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| By Dan Cooper Staff Intern EAST LONGMEADOW - The School Committee reorganized on April 23 and voted Bob Mazzariello chair of the committee. Mazzariello, who had been serving as acting chair, takes over the position from Dan Manley, who was absent for six months while at the Police Academy. "I know Mr. Mazzariello can effectively do the job," Manley said. "He served it very well in my absence." "The satisfaction of knowing we have an excellent school system makes me proud to serve on this committee," Mazzariello said. Thomas McGowan was voted in as the vice-chair of the School Committee. Superintendent Dr. Edward Costa was voted in as the secretary. The School Committee subcommittees all stayed the same, with the exception of Manley taking over from Bill Fonseca on the Warrant Review subcommittee. Manley and Mazzariello were presented plaques by McGowan for their "commitment to the school district and community." Mazzariello also presented student representative Paula Zatko with a plaque for serving on the committee. Costa then presented to the committee a bus transportation report that was compiled for the Capital Planning Committee. "We have 19 full-size school buses and two special education minibuses to service our students," he said. "None of those 21 buses have a warranty on them. They have run out." Costa said the report looked at the cost of obtaining new buses. "In 2003, the average cost of a new school bus was $50,000," he said. "The price has gone up every year since then and a bus now averages $71,000." Costa said the conclusion can be drawn that the price will continue to increase. "The trade-in value for a school bus is $25,000," Costa said. "As our buses get older, the value goes down." Costa added that East Longmeadow has used the same bus fleet for the past nine years. "With new buses, we would still use 21," he continued. "After the trade-in value, this new fleet would exceed $2 million." Costa said he delivered the report to the Capital Planning Commission two weeks ago and has yet to hear a response. "We are getting to the point where we need the fleet replaced," Mazzariello said. Business Manager Theresa Olejarz gave a fuel update to the committee. "We're watching it every day, and there's no real movement," she explained. The School Committee cancelled their May 21 meeting due to the Annual Town Meeting. Mazzariello said it can be rescheduled if issues come up that need to be addressed. The committee also approved the nurses' contract for September 2006 to August 2009 and agreed to participate in the annual Fourth of July Parade. The next School Committee meeting is scheduled for May 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the School Committee Conference Room in the Central Office. |