The Falcon School District Board of Education announced their final selection for the chief education officer position at their regular meeting May 9. After narrowing the field down to two finalists, the board unanimously approved Peter Hilts for the position.Tammy Harold, president of the board, said she was grateful for the great job that Don Begier, interim CEO, did. ìHe didnít do this job like it was an interim position,î Harold said. ìHe treated it like a full-time position.î Chris Wright, board vice-president, agreed and said, ìI think that Don was the best person weíve had in that position so far.îCOO proposalJack Bay, chief operations officer, presented information regarding a realignment of facilities, grounds and maintenance operations. His proposed plan establishes clear lines of reporting, increased accountability and leadership within the department.ìWe are looking at our part to reorganize, and we look at every dollar to spend it wisely,î Bay said. ìIn order to filter the money back to the education side, we must align staff so they are accountable and truly understand the scope of their job description.î Many of the staff members were already performing tasks not included in their job descriptions. The new alignment defines individual job duties.To adequately compensate staff members based on their newly-amended job descriptions, Bay said his proposal designates certain hourly positions as salaried positions. The money for the reallocation of funds will come from money in his budget previously set aside for hiring an administrative assistant.After a lengthy discussion, the board unanimously approved Bayís realignment and job description proposal.Boundary changesThe board also approved a boundary change for Remington Elementary School and Springs Ranch Elementary School to alleviate overcrowding at Springs Ranch. The new boundary also prevents students from having to cross North Carefree Circle, a major roadway, when they walk to school. Students living to the north will attend Springs Ranch, and students living to the south will attend Remington.Marie LaVere-Wright, BOE treasurer, said families with students enrolled in either school can choose whether to opt in to the new boundary, which will be put in place for the 2013-2014 school year.More approved itemsBoard directors unanimously approved funding for two separate vocational programs: one in partnership with Pikes Peak Community College and one for cosmetology in partnership with the International Salon and Spa Academy. The board established guidelines for the number of students who can participate since the district provides the funding for their concurrent enrollment in a vocational program.Paul Andersen, personnel director, requested that Academy of Health Sciencesí instructors in hard-to-fill positions be given differential compensation. Currently, the district offers applicants for hard-to-fill positions 10 percent of their base pay as additional compensation. To recruit and retain qualified instructors, the increase in compensation is necessary, he said. The board unanimously approved the item.The board also unanimously approved the following: revisions to policies on district relations with charter schools; revisions to policies on staff leaves and absences, as well as sick leave; revisions to policies on staff ethics and conflicts of interest; and a resolution to establish periods in between classes as educational time, which directors must annually approve.The Colorado Digital Board of Cooperative Educational Services constitution and bylaws and food services for the Head Start program at Evans International and Falcon Elementary schools were also approved for the 2013-2014 school year.As a discussion item, Amy Attwood, lobbyist, provided an update on current and new school finance acts. With D 49 ranking 177 out of 178 among Colorado school districts in the amount of state funding received, Attwood said she made it clear to legislators that D 49 will not support any bill that takes funds away from the district.. ìWe raised Falconís (district) profile with the only accurate numbers presented,î she said. ìWe gave Falcon an immediate seat at the negotiating option, thanks to Brett Ridgway (chief business officer).îAndersen also presented information regarding the restructuring of contracts for the districtís top administrators. The members agreed that they want to limit all contracts to one year.The next regular board of education meeting is June 12 at 6:30 p.m. in the board room at the education service center.
