[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6586024,"mediaKeyId","5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175","parentId",5565124,"title","Votes at a glance: Penncrest board approves handbooks and policies; tables solar RFP LOI","audioSeconds",1442,"startMs",5409000,"endMs",6851000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175&start=5409&end=6851","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175/thumbnail_5409000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6586024/Pennsylvania/Votes-at-a-glance-Penncrest-board-approves-handbooks-and-policies-tables-solar-RFP-LOI","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6586024-5c85a9e2b84f3bd3a4f1d9fbdeb04ec8/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140394&Signature=khJPjIRVXppns~oocY7AZ4ks4gJS4GMlKAhwy5z7aeRnzq7cyQno7TrrwJLyjYQgKMhQ0~NnlMdVAH04uaShdz1tPX8~I-f6I~oE68991ViCtB4UDIkrywGDxJwacuRbsTApqE4Gm1PDB58E~G0ixYPbHSr461L9cDekvWrxNrq6HNSAOy1ktnv6vcJ92O0GZ-fKtq6ShBpXCzv-XVci4Lbw2MXvBftWS8FtpvfvMXGZEpyHugOz3rJ2hXq1j6XS5e0QTaBX5lZUSXGtbh6U8DNDEqGPn3Djhf4V7-y3jQcXwztfX~DkiBxaRRIvphJC7bfBoDw4OZPuERwLYOHM7Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Penncrest School District","date","2025-08-12T20:35:10Z","article","The Penncrest School District Board of School Directors acted on several routine and substantive items during its Aug. 11 committee meeting. Most agenda items were approved as presented; one item related to solar procurement was tabled for additional information and solicitor review.

Key outcomes

- Minutes (July 14, 2025 special voting meeting): approved.
- Policy 237 (Acceptable Use of Personally Owned Electronic Devices): approved; staff directed to add locker-storage timing and enforcement details to student handbooks.
- iPad loss/damage report form: approved (intended to strengthen device-accountability procedures).
- 2025–26 student and staff handbooks and discipline codes: approved with the change that students must store phones in lockers by the start of homeroom/first period; arrival, cafeteria and dismissal access permitted.
- Facilities and transportation consent items (multiple routine procurement and disposal items, municipal auction listing): approved.
- Personnel consent agenda (routine hires/retirements/appointments): approved.
- Letter of intent to begin RFP with USource (a NextEra company) for the Pennsylvania Solar for Schools grant (fee ~ $42,000): motion introduced but tabled for additional information and solicitor review.

Board procedure notes: Most motions were moved and seconded from the floor; where the transcript did not record a roll-call tally the board used voice approval (‘aye’/‘opposed’), and the chair announced motion results. Several items were placed on the consent agenda and approved together. The board discussed edits to the handbook in open session and instructed staff to incorporate agreed language prior to publication.

Ending: The board’s routine approvals completed the district’s pre‑school-year business while the solar procurement authorization remains on hold pending further staff and legal follow-up.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","PENNCREST School Board (Aug 11, 2025)","oneSentenceSummary","The Penncrest board approved minutes, a set of policies and handbooks, several consent agendas and personnel items, and tabled a letter of intent to start a solar RFP with USource/NextEra.","taxTitle","Penncrest SD, School Districts, Pennsylvania","taxId",75752,"location","Pennsylvania","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6586030,"Penncrest approves student cellphone rule; handbook will require phones stored in lockers by homeroom",3316,3240000,6556000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175&start=3240&end=6556","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175/thumbnail_3240000.jpg","/articles/6586030/Pennsylvania/Penncrest-approves-student-cellphone-rule-handbook-will-require-phones-stored-in-lockers-by-homeroom","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6586030-3b97792481fdda44480e697a283605c8/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140394&Signature=AGVAEfillr2dwL2XyosTdQdOamtaTpXBe3Ns0oC8Bf34FJpp2o22-0tmqqc4RyRYilzPhHn7JyraiWxVY0OYFHJRQkJoLkmOzgjil0QBGtFvNfednzu7-sz1c2X8LlmksdaekdgfUnfkPNaS0KVwgcqS9893iUbwCvT~ZI4Uvg59huDmfvLp3LXxj1GtghJ6Bo0yV3olbkYX2123EzyYcX4gZUOevBrV7uup5OMWlF1u9t4aQO39L-66MbAuEhTYlexDPXZyVUQQjVym8RG9Dz~p4TFFtMFS8lQPL0jDIzry~CRFFCSIq1EPw-UG5nG6HGYZDUYQJfS6SkmhR9fESA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Penncrest School District Board of School Directors approved an update to its acceptable-use policy and the 2025–26 handbooks that narrows classroom cellphone access and places explicit locker requirements on students.

At the Committee-of-the-Whole session, board members discussed enforcement options, discipline steps and building-level differences in cellphone use. The board approved policy 237 (Acceptable Use of Personally Owned Electronic Devices) and voted to adopt the 2025–26 handbooks; during discussion the board directed staff to revise the handbook language to require that phones be placed in lockers by the start of homeroom/first period. The revised handbook language will permit students to access phones upon arrival (before homeroom), in the cafeteria at lunch and at dismissal. Board members emphasized that progressive discipline is to be enforced and that repeated abuse will prompt tighter restrictions, up to a full ban if necessary.

Staff said the district has already taken technical steps to reduce classroom access by disabling student access to the district Wi‑Fi during the school day, and that the handbook will describe the procedure for progressive discipline. Administrators noted that some students rely on phones for family communications and that locker space and locker usage vary by building; the board asked principals and staff to monitor the rule’s implementation closely and return with data if the policy proves ineffective.

The board also approved an iPad loss-and-damage form intended to strengthen device accountability and recovery procedures.

Ending: The board left the policy framework in place while instructing staff to finalize handbook language and enforcement procedures before school begins; members said they would revisit the approach if violations or operational problems persist.","After extended discussion, the Penncrest board approved an updated acceptable-use policy and the 2025–26 student handbooks with a change: students must store cellphones in lockers by the start of homeroom/first period; cafeteria and dismissal access permitted.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":46,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6586035,"Penncrest discussion on NextEra solar plan highlights timeline, incentives; RFP letter of intent tabled",6777,74000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175&start=74&end=6851","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5565124-46a8ececee2224d547f94d1df1be0175/thumbnail_74000.jpg","/articles/6586035/Pennsylvania/Penncrest-discussion-on-NextEra-solar-plan-highlights-timeline-incentives-RFP-letter-of-intent-tabled","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6586035-bfb0e412c9f29cbd2291dda00d420324/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140394&Signature=b-PXWOL6u~yPd7GQnzAl-PZTw54CO7dpRr791UKPNE9eMrnddm0yqpShUbkZcznz3T2cvz3JN3vST61gikdMfFkyTXmx87RjGa7OP1XsG5oHfcGrnUc-Ls8Tkdx1Ux4W1uPb5cXy~mT8CDn7X-oyXttoBcOu~~5Qmm8JnStNJdiF6yn1PdIyJN4YivQT~pnO0DdYGB7rZxlfN7L3gMpNu23OwEvx~VHWmH0jvVxnT0IsaTmLvuqtWPPbMtTMOASQC3i1d~PVRAyMgs434m0uq235034Wrqmvdws-TGbEhamxAhKRuYmRv6vgYNdztBdCPaSYaJEN9EUS0BDvgTlyvw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","NextEra-affiliated consultants recommended the Penncrest School District start a competitive procurement this fall to pursue a rooftop/ground-mounted solar array for the high school, but the board tabled a formal letter of intent after questions about timing and local approvals.

NextEra representatives Brad Birchfield and David Christian told the board the candidate array is roughly 425 kilowatts and would produce about 500,000 kilowatt-hours a year — enough to offset most of the high school’s annual consumption in the company’s model. They estimated capital cost near $842,000 before incentives and presented a revenue model that includes avoided energy purchases, renewable energy credit (REC) sales and periodic federal and state incentive reimbursements. Birchfield said the project’s modeled payback is about four years under current utility rates and the incentives they applied.

The presenters emphasized two schedule drivers. First, a Pennsylvania Solar for Schools grant the district already secured must be used within the program’s allowable window. Second, Birchfield said rules associated with the federal Inflation Reduction Act — which the consultants described as providing a base tax incentive plus adders (including an energy-community adder and a domestic content adder) — appear to require that construction be started by July 2 to be eligible for the full federal incentive. Birchfield cautioned that federal guidance was still being finalized and said the district should consider whether to start procurement soon to preserve that potential funding.

The consultants outlined the procurement steps they would perform as a qualified assessor: run the RFP, evaluate developer bids, recommend a developer, and offer construction oversight. They said state program rules prevent the assessor from bidding as the developer. They estimated an assessor/RFP fee equal to 5% of the project cost or a floor fee (about $40,000 for the proposed array) as the next-phase cash outlay if the district issues a notice to proceed to procurement.

On operations and lifecycle costs, the presenters said typical operations-and-maintenance tasks are modest (annual checks, panel cleaning, remote performance monitoring via a data-acquisition system) but that inverter replacement is an expected mid-life cost (roughly year 15). They modeled array degradation of about 0.5% per year and projected long-term benefits across a 30–35 year operating life.

Board members and staff questioned insurance, interconnection timing, RFP procurement lead times, and local permitting. A township representative in public comment advised that municipal zoning and screening requirements, emergency‑access needs and stormwater considerations can add costs and time. The board opened a motion to approve a letter of intent with USource (described on the agenda as a NextEra company) to begin the RFP process for the state Solar for Schools grant at a fee of about $42,000 pending solicitor review. Several board members said they wanted more information and moved to table the motion; the motion to table carried.

What happens next: board members asked staff to gather additional detail on procurement timing, insurance impacts, references for maintenance performance, and any municipal/zoning constraints before a return vote. The district’s staff and NextEra representatives said they could provide site references, interconnection lead-time estimates and a more detailed RFP schedule.

Ending: The presentation gave the board a detailed financial and technical picture of an array sized for the high school and clarified near-term decisions the district would have to make to preserve federal adders. The board deferred the formal procurement authorization to allow time for follow-up information and solicitor review.","NextEra representatives presented a roughly 425 kW solar-array proposal for Penncrest High School, outlining costs, incentives, estimated savings and an RFP process. The board read a letter of intent to begin a state grant RFP but tabled the vote for more information.","actionData","errors"]

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Votes at a glance: Penncrest board approves handbooks and policies; tables solar RFP LOI

Penncrest approves student cellphone rule; handbook will require phones stored in lockers by homeroom

Penncrest discussion on NextEra solar plan highlights timeline, incentives; RFP letter of intent tabled