BOMUSD board updated on summer projects

On Aug. 9, the Black Oak Mine Unified School District Board of Trustees received reports from the principals of each site regarding the summer work done at their various schools.

Principal Karen Shadle reported that the new paved parking lot at Georgetown School will make the area safer for everyone. There are new playground boundaries. The Boys and Girls Club will be on campus as well as the Independent Study program. A Parent Resource Center will be available. The New Morning counseling is also now at Georgetown School.

Northside School Principal Wendy Westsmith said there was no construction at that site during the summer, but there has been much restructuring and upgrades for new technology. A major inventory was completed, and there are plans for “Family Nights” at the school, which appears to be a very promising program.

Superintendent Rob Williams reported on the American River Charter School, which will be located next to the district office. Necessary changes have been made to accommodate the new middle school on the lower campus of Golden Sierra High School.

Divide High School has been relocated to Greenwood. Wireless technology will be available. There are currently 27 students enrolled and plans are progressing to partner in various ways with the California Conservation Corps, which is next door.

GSHS Principal Kevin Ahern updated the board about Golden Sierra and the middle school. Much work was done there over the summer and was still in progress. The bathrooms at the stadium are completed and some funds from that project were used to pave around the new middle school, while crews work feverishly to complete landscaping around the middle school. There will also be added capacity to accommodate new technology (WiFi, iPads). An enrollment of 625 students at Golden Sierra was the count as of Aug. 9 and new students were arriving every day to enroll.

Former science teacher, John Daniels, approached the board with a request for some up-front funding for a project slated to start in early September. He, two other teachers and a crew would like to take four students on a backpacking trip to recover two World War II bodies from a plane that crashed in 1942 in King Canyon National Forest. The expedition will be led by the author of the book about this crash who has been to the site a number of times and already helped recover two of the four bodies from the plane crash. The board approved the concept, but needs more information regarding safety of the students and liability concerns. Daniels will provide the necessary information.

Ron Wolsfeld of the Divide Area Planning Advisory Committee representing Rural Community Survival and Recovery Action Plan (RCSRAP), outlined the group’s goals to get building fees reduced in order to stimulate economic growth in the community. Building fees can be as high as $60,000 in some areas. The Divide is a little less at $30,000, not including water hookup. The group wants the board to be aware of its aim to get the economy moving again, and hopes that some school fees can be reduced. This is something that would need to be researched, since the district receives funds from the state and federal governments based on many different parameters. At this point it looks like the local district would only be able to consider such a possibility on an individual basis.

The board reviewed the Administrative Regulation (1321) governing solicitations of funds from and by students. Language and ground rules have been clarified in regard to soliciting on behalf of a charitable organization as well as on behalf of the school. Students must comply with elements of the Education Code, the Business and Professions Code, the Penal Code, the Revenue and Tax Code.