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First Posted: 7/16/2013
At its July 15th meeting, the Lake-Lehman School District Board of Education hired the following junior-senior high teachers for the 2013-14 school year:
Elena Pellegrini starts at a salary of $47,014 Master’s level, step 3. Her initial assignment will be at the Junior-Senior High School.
William Evans will also be at the Junior-Senior High School with a salary of $47,311 Master’s +12, step 1.
Dianne Figura will teach Junior/Senior High School reading and English. Her salary will be $45,831, Master’s level, step 1.
Erica Slocum, Laura DePrimo and Amanda Dudish were hired as new elementary school teachers. Slocum will be an elementary support teacher with a salary of $43,048, Bachelor’s level, step 2. DePrimo begins with a salary of $46,423, Master’s level, step 2. She is assigned as an elementary teacher as is Amanda Dudish whose salary will be $42,457, Bachelor’s Step 1.
The district is posting a job position for a music teacher and the board also directed Human Resources to advertise for a full-time custodian and a part-time food service worker.
Amber Costello spoke to the board because she was not hired, speaking about her service to the district over the past four years which has included five long-term substitute positions. She said she had made it to the final round of hiring for the past three years but was not chosen again this year. Costello said, “We teach our kids that if you are dedicated and if you give your all, you will persevere and you will make it.” She wanted to know why her name “had been swept underneath the rug.”
Board member Walter Glogowski suggested that Costello have a meeting with Lake-Lehman Superintendent James McGovern to discuss the district’s hiring practices and McGovern agreed to do that.
McGovern was voted a 3.5 percent raise at the meeting, raising his salary to $116,763. Board members Bo Kreller and James Welby were absent but board members present voted unanimously in favor of the raise.
The board appointed the following coaches for the 2013-2014 school year:
Brian Noler, varsity boys’ soccer; Matt Nonnenberg, junior high co-ed soccer; Paul Callahan, varsity girls’ soccer; John Mokychick, golf assistant; and Kirsten Raymond, girls’ volleyball.
Football coaches will be Rich Colorusso, Thomas Bell and Gary Grandenetti for varsity and Mark Pachamovitch for junior high football.
Cheerleading coaches will be Deanna Dragon, varsity; and Crystal Savage, junior high.
Field hockey coaches will be Adrienne Dieffinbacher for varsity and Janine Kasarda for junior high.
The cross country coach will be Justin Mazer.
Parent Sharon Barto expressed frustration to the board that her seventh-grade daughter was sent home from school with an injured finger. Barto was upset that she had npt been called about the injury and that her daughter had been sent home on the bus by the school nurse. “The only thing I was looking for was a phone call,” Barto said.
The day of the injury, Barto went to the junior/senior high school school to speak to Principal Doug Klopp. Barto told the board, “To me, he was very offensive.”
Barto had wanted to speak with the superintendent about the incident but felt that she had been ignored by Klopp.
Both McGovern and his secretary replied to Barto’s concerns, saying that they had both been on vacation. Barto and McGovern scheduled a meeting for July 20 .
The board’s next meeting will take place at 7 p.m. on Aug 19 at the junior/senior high school.