The Conewago Valley school board hired a new assistant superintendent and addressed questions surrounding the Act One Index and district budget process during its regular meeting on Monday evening.
The board held a flurry of meetings back-to-back, beginning with a tour of New Oxford Elementary School that was open to the public. After the tour concluded, the board heard a presentation from architectural design firm Crabtree, Rohrbaugh & Associates, which the district is working with to evaluate options for renovating its two elementary schools.
Immediately after the tour and presentation, the board held an executive session, a study session, and a regular board meeting.
One item of consideration for the board was a resolution related to the Act One Index.
“Recommend adoption of the resolution to certify that the board will not increase school district tax for the 2025-26 school year at a rate that exceeds the index as calculated by the Pennsylvania Department of Education,” the agenda item said.
The resolution states that the board will not exceed the index. The index varies each year and is 5.4% for Conewago Valley for fiscal year 2025-26.
Less than a minute into the study session, board member April Swope made a motion to have the board be given a budget option that includes a 0% tax increase.
Board president Jeffrey Kindschuh said it is early in the budget cycle, but options will be discussed in meetings through April, explaining that the index is a limit rather than a goal.
During the time for public comment, one member of the community, Jamie Fitzpatrick, addressed the board. Fitzpatrick told the board that a vote for the 5.4% limit would result in a having “a budget built with a 5.4% increase,” asking for a motion to create a 0% budget.
When a school board approves a resolution to not exceed the Act One Index, the board is agreeing to below the rate in its final budget. This gives the board flexibility to consider many tax scenarios, including a no-increase budget. Approving the resolution sets a cap for the tax increase. It does not show an intention by the board to increase taxes.
Potential tax increases are typically discussed over months of budget planning and are cemented during the final budget approval in June.
Board solicitor Brook Say addressed the confusion, saying that the board is committing to two items at once.
“You’re not seeking exceptions and thereby you’re using the process that indicates you will not increase above a certain level, because in order to increase above a certain level, you would have to seek the exemption, so you’re doing both,” Say clarified.
Say told the board the Act One Index sets a cap rather than an expectation of tax increases.
“But I think the minutes could reflect that this is not in any way a guarantee that there will be any percent increase in taxes or what percent increase that would be,” Say noted. “It just – if it happens, it will not be above a certain number. That’s all the vote does.”
Say suggested board members with questions about budget development pursue the matter in a committee after posting the topic on an agenda.
“(Voting for the resolution) says that you will not pursue exemptions because that takes you on a very different budget process that requires a lot more meetings, and I think that if there are concerns about how a budget is built, then you should put that on a committee agenda moving forward so that the board can talk about what directive they want to give to the administration, because that’s not actually on this agenda item,” Say advised. “But it would be very appropriate to have a conversation as you’re building your budget over the next few months.”
Board vice president Eric Flickinger defended the budget process of board secretary Lori Duncan.
“Lori does an outstanding job,” Flickinger said. “She builds a budget based on the expenses. Every year that we’ve been on here, we are given options of 0%, 0.25%, 0.75% or to the full index. So, budgets are built and she gives us a breakout, which you will see as you attend meetings.”
Flickinger said that the board is presented with options and the pros and cons each entails.
“She does give all those scenarios, and we do then make a decision on where we stand based on each scenario as far as costs, expenses and use of fund balance, of what we would have to then use our fund balance, if needed, if based on those different scenarios,” Flickinger said. “So that has been given every year since I’ve been on the board. It’s not like she sets the highest budget and we automatically have to go to the 5.4%, 7.2%. We give that direction as a board from public input there, as well. That is explicitly shown, shared and discussed with the board every year that I’ve been on the board.”
Duncan committed to providing a no-increase budget option to the board, as she does each year.
“When I present that, I do give you that option,” Duncan said. “So you’ll have all those options to review when the budget is presented.
When asked by Kindschuh whether she withdrew her motion, Swope agreed.
“Under those conditions, yes,” Swope said.
Assistant superintendent
The board voted to hire Dr. Wesley Doll as the district’s new assistant superintendent.
Doll is currently superintendent of Upper Adams School District.
Doll will replace Dr. Brad Sterner, who will take the position of superintendent at Bermudian Springs School District. Sterner will begin at Bermudian Springs no later than Jan. 9, 2025, according to Bermudian Spring’s October agenda. His contract will extend through June 30, 2029.
While Doll was approved to join Conewago Valley, board members were split on his hire.
Flickinger, Kindschuh, treasurer Michael Buckley and board members Melanie Sauter and David Thad Meckley voted in favor of hiring Doll.
Board member Lindsay Krug abstained.
Board members Swope, Miller and Getz voted against hiring Doll.
Only one board member made a public comment about their decision during the vote.
“After seeing a national story of what, in my opinion, was the mistreatment of one of the students at Upper Adams under Dr. Doll’s leadership, I don’t think I’m going to be able to support his selection and still claim to be concerned about the students of our school district,” Getz said.
Comprehensive planning
Sterner said the comprehensive planning steering committee will wrap up its year-long work on Monday, Nov. 18. The committee began meeting in January and has included a variety of voices in the planning.
“We have met every month except for over the summer and we’ve done a ton of work and I am so please with all the work that the committee has put together,” Sterner said. “Just a reminder that our committee is made up of several stakeholder groups. We have administrators, we have teachers, we have staff members, parents, we have community members and most importantly, we have student voice on that committee, as well.”
While the comprehensive plan is not due until March 2025, Sterner said the committee’s work has ensured it is done well ahead of the deadline. The work will also be completed ahead of Sterner’s departure from the district.
“We’ll be finishing up and just looking at our goals that we created as a committee to start putting into the plan, and also just doing a couple other things that we need to tie up, but I am very pleased with that,” Sterner said.
Superintendent Sharon Perry wished the board and district a happy early Thanksgiving.
“It is a little bit early to be sharing such wishes, but since we will not be together until Dec. 2, I do want to express a heartfelt appreciation for this continued service of our board, our school district solicitor, our administrators, our teachers, our support staff – the list goes on and on – our custodial staff, our maintenance staff, our school bus drivers,” Perry said.
Perry took a moment to reflect on the students’ progress since the beginning of the school year, saying she is pleased.
The superintendent also presented a certificate to board member Melanie Sauter for her five years of service on the board.
“The Pennsylvania School Boards’ Association honor roll of school board service program celebrates school board directors for long-term service and recognizes their dedication to their local school district and to their communities,” Perry said. “Bestowing a certificate represents their appreciation for their work and the steadfast commitment to our students.”
Perry said that the PSBA has made recent changes in when it awards certificates to school directors.
“This year, the honor roll program celebrates 40 years of recognizing our long-term school leaders, and with this anniversary comes exciting updates to the program,” Perry said. “Now, when school directors reach five years of service and for every five years thereafter, PSBA is pleased to offer them an honor roll certificate, which I will be sharing with Mrs. Melanie Sauter this evening for her five years of service.”
The board will hold its annual reorganization meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 2 in the district office.
Imari Scarbrough is a freelance journalist. She was a staff newspaper reporter for five years before becoming a freelancer in 2017. She has written on crime, environmental issues, severe weather events, local and regional government and more.
You can visit her website at ImariJournal.com.