RE-1 works out the details

by Jaye Sudar
WALSENBURG- Tuesday’s special board meeting was short and to the point. First up were the job descriptions for district employees. It was discussed that these should meld with information from the Targeted District Improvement Plan (TDIP) to encompass state and district goals. From superintendent to janitor, the board detailed the job descriptions for RE-1. The business manager position was tabled for the year with the actual job being divided and renamed Finance and Food Service Director. It was mentioned that Maria de la Cruz was also awaiting a job description for her various duties. With a few more revisions, the board approved the proposed descriptions.
The board approved the custodians’ contracts with four fulltime positions and three halftime positions. This was a cut of 1.5 FTEs or 1.5 positions in the district. There was a proposal for the purchase of the former administration building on 7th Street, but a counter offer was given and no vote was taken at that time.
A lengthy discussion was held over what to do with a teacher position that was RIFed (Reduction In Force) and paid for by federal funds. While many solutions were presented, there was no resolution at this time. The board wanted to give an answer as soon as possible, but realized that it needed to further discuss this situation with Colorado Department of Education and the district lawyer. The reason for caution being that there will be a Federal Audit of the district next year, and the district has no desire to have to repay funds due to errors on their part.
The board voted to retain their Colorado Association of School Board (CASB) membership, while agreeing not to spend district funds on any conferences. The board agreed to discuss the budget and school policy at their June 14 workshop.