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CURTIS OSTRANDER	DUAINE HARDING
ELEANOR TODD	ELMER "BUD" HAHN
GERVASE KILEY	MARGARET ZIEMAN
MARIAN SUTTON	ORLO KIRKUM
SLAVA KOKOTOVICH
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RCS board discusses
vacancies, attorney fees

by KIMBERLY SCHERER
Observer Special Writer

      Romeo Community Schools' Board of Education President Anita Banach asked the board to have a "kumbayah" moment at the top of Monday night's meeting in an effort to approve two amendments to the agenda.
       Trustee Jennifer White requested that discussions about central office job postings, the district's high attorney fees and a public update regarding closed session negotiations be placed on the agenda.
       Secretary Sara Murray said she was uncomfortable discussing negotiations outside of a closed session, while Trustee Susan Hier said she preferred the items to be placed at the end of the regular agenda.
       After failing to amend the agenda twice, the board finally agreed to place the items at the end of the agenda following Banach's plea. No action was taken on either item.
       The board also agreed to discuss the public negotiations update in closed session.
       For the central office job postings, Superintendent Nancy Campbell said the district already posted for filling the special education director and curriculum instruction and research vacancies. She said the interview process has begun.
       Campbell said the positions are posted as a "step one" pay scale and doesn't see them changing from that pay scale for years.
       The curriculum position's salary is $105,000 to $115,000. The special education director is slated for $88,000 to $98,000. For either position, should someone retired accept the job, they are not allowed to collect benefits.
       "I'm looking for people who work the way I do," Campbell said.
       The two positions entail a 52-work week year and will likely involve 50-70 hours a week. Campbell said since there isn't budget money for a human resources position, the new hires will have to share that duty. She explained that at the cabinet level, employees must work more and share duties.
       "They are very demanding positions," she said.
       Posting for a business and finance director is next. Campbell said she would like someone with an educational background but is leaving it wide open.
       As for the issue of attorney fees, $65,000 was budgeted for the year. White said that already, nearly $120,000 has been doled out.
       Vice President Michael Stobak asked the board if it would be willing to consider a request for proposal in an effort to seek reduced costs.
       "I think we should take another look at this," he said.
       Campbell said the lofty amount has a lot to do with the attorney sitting in on negotiations. Previously, a human resource employee would act in negotiations but a past board decided against doing that.
       At 11 p.m. the board reached executive session and Hier said she would only discuss the student re-entry item and not negotiations due to the late hour. Negotiations will be visited at another meeting.