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AROUND THE
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BOARD DELAYS DECISION
STUDENT-STAFF BASKETBALL
story nick tedesco | photo sierra whitlock
story christian roehm | photo kyle morrison
At the March 28 Lakota Local School District Board of Education meeting, the Board voted 4-1 to table the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) presented to them by the Lakota Education Association (LEA). This MOU would require teachers like LEA East Head John Severns (above) to teach six periods rather than five, allowing the high schools to keep a seven-period day while still eliminating 14 full-time equivalents (FTEs). Board member Paul Lohr, who motioned to table the proposals, said that the Board needs to do “more work on long term strategy because this proposal will have long term effects.” Members of the community and of the union were visibly dissatisfied with the Board’s decision. “I am extremely disappointed in our delay, and I am sure that the 1,200 members I represent will be also,” said LEA President Sharon Mays. “We made some concessions to make it possible for our students to have the same opportunities that they have now. I feel as though we have left the students and the members in limbo.” Board President Joan Powell cited ulterior motives for tabling the MOUs. . Given Lakota’s current financial situation, Powell said that the reason for tabling the MOU may be related to the ability to legally sign the said contact because districts must be in the black. n
Students gathered in the East gym on March 18 to watch the annual student-staff basketball game. Sophomores with perfect attendance during their OGTs received a free ticket to the game. Juniors and seniors who wanted to attend the game, which took place during seventh period, bought $2 tickets during lunch; the funds directly supported Spark. During the second half of the game, while they were trailing, the students called a timeout. The team sprinted towards the locker rooms as the boys’ basketball team replaced them on the court. With only a few minutes remaining, however, even the most successful boys’ team in school history could not score enough points to overcome the teachers’ lead. The teacher defeated the students 23-12. Both the student players like Ben Slageter (above) and the teachers chosen to play in the game were nominated by East students during their fifth period study hall. East junior Michael Dudley was one of the students nominated to play. “I was surprised [when I found out I was nominated] because I know that I’ve been nominated for homecoming court and Mr. Lakota East, but I didn’t think I was well-known by many people,” said Dudley. “I thought I got my 15 minutes of fame from previous nominations and those had already passed, but I guess [the fame didn’t go away].” n
Spark
High School Lakota East n Online Editio
lehsspark .org
6 | Spark | April 15, 2011
Several reductions in class options at the junior high level will occur if the Lakota Local School District Board of Education approves $12 million in the district-wide cuts that were proposed at the Feb. 28 meeting. Specifically, at the junior high level, there would be a reduction of 25.5 staff members and $1,727,819.
news online
story shivang patel
photo sara patt
excerpt from “Junior High Cuts”