Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
DAVE RADOVICH, superintendent on the left and Dave Wineburner, high school principal at A.D. Johnston junior and senior high school listen to the board during Mondays school board meeting. The board agreed to join Wakefield-Marenisco and Ironwood to form a golf team in the spring as Gogebic Miners so all three schools can join forces to provide boys and girls another opportunity to compete and learn a sport.
By IAN MINIELLY
Bessemer - The Bessemer school board voted to join Ironwood and Wakefield-Marenisco to form a cooperative golf team under the banner of the Gogebic Miners Monday. According to Superintendent Dave Radovich both Ironwood and Bessemer had lost their golf teams in prior years and with formation of a co-op team in both boys and girls, in all three schools will have another athletic option in the spring to take part in.
Annette Lillie, school board member on the personnel committee said negotiations with the teachers union went well and they had agreed to a 1.5 percent raise for the teachers. The raise will cost the Bessemer Area School district an additional $25,586 per year and the board was very pleased to have room in the budget to provide the teachers a raise. Radovich said when there is additional money available the teachers should receive the investment.
Beth Steiger, board member on the finance committee said the committee had decided to set aside an additional 5 percent from revenue to ensure the school stayed off the statewide listing for troubled districts. Steiger also asked the board to set aside $80,000 for an additional school bus purchase, $100,000 for building upgrades, and $75,000 for debt repayment.
After the board agreed to the recommendations from both committees, later in the meeting the board was discussing the cost of buses and comparing diesel and gasoline powered engines. Radovich said he has a friend selling school buses in Pennsylvania and in the last year he had sold 38 gasoline-powered busses and only 2 diesel powered. A new gasoline-powered bus costs approximately $85,000 so after discussing the difference in their recommendation $80,000; for a used diesel when located, the board agreed to raise the agreed upon dollar figure for a new bus to $85,000 and look into the purchase of a new gasoline engine bus.
Lucas Roderick, food service manager, said he has been trying to figure out ways to get the kids to eat more fruit and vegetables, while also expanding the menu options available. Roderick said the kids would like larger portions, but the federal guidelines championed by Michelle Obama limit the ability to increase portion size. Roderick is instead pursuing efforts to increase the fruit and vegetable by allowing to kids to have additional servings of fruits and vegetables in an effort to get the kids more chow.
Dave Wineburner, high school principal, said enrollment at ADJ is 206 students, while Radovich said the Washington School has 216 students.
