The Millcreek School Board has called a special meeting for Thursday at 7:00 PM at the Millcreek Education Center. District Solicitor Tim Sennett told WICU12/SEE News that the board will provide an update on the "administrative leave" of Superintendent Michael Golde. Sennett also said that the board will give an update on the proposed high school construction project.
It's been a couple of weeks since we first broke the news that Superintendent Michael Golde was off the job on a sudden "administrative leave." He left his post effective January 18. His leave was formally approved by the school board last week. Citing legal and personnel reasons, district officials have been silent on why.
Since that time, the district released an audit completed last fall. 12News/SEE News revealed a big discrepancy in that audit. We pointed out that 5 million dollars in bond money for capital projects had been shifted into the general fund budget last July and shifted back after the audit began. Expert auditors we contacted said that is not allowed. Capital bonds are restricted and tax exempt, unlike the funds in the operating budget.
We also reported that school board officials seem to be backing off a $93 million dollar high school consolidation plan. The plan on the drawing board called for moving the football field, constructing a new high school attached to McDowell Intermediate and tearing down the current McDowell High. Board President, Terry Scutella told us he is concerned about the cost of the plan, about security and about the financial drain if a proposed Biosciences Academy charter school is approved.
Last week, the Millcreek Zoning Board denied the request for a zoning change needed to move the football field for that expansion project. Without the zoning change, there are not enough parking spaces for the field.
The only other potential item of business for the special meeting, according to Sennett, would be to approve a formula for how the Northwest Tri-County Intermediate Unit will distribute special education money improperly kept from 17 local school districts, including Millcreek.
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