Minutes 04-25-2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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14 • Projected Unassigned Fund Balance as of 6/30/17: $1,000,000 to $1,300,000 • FY2018 Fund Balance Appropriation: $567,000 Funding Sources and Uses - Charts Pam Jones said OCS is in stewardship mode, and more of the capital expenses are for deferred maintenance. She said OCS will be looking at the geothermal project at Orange High School (OHS), and the Cedar Ridge High School (CRHS) classroom wing. She said last year, OCS did the ADA connector at OHS, and completed the auxiliary gym at CRHS. Pam Jones said OCS continues to put elementary school #8 on the radar, and it is in their CIP as a placeholder. She said the Town of Hillsborough is expected to have residential growth. Commissioner Marcoplos said one of the proposed house bills asks for information about utility efficiencies, and he asked if the school districts have this information. Pam Jones said OCS does annual updates on utilities, and practices green building any time there is a renovation completed. She said an example of this is the Geothermal system for OHS, which should be very successful at reducing energy consumption. Commissioner Marcoplos asked if this information could be shared with the BOCC. Todd LoFrese said CHCCS have a Sustainability Coordinate who works with the schools in a variety of ways, one of which is utility reduction. He said this employee works closely with facilities and maintenance staff in monitoring HVAC systems, electrical systems, etc. He said CHCCS reduced its utility budget by a few hundred thousand dollars last year. Todd LoFrese said CHCCS also have a high performance school building policy, and completes an annual report. Steve Halkiotis said the State projects that OCS will be a -7 in growth, and he disagrees with the State on this point. He said Hillsborough is growing by leaps and bounds. He said he sent out a letter to the Town of Hillsborough, with copies to the Board of County Commissioners, about OCS concerns about Collins Ridge. He said he expects OCS to have an additional 150 students next year. Commissioner Jacobs asked if OCS is interested in working with Orange County to put Wi-Fi on school buses to bring the internet to rural areas. Dr. Todd Wirt said he has discussed this with the OCS technology officer, and he said such a proposal could be helpful to OCS students on the ride home from school. He said this type of program has been successful when the bus resides at the home of the driver at night, but this is not the current practice for OCS buses. He said he lives in a rural area of Orange County, and it is difficult for him to secure Wi-Fi access, and he imagines a bus would be even more challenging. He said OCS is open to it, but it would require some dramatic changes to current practices. Chair Dorosin referred to the universal breakfasts and summer programs, and asked if these were well utilized. Dr. Todd Wirt said the universal breakfast fluctuates between 28 to 40% of a student body, given the school that is participating. He said the fluctuations are not consistent. He said OCS would like to be more aggressive in its marketing of this program. Dr. Todd Wirt said the Read to Achieve camp had 450 students, who had been identified as needing additional support in reading. He said this was a three-week, half-day camp, with transportation provided. He said a greater number of students are expected this year, and it will be offered at the 4th and 5th grade level for the first time. He said the target is 200 students.