VAN BUREN – Seniors at the SAD 24 District Secondary School lost the use of a lounge because of a small fire of suspicious origin there.

SAD 24 directors were told of the incident Wednesday night. They agreed with the school administration that the facility be closed until further notice.

“We tried to find out how the fire started, and who was involved,” Superintendent Clayton Belanger said Thursday. “No one was talking, so we shut it down.”

The senior class members’ lounge was located on the top floor of the school building, and little supervision was involved in the room.

Two weeks ago a fire was started in a trash can in the lounge. Damage was limited to the trash can and carpeting underneath. A smoke alarm in the room did not go off. A member of the staff smelled smoke and investigated, discovering the smoldering fire.

The room was locked and students lost the privilege of having a student lounge.

Belanger said another lounge may be opened in the future, however, it will be located in a more easily supervised area.

Directors also discussed an ongoing problem with substitute teachers in the district. SAD 24 pays substitutes $50 and $60 per day, depending on the education of the individual. An individual with a college degree gets $60 per day.

One of the problems, Belanger said, is that individuals with associate degrees want a rate higher than the base rate of $50.

The issue was turned over to the board of director’s policy committee for study and recommendation.

“Our rates used to be less, and we increased the rate, hoping to get more substitutes,” Belanger said. “The increase has not really helped the situation.

“We are in competition with nearby districts, and some pay more than we do,” Belanger continued. “Finding substitute teachers has been a problem for a long time.”

Directors also gave a letter of support for parents wanting the town to plow a road in the back settlements of town. Several families living on Settlement Road have children who must walk more than a mile, morning and night, to be able to get on the school bus.

Charles Clark, a resident of the area, has started a proposal to have the town plow the road during the winter. The district gave him a letter of support in his quest.

Settlement Road is between one and one and a half miles long. Reports are that three families live on the road. The road has been closed to winter maintenance for about 30 years.

When there is no snow, parents drive the children to the bus stop. During the winter, driving is prohibited because of the unplowed road.

Neither Clark nor the other people on Settlement Road could be reached for comment Thursday.

According to Town Manager Larry Cote, the problem has not been brought to the Town Council. He said the road has been closed to winter maintenance for decades. The action was approved again four years ago for a 10-year period.