SALEM -— Members of the RSU #58 School Board met last Thursday, Oct. 15 in a regularly scheduled monthly meeting.

Members first heard from technology director Angel Allen who provided a presentation and slide show of some of the district’s technology programs and how maintenance is executed on a daily basis.

At a request from the board, Allen showed how her department tracks repair work using a specific software program that tracks repair, warrantee issues and other related maintenance.

Chairman Mike Pond asked if this type of software can also be used in school building maintenance. It was determined that the software was designed to work best with technology products.

Members then heard from representatives of the Healthy Community Coalition who were seeking a federal grant and needed the school’s support here and throughout all off Franklin County’s school districts.

The grant, part of federal stimulus funds, had to do with creating and funding programs that will promote a healthy lifestyles for youths and adults alike and include nutrition, activity and discourage tobacco use. The idea of healthy lifestyles today, according to representatives, is to prevent and to reduce medical issues of tomorrow and thereby reduce healthcare reform issues for Mainers and Americans in the future.

For board approval and Coalition success, members needed to agree to allow students to conduct a survey about tobacco use and other issues as part of the grant stipulation. This, Superintendent Quenten Clark explained, was a negative experience in similar surveys of the past. Although it was mentioned that not much was known about this specific survey, other grant requirements or specific programs or services that could be generated, $373 million was offered nationally.

It was eventually agreed that they could not let the funding opportunity pass. Members agreed to a motion that will support the grant, but if requirements were unfavorable for school district members, the school board would simply back out and not allow participation.

Clark updated members on the immunization schedule. He explained that the district nurses along with the Maine Center of Disease Control were on top of recent delays in delivery and how and when to immunize specific children with specific immunizations. This will include a regular seasonal flu vaccine and a second H1N1 vaccine free of charge to students who sign-up with parental permission. Vaccines this year are federally funded and the clinics are an attempt to reduce wide-spread pandemic outbreak. Vaccines once received, can be administered at separate times in no particular order, administered together depending on the type of vaccine received (nasal or IM) and/or administered in priority depending on the age of the children or risk threat of an adult.

At the request of chairman Pond, school nurses were in attendance that evening to talk about their schedules, programs and daily activities. Members agreed to continued discussions to enhance communication.

Pond said he initiated the dialog to be sure that school nurses themselves are “not marked with bulls-eye targets,” during next year’s budget talks.

School Director Ann Schwink commended the nurses for an admirable job both recently with the board request in seeking information and with the immunization planning to date.

After a public bid process which drew only one quote, board members agreed to continue with the school’s maintenance department to plow and sand the Kingfield Elementary School. After lengthy discussion members agreed that each school principal could request additional sand on demand depending on the conditions. Or, the principal could appoint a staff member to make that determination.

Other business included board policies, bylaws discussion and closed with grant requests for the Town of Carrabassett Valley and to allow a field trip for the Maine guide class at Mt. Abram High School.