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First Posted: 6/30/2013 FACTORYVILLE - At the Lackawanna Trail school board meeting, June 24, assistant principal Dr. Mark Murphy offered a presentation about the high school handbook. He started with overarching goals.
&#8220;My overarching goals were to make sure it&#8217;s a user-friendly document (the handbook) and information could be located in a timely and efficient manner,&#8221; he said. &#8220;My second goal is to make sure it was vertically aligned with the elementary center.&#8221;
Murphy&#8217;s other goals: to insure the handbook is current with the needs of the building as well as clear and concise. He organized the document into six sections.
&#8220;The sections were first and foremost the high school policies, discipline and decorum, academics, extracurricular activities, guidance and student records and then finally, any forms included in this document.&#8221;
Murphy mentioned additions to the handbook including a drug and alcohol policy, a bullying policy in the discipline section, an educational trips policy and a weapons policy.
 He and principal John Rushefski changed certain level 2 offenses, cheating and bullyinginto level 3 offenses.
Murphy also mentioned the principal&#8217;s letter.
&#8220;Mr. Rushefski and I will draft that (principal&#8217;s letter) after hopefully you (board) approve this document in the month of July before it gets sent out to students,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It will address current needs and things we want to draw the students&#8217; attention to.&#8221;
Rushefski said, &#8220;This effort that you saw tonight in terms of Dr. Murphy putting this together started July 1, 2012.&#8221;
Rushefski added, &#8220;what&#8217;s in print is what&#8217;s in practice.&#8221;
Later in the meeting, board member Carol Selwood motioned to approve the high school handbook. Board member David Thorne seconded it. The board agreed 8-0.
In other business, president Ned Clarke motioned that the Lackawanna Trail budget of $19,240,555 be approved for the 2013-14 fiscal year and that a copy of the budget be included with the official minutes of the meeting. Board member Selwood seconded this motion. The board agreed 8-0.
Also, the board appointed Lauren McNamara longterm substitute elementary position for the first semester of 2013-14. Kelly Carey as school psychologist at a salary of $70,000 as stipulated in the Act 93 Agreement; and Rachel Sapio as temporary professional elementary special education teaching position at a salary of $51,810 Step 1, Master&#8217;s column as stipulated in the collective bargaining agreement. 
 The board accepted Lynne Symons&#8217; resignation as elementary secretary;.Andrew Kettel&#8217;s resignation as head boys&#8217; basketball coach and Michael Shields&#8217; resignation as assistant boys&#8217; basketball coach. 
 Susan Robinson was appointed head boys&#8217; and girls&#8217; volleyball coach, each with a stipend of $3,050 as stipulated in the collective bargaining agreement, pending receipt of one clearance.

L.T. board approves budget; reviews high school handbook