MOKANE, Mo. - The South Callaway School Board approved several bids for district updates during its regular meeting Wednesday.
The board moved forward on bids for the storage complex planned for behind the football stands, as well as bids for district vehicles and doors for several of the buildings.
Members voted to accept a bid for three vehicles, including a pickup truck for maintenance and a 10-passenger van for small school trips but held off on trading in and purchasing buses for the district's fleet. Transportation Director Donnie DeBrodie told the board the district has 14 routes, not including the vocational route, and 22 buses. The average age for a district fleet hovers around 10 years; South Callaway's fleet currently sits at a little more than seven.
DeBrodie said purchasing new buses could be held off for another year. The district budgeted approximately $160,000 with the intention to purchase buses in addition to using trade-in values, but because of the agreement to purchase the other vehicles, the district expects to spend approximately $73,000.
The transportation department, which received perfect state inspections for 10 years in a row, will be having another inspection on Monday. DeBrodie expects a 100 percent score again.
The storage building, which has been up for discussion since the beginning of the school year, received a bid for $83,000 from Rhad Baker Construction LLC of Fulton. The facility is expected to be completed in June.
The board also discussed purchasing new doors for buildings throughout the district. The middle school will be replacing four gym doors, one of which fell during a basketball game. Last year the board received a bid over $260,000, but Rhad Baker placed a bid this year at $198,000, more than $60,000 less than last year's bid.
Nurses Tiffany Garrett and Jennifer Wease presented district progress during the board meeting following the discussion of the bids. The district was able to get 342 students screened by a dental hygienist and are hoping to implement a mobile dentistry unit two times a year in the future.
Wease also told the board a new computer tracking software allows lunch room attendants to be aware of student food allergies in the check-out line. When students swipe their student ID a notification pops up on the computer with any allergy the student might have, which is a safety concern for younger students when alternative meals, like peanut butter sandwiches, are available.