Northwestern Local begins new school year with safety & security plan, new treasurer
Northwestern Local Schools Board of Education
Monday meeting
KEY ACTION Approved implementing a series of security measures that are part of an ongoing, comprehensive list of safety grant expenditures planned in the district.
DISCUSSION The school board agreed to work with Staley Technology for a MARCS repeater system and security cameras and the Locksmith Shop for an exterior door fob access system and exterior door replacement in various areas across the district.
The district is working on updated costs for the security expenditures, which will be funded by a $150,000 safety grant from the Ohio K-12 School Safety Grant Program, and about $30,000 from the maintenance and facilities fund.
In an email, Superintendent Jeffrey Layton said the district received "a significant amount and the most of any area schools" from the state grant program.
Layton said he plans to apply for a follow-up grant in September to work on other items on the list. During the meeting, Layton said a walk-through of the district's buildings to check entrances and safety features has been completed.
New Treasurer Jerry Buccilla takes the helm
New Treasurer Jerry Buccilla took the helm from former Treasurer Lesa Forbes on Aug. 1. Buccilla reported his first 10 days have been "very good."
"I'm extremely grateful for the warm welcome I've gotten from the administrative team and staff," whom he said have been "gracious in answering inquiries" as he becomes familiar with "how (things) work the Huskie way."
Buccilla is evaluating what is needed from fiscal operations to better serve district endeavors and to "make sure the fiscal operation is set up right to provide (necessary) information."
He pledged reports moving forward with "more detail and more information."
OTHER BUSINESS Heard a report on district literacy efforts from Angie McCullough, first-grade teacher and literacy coach for Northwestern Elementary; Kim St. Clair, eighth-grade language arts teacher and Middle School literacy coach; Kristen Hudson, High School English teacher and literacy coach.
They were also the presenters of Focus on Literacy "building a district-wide literacy task force and implementing literacy coaching across all grades and disciplines" at a conference in Grapevine, Texas, said Julie McCumber, curriculum director, in a Tuesday email. McCumber said in her email she attended the conference along with McCullough; St. Clair; Hudson; Randall Hafner, high school principal; Chris Sykes, director of special education; Heather Nupp, intervention specialist; and Michelle Colter, fifth-grade language arts teacher.
It was an opportunity for "learning from the best of the best and sharing our best practices," Layton said at the meeting.
UP NEXT Meets at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 19 in Northwestern High School, 7473 Elyria Road, West Salem. Meetings can be watched online via a link from the district's Board of Education page.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Safety & security, new treasurer top Northwestern Local BOE agenda
