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WILKES-BARRE — The structural state of Meyers High School may have dominated this week’s meeting, but the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board did, as usual, run through a string of votes on contracts, bills and personnel — including a paid leave of absence for teacher union president Jeff Ney.
Ney was granted paid leave from Sept. 2 through May 12, 2o18, “for the purposes of serving full time as treasurer” of the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the state parent union of the local education association. The leave can be extended through Aug. 30, 2019, if Ney is “elected to the position of PSEA treasurer.”
The board also granted a sabbatical for teacher Genelle Hoban-Sedon for the first semester of the upcoming school year. And the board waived a requirement that Lisa Angelo return to service following a one-year sabbatical, granting her unpaid leave for the coming school year. Under terms of the waiver, she must return for the 2018-19 school year.
Meanwhile, William Ostroski was granted unpaid leave beginning Sept. 28 through the remainder of the 2017-18 school year.
In other moves, the board appointed:
• Alissa Lukasavage as elementary education teacher, and Tracy Glynn Roulinavage as full-time school nurse.
• Six long-term substitute teachers — Ashley Altavilla for elementary math, Mark Belles for secondary math, Anthony Koval for secondary science, Kyle Paul and Megan Hughes for special education, and Linda Scarantino for English as a second language.
The board also:
• Renewed student and athletic insurance for 2017-18 with Caitlin Insurance Company for the base plan and US Fire Insurance Company for catastrophic coverage, at total cost of $48,301.
• Approved a contract with Bayada Home Health Care Inc., of Wilkes-Barre, for “in school” home health aide services at a cost of $47 per hour.
• Agreed to contribute $20,000 to the Meyers speech and debate team, and $7,500 for the GAR team.