Sunday, March 11, 2012 THE DALLAS POST PAGE 3 DALLAS SCHOOL BOARD *Course changes approved at schools By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com The Dallas School Board on Monday approved changes to course offerings at the high school and middle school for the 2012-13 school year. At the high school, major changes include the addition of several classes to accommo- date the opportunities made available since the completion of the new high school build- ing last September. Board President Catherine Wega said the school was de- signed to include facilities for more elective courses, such as electronics, prototyping, food preparation and others. Wega also said the high school has fostered a relation- ship with the West Side Career and Technology Center in Pringle enabling Dallas stu- dents to take elective classes part-time at the institution. “Traditionally if students wanted to take classes at the technology center, they would have to remove themselves from Dallas and enroll there,” Wega said. “Now, if a student wants to take one or two tech- nology courses at the technol- ogy center that we don’t offer, they can do that and still re- main Dallas students.” Wega said transportation ar- rangements already have been made. There will be discussion as to whether the relationship will be reciprocal for Dallas students attending the West Side Career and Technical Center. At the middle school, two foreign language courses of- fered in eighth grade — conver- sational French and introduc- tory French — will be eliminat- ed, said Principal Thomas Duf- He said this is part of align- ing the curriculum with the high school foreign language department, which is in the midst of restructuring. The following four courses in the foreign language depart- ment will be offered to seventh grade: exploration of word ori- gins, introduction to Spanish, cultural geography and explo- ration of critical and contem- porary world languages. Duffy said these courses would not require a change in staffing at the middle school. In other news, the board also hired Paul Dumond as assist- ant high school football coach with a stipend of $3,976, and Rich Dumond as middle school assistant football coach with a stipend of $2,725. The next meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the adminis- tration building. ROSS TOWNSHIP Weight Special Rpaces NEPA holds fundraiser restriction approved on road By EILEEN GODIN Dallas Post Correspondent A new weight limit on a town- ship road and a new pension plan were approved during Tuesday meeting of the Ross Township su- pervisors. Supervisors approved a 20-ton weight limit on Niemchick Road. Previously, Niemchick Road did not have a weight limit, said Chairman Stan Davis. ] ines will be based on the ount a vehicle exceeds the weight limit, he said. The ordi- nance is in response to several re- ports of increased truck traffic go- ing into and leaving Hunlock Sand and Gravel in Sweet Valley. } In other news, supervisors ap- proved an ordinance to switch the township’s pension plan from | the Pennsylvania Municipal Re- ] tirement System to the Pennsyl- | vania State Association of Town- ship Supervisors, known as PSATS. Davis the two plans are similar with the exception of the admin- istration fees. “The fees are significantly less ith the PSATS plan,” he said. e new plan will affect four “township employees who did have a prior opportunity to re- view the offer. Supervisors also discussed how much road salt will be need- ed for the next winter season. Da- vis said they purchase the road salt through the COSTARS pro- gram. The COSTARS program is a joint effort by the state Depart- ment of Transportation and the Department of General Services to give municipalities the ability pecial Spaces of NEPA recently held its first fundraiser at the Hoyt Li- brary in Kingston in its quest to build a new bedroom for a local child. Special Spaces is a national organization dedicated to building “dream bedrooms” for children with life-threatening illnesses. The local chapter was spawned by ting kids. members of Leadership Wilkes-Barre last year, and the group will build its first bed- room in April for 4-year-old Charles Seiger “It’s like a little safe haven for them to be normal, where there are no lights flashing and tubes and beeps,” he said. “It’s their Four-year-old Charles Seiger, of Warrior Run, plays with a toy fire engine at the Special Spaces NEPA Art Auction at the Hoyt Library in Kingston. Seiger is the recipient of a bedroom makeover sponsored by Special Spaces. Art for special sale By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com BILL TARUTIS/ FOR THE DALLAS POST to find competitive prices on nec- essary items. Davis said it is a normal proce- dure to get bids in now for salt for next year. Supervisor David Williams said the mild winter has left them with excess supply for next win- ter, but suggested purchasing at least one load. One load of salt is equal to 25 tons. He estimated III, of Warrior Run, who has Down syndrome and other health complications. “Out of the last 365 days, Charles spent about 80 days in the hospital,” said Luke Mat- thews, director of Special Spaces of NEPA. “T've got five young kids with one on the way, and if my wife is in the hos- FOR MORE INFORMATION For more informa- tion about Special Spaces of NEPA, call Michelle Mor- gan at 212-9728 or visit www.special- spaces.org. special space.” Charles Sieger Jr. said the family wanted to help the orga- nization in any way it could, but was surprised to hear when his family would be the recipient of the group’s first project. “We talked to Luke and thought it would be awesome to help out,” he said. “We wanted to volunteer and help build l EYE CARE SPECIALISTS HAS NEW LOCATION a i Eye Care Specialists have moved their office from the Twin Y.acks Complex to the Dallas Shopping Center. Members of the Back Mountain business community at the ribbon cutting cere- mony on March 1included, from left, first row, Ann Howanitz, Dr Rob Lloyd, Tom Ferris, Eye Care Specialist CEO; Dr. Tara Farrell, Claire Parkhurst, Lynn Banta and Cheryl Summa. q they have about two and a half pital for two days she gets stir- loads of salt in the salt shed. crazy. “It would not hurt to cut back a Matthews, who lives not too far from little,” Williams said. the Seigers, said the group is different The next board of supervisors from other children’s charities because of meeting will be held at 7 p.m. the long-lasting gift they give to participa- April 3 in the municipal building. something for another child, but then he said we would be building something for Charles.” See SPACES, Page 13 Some of the artwork up for bids at the Special Spaces NEPA Silent Art Auc- tion at the Hoyt Library in Kingston. Local children painted replicas of fa- mous artwork for the event. JACKSON TOWNSHIP Supers discuss sewer projects By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com The board of supervisors ad- dressed issues regarding the mu- nicipal sewage system at a meet- ing Monday. The board heard from Paul Pa- sonick, an engineer from Larks- ville Borough, about the possibil- ity of tying five homes in the Val- ley View Estates development in- to the township’s sewer system. He said engineers have devised several ways to correct sewage problems in the development, and one includes connecting a low-pressure system into the township’s sewer map. The board told Pasonick he can work on the plan with the town- ship’s engineer. The plan would need to be approved by Jackson Township, the Dallas Area Mu- nicipal Authority and the state Department of Environmental Protection before it could pro- ceed. The board also passed a mo- tion to move forward with the Bulford Road sewer project. Supervisor Al Fox said the pro- ject, which has been in the plan- ning stages for about three years, is almost ready to begin construc- tion. The project includes install- ing a municipal sewer system for 19 residences because the current system had failed. The project’s costs will be split among the 19 residences and the township. Fox said at previous meetings that no grants were available for the project at the time, and the state Department of Environmental Protection had suggested the plan as the only viable way to complete the pro- ject. One Bulford Road resident, Mary Doceray, questioned why the township could not find alter- nate sources of funding for the sewer project. Fox said after holding several meetings, most of the residents involved understand and have been compliant with the process. Supervisor John Wilkes Jr. said at a previous meeting that the project benefits just those Bul- ford Road citizens, and the cost- splitting plan alleviates what resi- dents would have to pay by them- selves. Solicitor Jeff Malak said the township is working with Larks- ville Borough to “amicably re- solve” issues regarding the out- standing payments for services rendered to Steele Road in the borough. The municipalities formally ended their 39-year agreement for the upkeep of a portion of the road. Larksville Borough would pay $400 yearly in liquid fuels funds to Jackson Township for maintenance of the road. Larks- ville Borough has not made a pay- ment since 2005. Reading a letter from Larks- ville Borough’s solicitor, Malak said the borough would like to pay its outstanding balance in in- stallments and request that the borough be billed from now on to ensure payment. The next meeting will be held at 6 p.m. April 2 in the municipal building. DARE. Continued from Page 1 as much as possible because just arresting people doesn’t work anymore,” said Ziegler. The D.A.R.E. program is a 10- week course in which students learn about the effects of tobac- co, alcohol and other drugs and how they can make better deci- sions in life. D.A.RE., said Zie- gler, also stands for Define, As- sess, Respond and Evaluate — a decision-making model. “I think that’s what the meat and potatoes of the program is — how to make good decisions,” he said. “They can use this for any- thing, and when they get used to using it for the small things, when it comes to the big things, they’ll be well-experienced.” At a recent D.A.R.E. class at Dallas Elementary, Ziegler spoke D to fifth graders-about alcohol ad- vertising and how it’s targeted at young people. He also touched on the use of inhalants as a drug. “Do people really spray paint in a bag and smell it?” asked one student. “No, I made it all up,” Ziegler joked. “Yes, people do some crazy things — that’s why I'm here.” Angela Lizonitz, Dallas Ele- mentary health teacher, thinks early intervention is the key to preventing drug and alcohol abuse. “I think this is the best age to reach them because if you get to them when they're older, they've already been exposed to it,” she said. Ziegler, who holds a degree in elementary education, can’t re- member ever having a class like D.A.R.E. when he was younger. He said awareness of drugs and alcohol has increased in younger children through the years. “This is the time when they're on the border of being a kid and a teenager,” he said. “When I come into a class, some kids are already aware, and some kids have no clue.” Kingston Township Supervi- sor James Reino Jr. said his two daughters went through the D.A.R.E. program at Dallas, so he knows firsthand how it affects young children. “They enjoyed it very much, and it taught them respect for law enforcement and gave them basic knowledge about how to stay away from situations with drugs and pressure from peers,” he said. Reino said despite the in- creased costs during a recession, the supervisors feel any program dedicated to aiding youth in the township is a justified expense. “We feel that anything we can do to support the children of our area, to educate them on the do’s and don’ts of society, is a good, worthwhile project,” he said. Ziegler said it’s important that the program is taught at schools to every child in a certain grade. “It’s not taught at a Cub Scout meeting where kids can decide not to go,” he said. Members of the Back Moun- tain Community Partnership have even discussed starting the program in the Lake-Lehman School District because of its benefits. Ziegler believes drug resist- ance education is more impor- tant now than ever, and he will continue to teach the class as long as the police department and district allow him. “We have to do something more than just ride around in our cars and arrest people,” he said. “As long as it’s still relevant, and it’s still supported, I will continue todoit.”
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