Board approves preschool cost-sharing agreement with Warren County Career Center

The Lebanon City Schools Board of Education on Aug. 18 approved an updated agreement with the Warren County Career Center that sets the rate the district will pay when placing preschool-age students with disabilities at the career center’s satellite classroom.

Treasurer and board members said the career center had been operating under an assumed cost-sharing arrangement for 15 years but that a recent review by the career center’s new treasurer found Lebanon City Schools had not been charged for some elements of the program. Under the new agreement, the district will pay the same private-pay rate the center charges for other preschool students for those district-placed students, and the career center will continue to provide instructor staff for its program.

The district emphasized that it is required by law to provide education for identified students starting at age 3 and that the updated contract reflects a cleanup of historic billing practices rather than a retroactive billing demand; the career center did not ask the district for back payment for prior years.

Board members voted to approve the agreement after administration described the arrangement and said the terms were reasonable and necessary to continue serving students in that placement. No member requested abstention or placed a condition on approval.

The motion passed by roll call; there were no separate amendments recorded. The board did not record a dollar amount in the meeting discussion; the district said the center’s charge will mirror the center’s private-pay tuition rate for preschool slots.