LANSDALE- The North Penn School District Board of School Directors met for an action meeting Thursday evening. The Board awarded former member John Schilling with a plaque to commemorate his service to the Board. In addition, the Board approved all items under the Superintendent’s Report barring the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit 2018-29 membership services budget for $1,785,916 which was opposed. The Board also approved the employment agreement which established Mr. Stephen B. Skrocki as Chief Financial Officer.

Following a North Penn Television news update, the Board used the proclamations section of the evening to recognize and award John Schilling with a plaque to thank him for serving on the Board. Schilling was on the Board for 22 years and resigned at the last work session meeting.

“As a newly appointed Board member and President, I would like to say that John Schilling was very welcoming to us. He gave us a lot of advice and was very helpful in providing guidance to us,” expressed Board President Tina Stoll.

Board members also shared memories and sentiments of Schilling from over the years.

“One of the things I’ll always remember was a year and a half ago when I had shared with you I was feeling conflicted with one of my votes and you told me to vote my heart and not let anyone pressure me into voting a certain way. I’ve never forgotten that. Thank you for sharing that and I’ll remember that for as long as I serve on this Board,” shared Board member Ed Diasio to Schilling.

“Thank you very much for the kindness, openness, and honesty you’ve shared. You have some really big shoes to fill and I’ll be proud if I’m able to accomplish just a portion of what you were able to,” said Board member Jonathan Kassa.

After the audience of citizens where one community member spoke about several topics including extensive security measures in the district, the committee reports were given.

Items provided for the Finance committee report included the 2018-2019 extended school care tuition rates, the 2018-2019 preliminary budget, and the summer 2018 extended summer camp rates. For the Safe Schools committee report, items included security in the North Penn School District, the winter weather drill, flu prevention, the newly implemented canine searches, and a climate survey. The ECP committee reported on the integration of technology and curriculum changes. The Support Services committee reported on change orders for roofing projects at Gwynedd Square and Walton Farm elementary school as well as change orders for the HVAC project at Oak Park elementary school. The committee also reported the evaluation of a boiler at North Penn High School and a recommended proposal to replace old security cameras in the district. The Educational Foundation reported on items including the annual financial statements and a review of the foundation’s finances for the fiscal year.  

Under the Superintendent’s Report, items were approved except for the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit 2018-19 Membership Services Budget for the amount of $1,785,916. The North Penn School District portion of the budget is $209,831, representing a $5 increase over the 2017-18 year. Board member Theresa Prykowski opposed the approval. Items approved included change orders to several roofing and HVAC projects and the extended school care rates and summer fees established in the committee reports.

Stephen Skrocki updated the Board on the use of BoardDocs, a way for the Board meetings to go paperless at Board meetings through the use of interactive agendas, the use of chromebooks, and the accessing of the documents online. All items under the Finance Report were approved.

In other business, the Board approved the employment agreement with Stephen Skrocki as Chief Financial Officer, effective July 1st, 2018 through June 30th, 2023.

“I just want to say how lucky the district is to have Steve as the CFO starting July. There are good business managers, great business managers, outstanding business managers, and then there’s Steve. Thank you Steve for everything you’ve done and we look forward to many more years to come,” conveyed Diasio.

The Board also approved the revised 2018 committee assignments which stated that Mark Warren would replace John Schilling on the Support Services committee and Julianne Ramic would replace Mark Warren on the ECP committee. In addition, the Board approved the establishment of an additional Safe Schools committee meeting on April 10th, 2018 at 6:00 PM.

The next North Penn School District Board of School Directors meeting is scheduled for a work session meeting on March 6th at 7:30 PM in the Educational Services Center.