Tentative Contract Up For Vote by Howell School BoardTentative Contract Up For Vote by Howell School Board

1/20/14 - A special meeting of the Howell Public Schools Board of Education tonight will give the board an opportunity to discuss and vote on a tentative agreement with the district’s teachers union reached last week. The teachers have been working under terms of the previous contract since the start of the school year. A previous proposal from the union was rejected by a controlling minority of the board last March despite recommendations for approval from the district’s negotiator and superintendent, Ron Wilson. That contract would have passed by a 4-3 vote, but Board President Mike Witt and Board Secretary Kim Witt were prevented from voting because of a conflict of interest law passed last year. Kim Witt’s sister is a teacher in the district. That allowed a controlling minority -- Trustee Mike Moloney, former Treasurer Doug Moore, and Trustee Deb McCormick -- to vote it down. Because a contract will require four votes for passage, at least two of the three who voted against it last year will have to vote in favor tonight for it to pass. The special meeting will be held at 7pm in the administration board room. Meanwhile, there has been a minor change-up in the board’s officers. At the beginning of every calendar year the board elects four members to specific roles within its structure. Last week, the board voted to keep Mike Witt as board president, Mike Yenshaw as vice president, and Kim Witt as secretary. However, rather than reelect Doug Moore as the treasurer, Stacy Pasini was elected unanimously to the post. Pasini says while she does not have a history in accounting, she does have a Master's in public administration, so she is trained and qualified to handle budgeting and finance tasks the board requires. (JK)