Southeastern Greene School District plans for future

The Southeastern Greene School District board of directors met on Monday, Oct. 21, at 6 p.m. in the Mapletown Jr. Sr. High School Cafeteria.
Among the motions voted on, the directors approved a request from Social Studies teacher Jeremy Reed to the class of 2020 to Myrtle Beach, S.C., in June of next year. According to Reed, the students came up with and voted on the destination. Other options included Cedar Point and New York City, but the choice for South Carolina was “a strong one.”
The board also approved a motion from board member Sheri Garlick to implement the D.A.R.E curriculum for 5th grade students at Bobtown Elementary School during the 2019-2020 school year. An officer from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office will teach 10 lessons of approximately 45 minutes each, alongside an elementary school teacher.
Board president Janet Pennington spoke about the Pennsylvania School Board Association conference she attended in Hershey on Oct. 16 through 18.
Among the topics discussed during the event were school safety and security, vaping issues, career readiness information and mental and behavioral health, which was the main topic, Pennington said.
Superintendent Rich Pekar said he will share and review the information Pennington brought to the board with his team during the school district’s forthcoming leadership meeting.
Pekar also discussed some of the topics during the board meeting. He started his remarks by thanking the Greene County Commissioners for the $50,000 security grant they awarded the school district for the second year in a row.
The superintendent explained the money will be used for repairs, improving the schools’ outside lightning and replacing some of the existing doors with steel doors, which are safer in case of a lock down.
The school district also received a Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) safety grant of $25,000, which will be used for the same purposes.
Regarding vaping, Pekar said he met with superintendents from school districts in Greene, Fayette, Washington and Allegheny counties to the issue. Although one district implemented vaping detectors, there were reports students were finding ways around it. Therefore, Southeastern Greene’s main focus is on educating students about vaping, so they can make decisions based on facts.
Representative Pam Snyder and Phil Little, from the Attorney General office, will visit Mapletown Jr. Sr. High School on Nov. 22 to present students with information about the dangers of vaping as part of a district-wide tour.
Elections for Southeastern Greene School District board of directors will take place in November and the chosen board members will be sworn in during a meeting on Monday, Dec. 2.