The Munising Public School Board of Education met on January 15, 2024. The meeting opened with an election of school board members for the coming year and got right down to business, moving quickly through the consent agenda.
Superintendent Mike Travis took the floor and gave a special message of appreciation to the board members, thanking them for their service.
From here, they moved on to the items for board consideration and possible action as there were no further informational items at this time.
There was a small discussion regarding regular meeting times and days. These were decided to stay the same in the coming year. Also, no one desired any changes in committee assignments.
The per diem for meetings was accepted without change.
The sinking fund ballot resolution came next on the agenda. They are currently asking for $1.5 million which is down from $1.9 million from last year. There is thought that if they pare this number down much more, they “won’t be able to accomplish what they set out to accomplish” according to Mr. Travis, with another $1.6 million on the debt levy. This was approved by the board.
The resignation of a food service employee was approved. Following this matter was the hiring of a food service employee to take this individual’s place.
The retirement of the substitute bus driver led to a discussion on the school bus situation (see article “Drivers Wanted” in this issue for more details).
The discussion of interest though was about the backstops for the basketball hoops. These backstops have been in place for 44 years and require some repair and maintenance. It was pointed out that various quotes were taken for this project, which all came to the same conclusion. The quote of $8,410 to fix an ‘ailing’ system. For an additional $3,200, this will replace with brand new backboards on both ends of the courts, which would bolt through the glass and connect to the mainframe which will bear the brunt better of usage. The recommendation was to do more than replace the rigging and instead replace the rigging and backboards, repurposing the old backboards in the Mather gym. The motion was made to replace everything. The motion was passed.
The last order of business was the initial reading of NEOLA policies. Some of these policies involve a change in language which will require a closer examination and further discussion before voting on them.
Before ending the session, the question came back around again in regards to the bus situation. When asked if there were enough drivers, the answer was instantly answered in the negative. Ideally, the school would be best served by six drivers. With tonight’s resignation they have four. Again, if the situation were to change and the school be forced to reduce to only three routes, in town students might no longer be offered transportation. Discussion followed about the requirements for individuals to become bus drivers. There was also concern about what time sidewalks are cleared in the morning after- snow to allow for students to walk to school.
The meeting adjourned with the next meeting set for February 19th at 6:00 p.m..
