Knoxville — The Knoxville School Board formally recognized four students who were instrumental in the emergency response following the Jan. 30 school bus crash.
The students are Aaron Huffaker, Cody Long, Jonathon Beaver and Brittany Beaver. They were on the bus with 10 other children when a Prius, driven by Kendra Dorn, apparently ran a stop sign at a corner south of Knoxville and struck the bus. The bus rolled several times.
When it stopped, the four students helped the younger students get off the bus. They also checked on the bus driver, Annette Pitt, who was also injured in the cras. All Pitt could say was that she was fine and only showed concern for the students.
Knoxville Schools' Superintendent, Dr. Randy Flack, told the students at last night's board meeting that he has visited Pitt in the hospital three times since the accident. The driver continued to offer her students nothing but praise.
"It really amazed me how organized the kids were and how the teenagers on the bus did a great job of getting the younger students off the bus and into a line," Knoxville Fire Chief Mike Roberts told the Journal-Express on Jan. 31.
Auditorium
Following the presentation, the board got back to business. Board members heard from Vitus Bering, the architect designing the auditorium, as well as Travis Squires with Piper-Jaffray, the financial firm assisting the board in bonding to pay for the project.
Bering presented the latest drawings for the auditorium, which included suggestions from the auditorium committee. The price tag stands at $5.935 million, though that figure includes costs that are being paid through the design process, and will not have to be borrowed.
The board intends to borrow against anticipated sales tax revenue. This revenue is restricted for physical plant purposes, and cannot be used for general fund expenses, such as salaries and benefits. Squires offered different scenarios for how the borrowing could be done.
Squires also suggested the board award the bond around the same time it awards the construction contract. Construction bid documents are due May 8, with the award expected at the May 14 board meeting. The bonding will likely be awarded either days before or after the construction contract is awarded. Squires said knowledge of how much the low construction bid will be will help determine how much money needs to be borrowed.
Master Contract
The board presented its initial proposal for the 2012-13 Master Contract with the Knoxville Education Association, the teachers' union. The board proposed a 1.5 percent total package increase. To the board, this is fair because the district will receive $225,000 less in state aid in fiscal year 2013 than in FY12. The KEA has proposed a 6.9 percent total package increase.
Look for more on these stories and full reports on the board meeting in the Feb. 17 Journal-Express.
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