R-I board OKs security system upgrade

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The R-I School District will be better secured, following action by the Board of Education to upgrade the district’s security cameras.

Superintendent Jason Harper and Jeremy Worcester, R-I technology director, reviewed requests for proposals for a new security system with the board during their monthly meeting last week, at which the board also heard a report on the FY22 audit and heard curriculum and Parents as Teachers updates.

The proposals to upgrade the camera security system will include 157 cameras, compared to 90 the current system uses, and will address some areas which have not been covered in the past. 

“The burglary at the middle school did show some gaps in both the interior and exterior of the middle school building, but we were already aware of some areas around the district that did not have good coverage,” said Harper, noting the increased number of cameras should provide coverage of all three Palmyra R-I campuses.

One area which was not covered was the new athletic facilities behind the high school, but that will be addressed now.

In addition, the new system will include new switching, storage and command centers.

The board approved seeking bids for the proposals, which will be accepted until Dec. 1. A pre-bid walk through is set for Oct. 28.

While the district does not have an estimated cost for the total project, Harper said they do have some estimates on various parts, including the cameras, which would be approximately $400 per camera with the switches costing around $30,000.

The command centers will be made up of computer screens and towers, he added

Some of the unknown costs at this point are labor, depending if the job will require prevailing wage or not, running wires and installing cameras and storage of information. More will be known, he said, after the October walk-through.

The school plans to have the project installed between Jan. 1 and May 31.

In other business, the FY22 audit was approved by the board as presented by Dennis Koch. 

The audit was positive for Palmyra R-I as no significant deficiencies were disclosed during the audit of the financial statements with no material weaknesses. 

There were also no instances of noncompliance material to the financial statements of Palmyra R-1 School District.

“Mr. (Kirt) Malone and the Palmyra R-I School Board have consistently met all compliance standards regarding our required audits, and that should be comforting to the community stakeholders of our district,” Harper noted.

The board reviewed the curriculum review for the 2022-23 school year, which included practical arts, fine arts and physical education.

The district uses a five year rotation for curriculum review with those three curriculums being reviewed this year. 

Jessica Gottman and Kristi Mitchell spoke about the different aspects of their curriculum, and showed how standards were addressed within the curriculum. 

Both also noted how the curriculum model could be arranged differently to maximize practical application within various content areas.

For example, Gottman has aligned her curriculum so K-4 PE is condensed into one curriculum rather than five separate curriculums. This allows her to place different levels of activities for each standard addressed, depending on grade level.

“Practicality is always a goal when using a curriculum model,” said Harper. “When the curriculum is not practical, it usually tends to sit on a shelf and not be used.”

Kathy Nicholson reported the Parents as Teachers program noting the yearly activities that are offered for families and children throughout the district.

Currently, the PAT program serves 206 families and 280 children throughout the district. 

Nicholson said the PAT program is fully staffed this year, which has been an issue in the recent past 

The group has already hosted events for children including “The Big Dig” at Flower City Park and Tuesday morning playgroup in the elementary cafeteria.

The board will hold a retreat on Dec. 3, at which they will access needs in the areas of instruction, human resource, and facilities. The CSIP plan will also be reviewed. 

The board will be sending out a survey to parents, students and community members soon to collect data prior to the retreat.

The board approved two additions to the sub list.

Diann Brumbaugh was approved for the position of high school assistant FCCLA sponsor.

Nathan Meyers was approved as a boys’ basketball volunteer assistant.