Malta Bend Board of Education President Art Madden welcomes new Superintendent Melissa Vesser to the district. Vesser currently holds the position of superintendent and principal at Blackwater school but is no stranger to Malta Bend, where she started her teaching career. (Eric Crump/Democrat-News) [Click to enlarge]

The Malta Bend Board of Education appointed two new members Monday, June 18, and welcomed the district's new superintendent while working through a lengthy agenda.

The new superintendent, Melissa Vesser, is currently the superintendent and principal at Blackwater and will officially begin her duties in Malta Bend July 1.

Vesser will replace Ryan Nowlin, whose contract offer was rescinded at the board's May 31 meeting.

Vesser indicated she is very happy to be coming back to Malta Bend, where she was born and where she started her teaching career 16 years ago.

Board President Art Madden said the board reviewed six applicants for the position and interviewed three. He said Vesser's experience was a big plus.

"We're very fortunate" to add Vesser to the staff, Madden said.

The board also appointed Doreena Forqueran and Jackie Plattner to the board.

Forqueran served on the board previously, completing a term vacated by Tamara Webb in October 2005. Her daughter attends Malta Bend school.

"I'm kind of excited. We have a great staff and I think we're going to have a great year," she said.

Plattner had put her name forward when there was a vacancy on the board last year but was not selected at the time.

She has three children in the Malta Bend school district, she said, and she feels strongly about the issues facing their education.

In other business, the board voted to keep its tuition rate for students from the Miami school district the same as last year.

Madden wondered whether the board should consider lowering the tuition rate as an incentive to Miami district parents to send their children to Malta Bend, but after learning that tuition is already lower than other area schools, Vesser suggested the board leave the rate where it is.

"Your tuition is already an incentive," she said.

Vesser explained that tuition costs for students from K-8 schools to attend high schools are paid by the student's home district from state funding sources. Madden had been concerned that parents might be required to pay tuition costs.

The board also voted to give non-certified staff a 5 percent raise for the coming school year but opted to leave summer school teaching stipends at the current level for now.

The board has boosted teacher salaries two years in a row and would like to see some changes in summer school offerings.

Forqueran said she had heard reports that students were finding summer school boring and she suggested an increase in summer school pay might be considered for next year as an incentive for teachers to propose some interesting new classes.

Madden said the emphasis during summer school should shift from remediation to better preparation for the following school year.

The board also ratified a rate of compensation for teachers who win grants for the district.

The board previously approved a policy that would reward teachers who take the initiative to apply for and win grants.

The rate of compensation will be a minimum of 3 percent and a maximum of 10 percent of new money received by the district, but specific stipends will be determined on an individual project basis and only for grant money that is received, not just for grant applications.

The board agreed to a proposal from IT Service Pros, the district's technology support vendor, to upgrade the district's server and back-up system capacities.

Company representative Bob Hethcoat said the district's computer systems were in good shape and very stable with two exceptions: The server and back-up systems' storage capacities are inadequate to meet current needs.

Specifications for both were developed three years ago, he said.

Lisa Hethcoat said the server upgrade, especially, needed to be dealt with quickly.

"At some point the server will stop working," she said. "I would rather fix it in a non-emergency mode when it's still working."

The upgrade project will cost the district about $2,700, not counting labor.

Contact Eric Crump at

marshalleditor@socket.net