School board passes several new policies

WINSTED — It took less than six minutes for the Board of Education to pass five district policies during its meeting Tuesday, Feb. 7.Each passed unanimously without any debate.The policies were presented by board member Richard Dutton, chairman of the School Policy and Bylaws sub-committee.“These are all policies and policy changes recommended by the state’s General Assembly,” Dutton said.The first policy approved by the board addresses non-discrimination in the school district’s hiring practices.It states the district will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities.It also states the district will provide a fair employment setting and will comply with state and federal laws when it comes to employment.The second policy, which supersedes a previous one, outlines the district’s goals and general objectives as it applies to nondiscrimination.“These are both generally boiler plate policies that are important for the district to have in place,” Dutton said.The board approved an amendment to an existing district policy that outlines the hiring of substitute teachers.The amendment to the policy will allow the district to waive the requirement for a substitute teacher to have a Bachelor’s degree for good cause upon the request of the superintendent.“This is something that has been added to state statutes by the legislature,” Board Chairman Susan Hoffnagle said. “I don’t know if we will have much need of this, but it does add some flexibility to our hiring practices.”The next policy approved by the board is an addition to the section outlining graduation requirements for students.Dutton explained that this requires the district’s superintendent to create a student success plan for each child enrolled in the district, starting with sixth grade students.The plan will include details and advice for the student’s career and academic choices.Chairman Hoffnagle said The Gilbert School, which handles grades seven through 12, has a similar policy on its books.The final policy approved by the board at their meeting was an amendment to an existing policy outlining the reporting of suspected child abuse and neglect.Dutton explained the policy has been to changed to state that any employee of the school district is mandated to report any suspected case of abuse, injury or neglect to the school district.“This includes all employees, including the superintendent, teachers, substitute teachers, lunch workers and bus drivers,” Dutton said. “This policy covers any person who provides services on behalf of the school district.”While he discussed the policy, Dutton referenced the late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno.Before he passed away in January, Paterno was fired by Penn State due to allegations of sexual abuse by his assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky.

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