SAD 29 debates stipends, duties

By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — Plans to have two administrators receive a stipend to do work previously handled by the district’s special education director drew considerable discussion Monday evening by the SAD 29 board of directors.
    At the crux of the issue was a request by Superintendent Mike Hammer to grant stipends to two administrators — Houlton Southside School Principal Tiffany Karnes and Houlton High School Principal Marty Bouchard — to serve as the district’s Section 504 Coordinators. A Section 504 case involves providing extra assistance to students with needs who do not qualify for such help under the Special Education program. That assistance could be in the form of health issues, Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, social issues which prevent the student from functioning in the classroom, or other learning issues.
    According to Hammer, 504 students are “students that are not special ed but may need some form of accommodation in their educational plan that helps them be successful.”
    “It started out that the accommodations under 504 were for physical or health related needs (wheelchair, severe allergies, major medical conditions),” he explained. “The regulations are not as strict for 504 in terms of timelines, reporting, annual meetings etc. Looking into new regulations of 504 the conditions are expanding and many more students may qualify for the 504 distinction. 504 is more of an umbrella outside special ed to catch some of the kids that don’t qualify under the stricter identification regulations of special education.”
    In previous years, Marion Gartley, then special education director, performed all of the duties of the 504 coordinator in addition to her regular duties. Hammer said, originally, Gartley received a stipend for these duties, but in more recent years, that money was factored into her base pay.
    Gartley retired at the end of the last school year and last month the district hired a new special education director, Jan Neureuther.
    The district was considering splitting the 504 Coordinator duties away from the Special Education director’s responsibilities to allow Neureuther to get acclimated to her new position with the district. The district estimated spending $1,575-$2,500 in stipends for both Karnes and Bouchard, depending on the amount of cases they each processed.
    “Marion’s stipend, originally, was not quite as much as this, but that was a long time ago and there were not as many meetings as there are now,” Hammer explained. “If a student doesn’t qualify for special education, the thing they go to next is the 504 program.”
    Board member John Tribou opposed the recommended plan, since it could potentially cost the district an extra $5,000 for the year.
    “I understand the rationale behind it (the stipends), but I don’t think the district should pay the price,” Tribou said. “I understand it was part of the special ed director and I don’t think it should be taken away from our new one. It should be included in (that person’s) salary package.”
    Board member Cynthia Hillman-Forbush disagreed.
    “This is an important position,” she said. “It is not something to take lightly. If we have two administrators who are willing to do it, they should be compensated.”
    Tribou reiterated he felt the duties should fall to the special education director, as has been in the past.
    “We have someone who is brand new and just learning the ropes,” Hillman-Forbush. “Maybe next year it can be.”
    Hammer said there were many school districts who consolidated the duties under the umbrella of special education, while there was also those districts that chose to separate them.
    “There is a tremendous learning curve, and I am asking for a year, to see if this plan (of separating the two) will work,” Hammer said. “We may find out those administrators say it’s not worth it.”
    Board member Scott White asked if the 504 Coordinator duties were part of the job description when the district hired Neureuther to the position. If it was not, then the stipend was warranted.
    Hammer said he would need to look up that information and bring it back to the school board at its next meeting. The board then voted to table the matter until the next meeting.
    In other agenda items, the board:
    • Approved a one percent increase in pay for administrators. This increase is in addition to a one percent increase the group received to begin the school year. An additional one percent will be awarded to some of those administrators who meet certain goals by the end of the school year. Board member Sandra Henderson opposed the pay raises, but her motion to not allow the increases failed.
    • Named Julie Dunn as the varsity cheering coach.
    • Awarded snowplow bids to Steelstone in the amount of $22,400 to plow schools in Houlton and to WGT Construction for $3,000 to plow Wellington School in Monticello and the bus garage in Littleton.
    • Accepted the resignation of Wayne Brown as an Education Technician at Houlton Southside School.
    • Named Ann Ireland as a new gifted and talented instructor for the district.
    The next regular meeting of the SAD 29 school board will be Monday, Nov. 5, at 6 p.m. at the Wellington School.