Personnel and equipment changes at Jim Thorpe schools

The Jim Thorpe Area School District Board of Education met on Monday night to take action on a number of personnel and equipment-related matters as well as the issue of appraising the district's real estate on State Route 903.

Lisa Kennedy was approved by the board as a substitute instructional assistant on Monday evening. Superintendent Barbara Conway said that the new aide would be serving mostly in the second grade, but would float among classes as needed. Kennedy will be a substitute for another aide, Mary Ellen Galvin, who is currently filling in as an assistant for 7th and 8th grade students.

The district will also be hosting another student teacher. Marc Walter will be assisting Mrs. Herman with her 7th and 8th grade students at the Penn-Kidder campus.

Finally, the board moved to accept the resignation of assistant baseball coach Michael Steigerwalt.

Regarding equipment, the district is currently seeking bids on two Dodge vans it hopes to sell, but by Monday evening's meeting only one bid had been received for each vehicle. Both a 1993 Grand Caravan SE and a 1991 Ram 250 received bids of $210. William Juracka, the district's director of transportation, said that a representative from a local junk yard said it would haul both vehicles off for $650. The board is waiting to see if more bids come in for the vehicles.

Last month, the board took action to hire a local appraiser to provide the board with an estimate of value for the property the district owns across from the Bear Creek Lakes subdivision on State Route 903 in Penn Forest Township. Since then, it has come to the attention of the board that 903 Appraisal Services, the firm originally hired to do the job, isn't properly certified to conduct commercial property appraisals.

Board member Randall Smith moved that the board rescind its earlier motion to hire the firm and accept a bid from the Wilbur Person agency in Lehighton to complete the work for $350.

Board member Thomas Henry asked why the land needed to be appraised if the board was considering building on it. To which Smith replied: "So we know what it's worth."

The motion passed.