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Photo by Ed Patino
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Election officer Richard Fielder hands a ballot to Manchester resident Heather Rathburn in Tuesday's school election.
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With Tuesday's election behind them, newly elected Manchester school board members Christine Fegan and incumbent treasurer Lyndon Uphaus are gearing up for the upcoming school year.
"I would like to maintain and preserve what we have here," Fegan said. "With the eminent cuts coming from the state, we need to take a look at the budget and adjust accordingly. I know we are doing a lot better than some of the school districts around us, but we need to be fiscally responsible and make the best decisions for our students."
State school funding cuts seem to be unavoidable as Gov. Jennifer Granholm recently proposed a reduction of $125 per student for the current school year to help alleviate the state's budget crisis.
"I'm looking looking forward to discussing how to capture funds from other sources if we loose that funding from the state," Fegan said.
Fegan garnered 269 votes and Uphaus captured 349, defeating Tara Lamirand and Dara Psarouthakis with 119 and 174 votes, respectively.
Uphaus said it's too early to tell whether reduced funding from the state will require the ditsrict to cut teaching positions.
"We still don't know what they (legislators) are going to do," he said. "If we have to make cuts, we will have to do it where it affects the students the least."
Lawmakers have 23 days to come up with an alternative to cuts in school funding to balance the budget.
In the meantime, Uphaus said the board can't sit and wait for the cuts to take place.
"We need to take a proactive stance on this," he said. "We've been looking at some alternatives to state funding such as grants, but with all the other schools in the area looking down that same road, it's going to be real competitive."
Another issue Uphaus and Fegan said they will work to change is the perceived lack of communication between the district and the public.
"At board meetings, sometimes we receive letters that aren't always given a direct response," Uphaus said. "From now on, we need to make a more direct response so people in the audience know we are listening."
Fegan said she will use her position as president of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce to increase communication with the school district and the public.
"We can use it as a tool to keep open communication between business owners and the general public to keep them abreast of what the school is doing," she said. "The relationship between the village and the school has never been better and I want to keep it that ongoing."
Fegan and Uphaus officially begin their term July 1. The next school board meeting will be held 7 p.m. Monday at the Central Office, 410 City Road.
Editor Daniel Lai can be reached at 428-8173 or editor@manchesterenterprise.com.
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