board learned Monday evening what they already knew – putting together the 2013-2014 school budget is going to be a royal pain in the neck.

Fortunately, the district has plenty of money in the bank (over $59 million at the end of September), a great bond rating (AA) and a strong balance sheet (assets far exceed liabilities).

The challenge is to close $5.5 million projected revenue shortage in next school year's spending plan, said Karen McConnell, the district's longtime business manager.

Most of the $5.5 million needed to balance the budget comes from two areas – increased state-mandated pension contributions and labor contracts that call for pay hikes.

The pension increases are downright scary. McConnell said they would go from $8 million to $19 million over four years. She is working on a plan to spread out the financial pain over seven years.

The only sure bet is that the school property tax rate will go up at least 1.7 percent, the state maximum.

Odds are the board will opt to seek an exception from the state to increase the tax rate by more than 1.7 percent to address the huge jump in pension contributions. The deadline for this decision is early next year.

The board and school administrators will work on the budget over the next eight months. Watch the Gazette for updates.

Other stuff from last night's meeting:

* Peter Mireles, a teacher at Central Dauphin Middle School and a new co-president of the teacher union, introduced himself to the board and the public.

* Teacher union co-president Georgia Smee told that board that teachers are ready to work and give 100 percent despite stresses caused by increased state-testing targets and last year's teacher furloughs.

* Eric Epstein, business manager for the bus drivers' union, informed the board that overcrowding on some bus routes is continuing. He called for improved communications between the drivers, the district and Durham, the district's bus contractor. CLICK HERE to read his testimony and HERE for coverage on this issue by WHTM abc27.

* Superintendent Carol Johnson asked the board for more time to analyze the influx of about 200 students at the beginning of this school year before holding public meetings on possible closure of some school buildings.

* Several members of Boy Scout Troop 368 attended the meeting to work toward qualifying for merit badges.

* Also in attendance was the steering committee of the recently formed Citizens for CD Schools – Deb Steely, Lisa Kraus, Everette Hamilton, Dan Slatt and Bill Bostic.

CD to unveil 2013-14 budget Monday evening

Regular Meeting of the Board of School Directors
Central Dauphin East High School Lecture Hall (see directions below)
626 Rutherford Road
Harrisburg, PA 17109
7:00 pm

The most notable item on the Central Dauphin School Board meeting agenda for Monday, Oct. 15 is a presentation by Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Administrative Operations Karen McConnell on next school year's budget.

She said a few weeks ago that the district roughly had to find $5.5 million to balance the budget that will be adopted next June. Also, she said that this situation is not unusual early in the budget-planning process.

The board's finance committee most likely will meet numerous times during the next six months or so to sort things out.

Rest assured that the folks affiliated with Citizens for CD Schools will endeavor to keep Linglestown Gazette readers informed about budget issues.
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DIRECTIONS TO THE LECTURE HALL – Go to the rear of CD East High and park in the lot that is bordered by tennis courts and the gymnasium. Enter the building at the door located about 50 yards to the right of the gymnasium's main entrance. (You have to walk up a small flight of concrete steps to get to the door.) After entering the building, walk straight back the hallway to the Lecture Hall – the entrance is on the left side of the hallway.

3 Things You Need To Know About CD Schools

#1 ... The next school board meeting will be held this Monday, Oct. 15 beginning at 7 pm in the Lecture Hall of CD East High. The agenda most likely will be posted HERE on Friday.

#2 ... The steering committee of Citizens for CD Schools met for the first time Thursday and decided to hold a big kickoff meeting for the general public in mid-January 2013. Also, a special section will be launched in the near future on Linglestown Gazette dedicated to the citizens' group.

#3 ... WHTM abc27 reported last month that some CD school buses are overcrowded, and it appears that the report is valid in at least one case. Some parents in the Blue Meadows Farm development in Linglestown are carpooling students to school because the bus is overcrowded and the ride to nearby schools takes about 40 minutes. Please submit a comment on this post if you are aware of similar situations.

The Beatles are coming to CD High ... well sort of

You have an entertainment treat coming your way next Wednesday, Oct. 10 courtesy of the fine folks with CD High School Band Boosters — Beatlemania Magic.

The national touring tribute band recreates the early Beatles concerts with identical costumes, equipment and spot on harmonies. Songs from I Want to Hold Your Hand to I'm Down are played using Vox amps, Gretsch, Hofner and Rickenbacker guitars made famous by the Beatles.

If you missed seeing the Beatles in the '60s, mark your calendar for October 10, 7 pm in the CD High auditorium. Tickets are $10 if purchased in advance online or $12 at the door the night of the
event.

CLICK HERE for more info.

CD School Board meeting tonight at 6:30 pm

Please join me, Linglestown Gazette publisher B², in attending tonight's Central Dauphin School Board meeting that features a workshop session dedicated to comments from the public, 6:30 pm, Lecture Hall in CD East High School.

I'll be sharing info on the newly formed Citizens for CD Schools group and ways the board and administration can use workshop sessions on an ongoing basis. It's somewhat dry stuff but I always try to jazz it up.
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CLICK HERE for an article from The Patriot-News that explains why a discussion on the possible closure of some school buildings has been postponed.

Citizens for CD Schools gets some press

Prior to jetting off on an overseas missions trip, Patriot-News reporter Mary Klaus penned a story about the kickoff meeting of the Citizens for CD Schools that was held on Sept. 11.

Speaking of the group, I will try to contact those of you who expressed a willingness to serve on a steering committee next week to schedule our first get-together.

CD changes game plan for Monday workshop

Community discussions about Central Dauphin School District enrollment trends and possible building closures have been delayed.

But, the board WILL conduct a workshop session this Monday, Sept. 24 in the Lecture Hall at CD East High School starting at 6:30 pm and citizens have an opportunity to speak.

Below is the message that appears on the home page of the district's website:

Due to the unexpected number of new students registering in the district, the Facilities & Enrollment Study discussion set to begin on Sept. 24 has been postponed. The Administration will commence discussions when enrollment figure data become more stable.

At the September 24, 2012 school board meeting, a workshop will be held beginning at 6:30 p.m. The board will devote one hour to public comment on any subject matter. Individuals wishing to speak must sign up with their topic of discussion, with Mrs. Kim Fisher, board secretary, by 4:00 p.m. Friday, September 21, 2012. Mrs. Fisher can be contacted at 717-545-4703, ext. 209 or by email.

SAVE THE DATE -- CD Band-a-RAMa, Sept. 22

The Central Dauphin High School Ram Marching Band will host top local high school and a college marching band at the 31th annual Band-a-RAMa, to be held at Landis Field on the campus of the Central Dauphin Middle School this Saturday, September 22 starting at 7 pm.

Tickets are available at the gate and are $7 for adults and $5 for students and senior citzens.

An evening of great music, pageantry and color, Band-a-RAMa is the perfect family event, featuring performances by a dozen high school marching bands, a college marching band, food, and fun!

Next steps for Citizens for CD Schools

For those of you who attended last Tuesday's kickoff meeting for the newly named Citizens for CD Schools, I will be in touch with you via email this week about getting the group up and running.

If you missed the meeting and want to be kept in the know, email the Gazette and you'll be added to the email list.

CD bus woes back in the news

Central Dauphin is working to resolve overcrowding on some school buses, according to a report by WHTM abc 27 that features district resident Eric Epstein, who also represents the bus drivers' union.

In a related matter, Epstein told district officials in June that the fee charged this school year by Durham School Services, the district's bus contractor, doesn't add up in light of reduced number of bus routes, buses and drivers.

Karen McConnell, the district's top finance administrator, said that Epstein's estimated transportation cost for this school year was inaccurate because the district purchased bus fuel at a better price than expected.

Epstein also told district officials that the new contract with Durham would allow Durham to jack up its rates over the next three years.

CLICK HERE to read Epstein's comments to the school board.

CD citizens' group appears to be a go!

About 20 fine Americans showed up for the kickoff meeting Tuesday evening at St. Thomas Roasters coffee house in Linglestown.

By a fairly wide margin, the name "Citizens for CD Schools" was selected for the group name.

Most importantly, four people indicated a willingness to serve on the group's steering committee.

More details to follow ...
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In other school news, WHTM abc27 reports that come CD buses are overcrowded. CLICK HERE for the story and video report that includes quotes from community activist and school bus drivers' union representative Eric Epstein.

CD citizens' group debuts tonight

All systems are go for tonight's kickoff of the Central Dauphin citizens' group at St. Thomas Roasters coffee house in Linglestown, 7-8 pm.

Please come, buy a beverage and join with your neighbors to begin a new journey as a community to help CD overcome tough times in public education.

I assure tonight's gathering will be quick, painless and maybe you'll have a yuk or two to boot. NO EXCUSES ... let's go!

CD Schools: Last chance for immortality!

OK, OK ... immortality is a bit of a stretch, especially when it comes to finding a name for the new Central Dauphin citizens' group.

I'm prepping for the group's kickoff meeting this Tuesday, Sept. 11, from 7 pm to no later than 8 pm at St. Thomas Roasters coffee house in Linglestown.

You have until noon Monday, Sept. 10

to submit name suggestions.

Below is the list of names received to date:

Citizens for CD Schools

Citizens Alliance for CD School District's Future

Concerned Citizens Alliance for CD Schools

Concerned Citizens Alliance for CD Schools' Future

Concerned Citizens Alliance for CD School District

Central Dauphin Public Schools Alliance

NO EXCUSES train bound for CD schools

Central Dauphin School District officials need you and me to help address tough economic times. To move in that direction, I'm encouraging you to do a simple thing on Tuesday, Sept. 11.

CLICK HERE to hear a very special message from me, B², and then click on my photo just for fun.

CORRECTION: Band Fair/Pigskin Preview kicks off tonight at 5:30 pm

I screwed up the day the preview event will be held at Landis Field. Rest assured, today is the day, Wednesday, Aug. 29.

From 5:30-7:00 pm the marching band will work in "sectionals," and they will perform their 2012 field show at 7:00 pm.

CLICK HERE for more details if you're not in the know.

Thanks to all of you who pointed out my boo-boo. No excuses!