The Trenton R-9 Board of Education approved a transportation contract at a special meeting on April 19. The contract, awarded to First Student of Overland Park, Kansas, is valued at $708,858.48. It encompasses regular, Grand River Technical School, special education, KVC Academy, and early childhood special education routes, both full and partial. It also covers trips and aides. The vote on April 19 was unanimous, six to zero, with Board Member Andy Burress absent.
Previously, First Student submitted a higher bid of $783,166.89. During the April 9 board meeting, the board voted five to one to accept this bid, contingent on finalizing the contract details. Burress opposed the bid at that time, and Board Member Jeffrey Spencer was absent.
Lonestar Bus Company of Lexington also placed bids, with one at $704,272.04 for buses not exceeding 10 years in age, and another at $676,882.04 for buses up to 12 years old.
Additionally, the board sanctioned the creation of up to two part-time media center aide positions. A request for proposals for speech services will be initiated soon.
Superintendent Daniel Gott provided an update on various position adjustments due to budgetary constraints. Trenton High School will reduce its English Language Arts teaching staff from four to three. The counseling roles for eighth and ninth grades will consolidate to a single counselor, who will also serve as a RootEd advisor. The fifth grade’s reading intervention role has been eliminated.
Changes also include converting a full-time preschool position for three-year-olds to part-time and replacing a Success Center paraprofessional with a Behavior Support/Recovery Room at Rissler Elementary School.
The board also disclosed several personnel changes following an executive session. Retirements at the end of this school year include TMS Paraprofessional Tamara Leafgreen, Rissler Nurse Tyann Cox, Rissler Administrative Assistant Sonci Jones, and TMS Administrative Assistant Dana Creason. Furthermore, resignations effective at the end of this school year were approved for Director of Special Services Tara Hoffman, TMS Science Teacher Joshua Currie, Rissler Paraprofessional Kiley Howe, and TMS Builders Club Sponsor Taya Ray.
Internal transfers set for the next school year were approved as well. These include Samantha French moving from Rissler Early Childhood Special Education Preschool to TMS Fifth Grade Special Education, Kailey Caldwell transitioning from a paraprofessional role at the same preschool to a similar position in fifth grade, and Jessica Golden from TMS Fifth Grade Special Education to TMS Computers.
New hires for the upcoming school year include Kim Townsend as a Rissler paraprofessional, Wes Croy for the Success Center, and Kim Foster for Seventh Grade Science at TMS.
