Cornwall-Lebanon board approves campus improvement financing, building contracts, personnel and budget actions; sets Feb. 14 makeup day

The Cornwall-Lebanon School District Board of School Directors on Jan. 21 approved a series of contracts, payments and personnel actions tied primarily to the Cedar Crest Campus renovation and routine district operations.

The board voted unanimously on several building-and-grounds items, including awarding a contract to Freilas Corporation for a 2025 water heater replacement project at Ebenezer Elementary School for $127,000 and ratifying a contract with Mister Rehab LLC for a Cedar Crest High School sewer piping project for $71,683.25. The board also approved a change order for the general contractor on the Cedar Crest building project (GCCO No. 5, ECI Construction, Part 2) and adopted a resolution pledging taxing authority in lieu of required financial security for public site improvements tied to the Cedar Crest Campus Improvements Master Plan in South Lebanon Township, Lebanon County. Those motions passed 9–0.

The board approved payments related to the Cedar Crest Campus renovation and district capital reserve: renovation-related bills of $167,863.76 and Capital Reserve Fund payments of $143,268.40, each approved unanimously.

In curriculum and student-related actions, the board approved recognition of Cedar Crest High School first-semester graduates for 2025 and approved credit reimbursement payments totaling $46,598.92. The board also established the Kenneth G. Zimmerman Memorial Scholarship Fund as part of the Cedar Crest High School Scholarship Fund and approved multiple facility-use requests and overnight/competition trips for high school students; all of those motions passed 9–0.

On personnel and finance items, the board approved a large set of retirements, resignations and employment changes (listed on the meeting agenda as items A through R and additional lists), ratified new hires pending preemployment checks for both the 2024–25 and 2025–26 school years, and approved a volunteer softball coach. The board set the district mileage reimbursement rate at 70 cents per mile effective Jan. 1, 2025. All personnel and finance motions passed unanimously, 9–0.

Policy and calendar actions included final adoption of several policies and the boardapproval of Feb. 14, 2025, as the makeup day for the Jan. 6 inclement-weather closure; the makeup-day motion passed 9–0.

Pupil services and food-service business included approval of an agreement regarding a student identified as SC 242503 and approval of food-service fund bills totaling $607,778.41; both were approved 9–0.

In transportation and operations, the board approved the employment of drivers employed by Brightbill Transportation (per the district memo) and accepted fiduciary fund statements for the period July 1, 2024, through Nov. 30, 2024, including high school and middle school activity funds and several named scholarship funds. Those motions were approved unanimously.

Votes at a glance (selected items) - Award Freilas Corp., 2025 water heater replacement, Ebenezer Elementary — $127,000; outcome: approved 9–0. - Ratify Mister Rehab LLC, sewer piping, Cedar Crest HS — $71,683.25; outcome: approved 9–0. - Adopt resolution pledging taxing authority in lieu of required financial security for Cedar Crest Campus public site improvements — outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve Cedar Crest Campus renovation payments — $167,863.76; outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve Capital Reserve Fund payments — $143,268.40; outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve Cedar Crest HS first-semester graduates (2025) — outcome: approved 9–0. - Credit reimbursements — $46,598.92; outcome: approved 9–0. - Create Kenneth G. Zimmerman Memorial Scholarship Fund — outcome: approved 9–0. - Facility-use and overnight/competition field-trip approvals (multiple schools/events) — outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve retirements/resignations and multiple employment actions (agenda A through R and further lists), and ratify hires pending preemployment materials — outcome: approved 9–0. - Set mileage reimbursement rate at $0.70 per mile effective Jan. 1, 2025 — outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve Feb. 14, 2025, as makeup day for Jan. 6, 2025, inclement-weather closure — outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve food-service fund bills — $607,778.41; outcome: approved 9–0. - Approve employment of Brightbill Transportation drivers per district memo — outcome: approved 9–0.

Context and why it matters The boardactions advance the Cedar Crest Campus renovation project by approving contracts, payments and a financing-resolution mechanism that the district says will substitute taxing authority for required financial security tied to public-site improvements. The board also completed routine fiscal and personnel business necessary for daily operations, from payroll/benefit-related reimbursements and food-service bills to approving overnight travel for student activities and maintaining the districts transportation rosters.

What the meeting did not do No public comment was recorded at the Jan. 21 meeting, and there were no executive-session votes reported. The board did not provide line-item detail in the motions for every change order amount or for every personnel name in public discussion beyond listing them on the agenda; the agenda referenced retirements/resignations and groups of hires by lettered lists.

Next steps The district will continue work on the Cedar Crest Campus project, with further bidding and construction actions anticipated as part of the renovation timeline. The boards next regular meeting was announced as a February work session on the district calendar.