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Hopewell Area SD board approves $587,530 boiler purchase, multi‑year staff contracts and several personnel moves
Summary
The Hopewell Area SD school board on Sept. 23 approved a capital purchase of a new 8,000 MBBH boiler for Hope High School for $587,530, adopted multi‑year support‑staff contracts, and approved multiple hires, resignations and a termination; the board also approved vendor services for ACA reporting and Title I and ESL service agreements.
The Hopewell Area SD school board approved a series of capital and personnel measures at its Sept. 23 meeting, including a $587,530 capital purchase of a new 8,000 MBBH boiler for Hope High School.
Mr. Kaden, the buildings and grounds presenter, recommended the board buy the boiler from Mechanical Room Solutions (vendor no. 56430) using capital funds; the board approved the purchase on a motion and second. The board also approved a request from the girls varsity basketball boosters to use the high school gyms on Saturdays in January and February 2026 for a junior high winter league.
Finance items included ratification of listed payments and approval of a proposal from the Ruskini Group to assist with Affordable Care Act employer reporting at a stated rate of $6.50 per required filing. The board approved the purchase of two AED units from American AED for the athletic complex; the transcript lists the price as "$4,24" (figure appears truncated in the record).
The board approved agreements with the Beaver Valley Intermediate Unit (BBIU): an ESL services contract for 2025–2026 at $115 per hour, and a Title I services agreement to serve students at Our Lady of Fatima and Saints Peter and Paul for the 2025–2026 year. The transcript lists a "per pupil allocation of $1,5267" for the Title I item; that figure appears garbled in the meeting record and is recorded as such here pending clarification from district records.
A string of personnel actions were approved. Among them: a short‑term leave for employee 166; the resignation of Angela Yanko (Transportation Aid) effective Sept. 5, 2025; employment actions to hire substitute and full‑time bus drivers (Rachel Hankle, Bartholo Reeseman, Jason Scheler); and the termination of employee 2340 effective Sept. 23, 2025. The board also approved the Hopewell secretaries and paraprofessional education support professionals contract (July 1, 2025–June 30, 2029) and the cafeteria educational support personnel contract for the same term.
The board approved the employment of Robert Merik as director of transportation on a one‑year contract at a salary of $77,000, effective Oct. 1, 2025. The board also approved the appointment of Will Hetsler as teacher of record in science for the Beaver County Jail.
Votes where roll call was recorded show consistent approval. For example, the roll call recorded for the transportation director contract listed the following board members voting yes: Mrs. Gil, Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Ptorius, Mrs. Bell, Mrs. Buckton, Mr. Kaitton, Mrs. Gil (duplicate in record), and Mr. Santia; the record registers the motion as carried by roll call. Other motions were approved by voice vote and are recorded in the minutes as "motion approved."
The board received informational BBIU board notes for August and was reminded of upcoming district events and meeting dates during the superintendent's report.
Next steps: the board will publish official meeting minutes and contract documents; any transactions recorded with unclear dollar amounts in the transcript (notably the Title I per‑pupil figure and the AED price) should be clarified in the district's official documents.
