Richard Silet has chosen to retire from St. Ignace Area Schools. His resignation was accepted by the school board Monday, July 9. Mr. Silet has been at LaSalle High School since 1969, where he taught metal shop, history, and civics. Superintendent Mike Springsteen described him as "an outstanding teacher" who devoted a great deal of time outside of regular classroom hours to students seeking to further themselves in metal work.

"Finding a replacement in the metal shop area will be a great challenge," Mr. Springsteen said in his report to the board.

School Board President Jane Weiss said she reluctantly accepted the resignation, noting that Mr. Silet has taken students to metal working competitions around the state, producing a host of winners throughout his career.

The board also accepted the resignation of alternative education teacher Jen Tallaire, who has left her position to tend to family commitments, Mr. Springsteen said.

"I wish we could keep her," said Trustee Dave Latva, noting that Mrs. Tallaire was well respected and effective at the juvenile detention facility at St. Ignace, where she taught.

In addition to these vacancies, the district will replace speech and language pathologist Liz DeWick, who recently retired. The district plans to contract with War Memorial Hospital in Sault Ste. Marie or seek a replacement through college job placement services to fill the position.

The board awarded Straits Building Center a $7,390 bid to replace carpets in the high school office, two middle school classrooms, and possibly the middle school office. The school has not received an update from the state government regarding funding levels for the upcoming school year, making the district's financial plans tentative, but Mr. Springsteen said the carpet project is "definitely something we can afford to do." The school plans to replace carpeting little by little, and only in areas where it is most needed.

Jim West of St. Ignace received a $9,500 bid to continue roofing work above the middle school gymnasium. Last summer, Mr. West re-shingled and fitted part of the roof with a shield to prevent water from leaking into the building. Owing to higher-than-expected snow accumulation during the winter, the roof continued to leak. If left unchecked, it may have eventually damaged the gymnasium floor, Mr. Latva noted.

In other business, an elementary school playground fencing project was approved by the St. Ignace Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). The fencing will separate the playground from the woods.

The school's community resource committee is studying a proposal by a group called Straits Area Shooters Paintball, to create a arena for the sport on school grounds. The group had previously sought space in Moran Township. The municipal government expressed concern over potential liabilities, but Mr. Springsteen said, "I do not see any red flags," noting that the school already hosts sports such as football and track. Once an area for the activity is approved, the group plans to purchase coverage through Cheeseman Insurance, said Phil Ruegg, a member of Straits Area Shooters.

"Hopefully this leads to a [school] sport," Mr. Ruegg said. A couple of years ago, no one would have expected bowling to be a school sport, he added.

School business manager Kathy McLeod said its new auditors, the Traverse City-based Harris Group, will arrive Monday, July 23.

Since the district has not received a state funding update for 2007/2008, "we are going on a guess," she said, regarding the proposed budget.

The financial plan is based on the same per-pupil funding rate as last year: $7,108 per student.

The district may not be notified of changes in its per-pupil allowance until October, Mr. Springsteen said.

Jane Weiss will serve as president, Rick Litzner as vice president, Kathy Campbell as secretary, and Mike Grogan as treasurer of the school board for the 2007/2008 school year.

Monday was the first official meeting for school board members Sean Arthur and Kathy Campbell, who were nominated for several committee positions. Each committee is composed of two or three board members. Groups focus on regional and local school matters and make recommendations to the full board, which rules on issues that affect the district.

Mr. Grogan and Mr. Litzner will sit on the high school improvement committee, Mrs. Arthur and Ms. Massey on the elementary/ middle school committee, and Mrs. Weiss and Mrs. Campbell compose the districtwide committee.

Mr. Grogan, Mrs. Campbell, and Ms. Massey will sit on the policy committee; Mr. Litzner, Mr. Latva, and Mrs. Arthur on the community resources committee; Mr. Grogan, Mrs. Weiss, and Mrs. Campbell on the finance committee; and Ms. Massey, Mr. Latva, and Mr. Litzner will compose the personnel committee.

The board selected The St. Ignace News as the district's official newspaper. Mr. Latva called on Mr. Springsteen to continue writing columns for publication, citing them as important assets to the community.

The board voted to designate First National Bank as its depository for various school funds, including the general fund, activities fund, debt retirement fund, capital projects fund, and Quality Zone Academy Bond fund. Central Savings Bank was selected for the building and site fund.

The board authorized Mr. Springsteen to invest district funds held at First National Bank of St. Ignace and Central Savings bank with the Michigan School District Liquid Assets Fund, the Michigan Assets Pool, and the Bank of New York.

Meeting times for the St. Ignace Area School's Board of Education have been changed from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The meetings are open to the public and will remain on the second Monday of each month.