School board fills vacancies, gets grant for free meals at Jefferson

By Editor | August 10, 2011 |

The Vandalia Board of Education at a special meeting on Monday approved several personnel items that needed to be in place at the start of the upcoming school year.
The board took the following action:
• Employed Brooke Hoene of Teutopolis as the high school chemistry teacher to replace Nick Niemerg, who last month was named assistant principal at Vandalia Community High School.
• Recalled RIF teacher Robyn Demoulin for second grade.
• Approved the transfer of Debbie Hall to Jefferson Primary School as a reading teacher. (She replaces Amy Jackson, who moved to Vandalia Elementary School as a reading teacher.)
• Approved Pre-K grant teacher Stephanie Smith.
• Approved the transfer of three cooks, with Kim Carroll and Sharon McNary going to VCHS, and Jennifer Bone going to VJHS.
In other action, the board discussed the plan to offer free breakfast and lunch to all kindergarten and first-grade students at Jefferson Primary School.
Funded by a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, the four-year program makes the free meals available to all students in those grades because more than 40 percent of the students in the Vandalia district qualify for free or reduced lunches as a result of their family’s income level.
“This program is trying to get away from individual household applications,” Janine Lotz, district food service director, told The Leader-Union. “No one is identified as free or reduced or paid; everyone at JPS is eligible.”
Illinois is one of three states with the blanket program. The others are Kentucky and Tennessee.
“We’re trying to get more students to eat healthy meals,” Lotz said. “Breakfast is particularly important, because studies have shown that students can concentrate better after eating a good breakfast. We’re hoping that everybody will take advantage of it.”
The breakfast is available from 8-8:30 a.m., Monday through Friday.
The board also discussed its discipline and expulsion policies, as well as related policies in the district’s athletic code.
“We started a dialogue regarding possible changes in those areas,” said Superintendent Rich Well. “But no action was taken.”