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East Grand adopts $70 student fees

Tonya Bina
Sky-Hi Daily News

GRANBY – Each student attending East Grand School District schools will be required to pay a new $70 fee starting next school year, according to a school board decision made on Tuesday.

The new fee breaks down to $35 for consumables and classroom materials and $35 for technology in the schools.

The fee was part of a recommendation to the East Grand School Board of Education from the District Accountability Committee, which throughout the school year had been engaged in the task of finding cuts and gains in the 2010-2011 budget.



Originally recommended to the school board was a higher materials and technology fee that exceeded $100, according to East Grand Superintendent Nancy Karas.

Tuesday’s board decision also raised activity and extra-curricular fees by $15 in both the Middle Park High School and the East Grand Middle School. As it now stands, next year’s athletic fees will be $90 per sport at the high school and $50 per sport at the middle school.



There is also a new Nordic skiing fee of $25 for middle school students to cover the district’s cost of repairing and replacing Nordic ski equipment.

Other fees will be the same as they are this year, such as an $80 sewing fee, uniform fees that range from $8 to $22, band costs, $20 field trip fees, a $50 summer weight room fee and a $25 graduation cap and gown fee.

In another 3-1 East Grand School Board decision on Tuesday, the in-school business program was eliminated from the Middle Park High School.

School board member Mike Thompson cast the sole dissenting vote.

Eliminating the department, which is estimated to save the district $50,000 with the cost of a salary and materials, translates into a proposed job loss for high school teacher Brian Reynolds.

The district plans to negotiate with companies such as Colorado Online and e20-20 Inc. to provide online business education courses for students starting in the next school year.

Karas said there is the possibility of teaming up with West Grand and North Park school districts to purchase the online course work, “so the cost is very affordable.”

The $50,000 in savings to the district by eliminating the business course includes the cost of replacing it with online education, she said.

“We’re looking at being able to supply a more rigorous program for night school,” Karas said, “such as providing students courses our district can’t offer due to staffing and funding.”

The online programs could also aid home school students, gifted students and students who need remedial work, she said, and provide easier access to school work for students who are home-bound due to illness or expulsion.

Business courses at the high school will still be available, Karas said, “they’ll just be in a different format.”


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