BY STACI WILSON

A 10-hour negotiation session Thursday yielded an agreement between the Mountain View School Board and its teachers’ union.

The board voted Monday night to accept the tentative professional employees’ agreement, 6-1.

Board president Thomas Stoddard cast the lone dissenting vote; while Ellen Ahearn, Michael Barhite, Jason Casselbury, Jason Richmond, Sondra Stine and Andrew Chichura voted in favor of the agreement.

Board members Roy Twining and Christine Plonski-Sezer were not present at the meeting.

The crowd – filled with many MVEA members – erupted into applause and cheers with some giving the board a standing ovation.

MVEA President Corrinne McNabb reported that the union voted “overwhelmingly” in favor of the proposed agreement earlier Monday.

The contract agreement came at the 11th hour. MVEA had advised the board that they planned to strike Sept. 8 after negotiations broke down earlier this month.

Sticking points in the negotiations were health care contributions, retirement incentives and the salary schedule.

“It was a compromise,” Stoddard said after the meeting.

The retirement incentive was reduced; and the teachers will pay more in a health care contribution.

Stoddard had proposed a stepped salary schedule with the idea that teacher pay would move to a linear scale by the end of the contract.

That proposal morphed back to a traditional salary schedule but achieves the same goals, Stoddard and McNabb said.

Following the vote, many of the district teacher exited the meeting, with car horns and cheers still audible inside the board room.

After the contract vote, the board moved on to other matters.

Ed Heffron and Sal Santoli, of the Scranton Counseling Center, provided an overview of the community-school based behavioral health services the agency will be providing in the district.

A four-member mental health professional team will be stationed in the district and will also be available for crisis counseling as necessary.

Santoli said the goal is to bring the academic and family behavioral health pieces together – to form a partnership with the school and the families to “help the child, the school and the community at large.”

The sudden departure for retirement by Diane Makosky left the boards at odds as to whether or not she should return as a consultant in the business office during the training period of a newly hired account clerk. On the agenda, Makosky would return to provide payroll transition assistance at an hourly rate of $47.10 per hour, as needed, up to 50 hours.

Chichura voiced his opposition, stating that the district should have had more time for the transition before her retirement. Casselbury, Richmond, Stine and Ahearn joined the dissent.

Stoddard asked, “What’s the alternative?”

Superintendent Karen Voigt said a Lewisburg area company would come in at a cost of $150 per hour plus mileage.

Business manager Joe Patchcoski said Makosky thought she would have more time before leaving the district. “We need someone of her caliber to guide the new person. If we don’t have her, we are in trouble,” he said.

He said the company out of Lewisburg would not be able to prepare the district’s payroll but would only be able to run it.

Patchcoski said that with the new contract, the payroll program may need to be recalibrated up to three times.

Voigt said that in addition to her work in the business office, Makosky also served as the board secretary at a salary of $6,500 per year.

The newly appointed board secretary will be making $3,000 if approve to permanently take the position. Brittany Wilkins was appointed by the board to serve as secretary until Oct. 1.

Following the discussion, Richmond rescinded his motion; then moved to approve the training hours for Makosky which was passed by the board with two “no” votes.

The resignation of Philip Wetzel from his custodial position was accepted, effective Aug. 13. The board will advertise the position for a full-time, 260 day per year, custodian at a pay rate of $11.20 per hour.

The board appointed Jason Richmond as the PSBA representative.

Maintenance director Robert Taylor reported that new phones had been installed in all the classrooms and a manual was left near each phone.
Instructions will also be going out to the teachers.

In response to a request to place a drinking fountain in the high school cafeteria, Taylor said the only place available would be between the double entry/exit doors. Placing a fountain there, he said, would also require moving electrical components and cost the district about $4,500.

The closest existing water fountain, Taylor said, is located about 10-feet away from the cafeteria doors and could be outfitted with a bottle-filling mechanism at a much lower cost. “It’s an expensive 10-feet,” Taylor said.

Richmond said the board would discuss the information presented.

Some elementary teachers in the audience said they would also appreciate a bottle-filling fountain in their building.

Mountain View students head back to class today, Wednesday, Aug. 26.

After-school shuttle buses will be running the first day; routes are posted on the district website.