Boyertown >> After much discussion, the Boyertown Area School Board unanimously approved a document outlining priorities for the district’s Comprehensive Plan.
Early in the discussion Monday, board members Robert Caso, Paul Stengle and Christine Neiman stated concerns about the outline.
“If I approve these things now, I feel my feet are going to be held to the fire later, saying ‘well you already approved it,'” Caso said, adding that without dollar figures attached to the initiatives, he did not feel comfortable approving anything.
The outline included a list of priorities that the district will focus on in the coming years. The five listed categories involve increased academic achievement, communication and collaboration, use of resources, healthy learning environments and continued learning for district personnel.
There was also a long list of goals the district would use to measure its success, and a set of core values.
The document was developed during a long process that involved workshops and interviews with more than 3,000 community members, staff, parents and students.
“This isn’t Dr. Faidley’s list of priorities and goals,” said Superintendent Richard Faidley. “This is a list of the community’s priorities and goals and no one was turned away who wanted to voice their opinion.”
Neiman and Stengle shared Caso’s reluctance to endorse a list of priorities that, if fulfilled, could mean expensive projects and programs in the district. Things like air conditioning in the schools and full-day kindergarten were among the items that trended throughout the discourse with the community, according to board member Jill Dennin.
“This is more of our aspirational goals,” said board member Robert Landino. “I don’t feel any obligation to spend any amount of money, regardless of how I vote today.”
Caso said that the board members’ comments, which both emphasized the community’s involvement in developing the list and reinforced that the approval of the list was not a commitment of funds to any projects or programs, swayed his vote.
In the end of the discussion, the approval of the document passed with a 9-0 vote.
“That was the hardest 9-0 vote,” Caso joked after it was approved.
Updates on the comprehensive plan are available at http://www.boyertownasd.org/domain/33, and the document outlining the priorities will soon be posted on the site as well, Faidley said.
