By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette
During the Jan. 21 joint meeting of the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center school boards, Superintendent Josh Rasmussen encouraged board members to contact state legislators regarding whole grade sharing and how the current rules impact the feasibility of the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center districts’ potential consolidation.
Per current regulations, the two districts would each lose out on approximately $180,000 per year in operational sharing if/when consolidation occurs. Rasmussen said that additional incentives and supplemental weighting for three to four years after consolidation would be needed to give time to find new sharing opportunities with neighboring schools and recoup some of those lost sharing dollars. This is why the renewal of whole grade sharing, joint employment, and property tax reduction incentives is needed in order to move forward with reorganization/consolidation.
Each of the two boards tabled action on approving the whole grade sharing agreement.
The Guthrie Center School Board discussed the possible purchase and installation of a new audio system for the high school gym. Matt Van Meter voiced a concern regarding the warranty on the bid being considered. He pointed out that the warrant information states that any equipment concerns should be brought up with the manufacturer.
“I’ve got one problem with it,” Van Meter said. “I think it’s a red flag that the company that’s installing it will not warranty the equipment that they’re putting in.”
After discussion, the board voted to table the matter until more warranty clarification can be obtained.
The next regularly scheduled meeting will be a joint meeting of the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center school boards on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. at the junior high school in Adair. The public is welcome.