3 new courses proposed for Hermon High School

HERMON – The Hermon School Committee on Monday reviewed proposals for three new courses next year at Hermon High School. If approved, the high school curriculum would include a new art appreciation course, an advanced-placement computer course and an expansion of the health program from a half year to a full year.

The new programs would affect the budget, although figures are not final at this point. It is estimated the advanced-placement computer course could cost up to $200,000. Committee Chairman Douglas Smith said the committee has asked for a “bare bones” presentation on the proposed program from the computer instructor.

The school committee has begun the task of forming a budget for the upcoming academic year, though the process is in the initial stages and final figures are not available. Smith said it might take until the end of February before the school panel had a budget figure “we are comfortable with.”

“The principals and superintendent have done an excellent job so far in bringing in a preliminary budget at a reasonable figure. It’s better than we had anticipated. We’ve still got some massaging [of the budget] to do, and validation of a couple issues. We’re in better shape than we could have been,” Smith said.

The Hermon school system expects to find out in April what the state plans to allocate for funding for the 2002-2003 academic year. Superintendent Patricia Duran said the system has “been given an indication we could receive slightly more than last year.” The final state allocation depends on land valuation and number of pupils, among other factors.

Last year, after some controversy, the school committee presented an $8.9 million budget for the town warrant, which obtained approval in June 2001. Many community members were alarmed in the spring by reports of a $400,000 budget cut that would have eliminated most extracurricular programs including sports. Hundreds gathered in May to protest the proposed cuts, an issue some school officials now say was mired in miscommunication. The cuts never occurred.

In other business, the school committee was alerted by Larry Dearborn, buildings director, that new sensors had been placed on the four approved underground storage tanks in the system. There is one tank holding fuel oil for each school, and a fourth tank holding gas and diesel fuel for buses. All of the tanks are registered with the state and are inspected annually.

The Hermon school system has 1,100 students in three buildings: Hermon High School; Hermon Middle School, which houses grades six through eight; and Hermon Elementary School, which houses kindergarten through grade five.