SCHOOLS In Sharon, taxes will rise 2 mills

Full-day kindergarten will begin in the fall.
SHARON, Pa. -- Taxpayers in the Sharon City School District will see their property taxes rise by 2 mills in the 2004-05 school year.
The school board voted 5-4 Monday to increase taxes to 53.9 mills. That will cost the average residential taxpayer about $33 more per year.
School directors Daniel Gill, Sandra Hoover, Richard Mancino and the Rev. Lora Adams-King cast the dissenting votes in opposition to the tax increase.
Melvin Bandzak, Dominick Russo, Kathy Hall, Pamela Corini and Christopher Gavin supported the increase.
When it came time to vote on the actual budget of $23,937,000, only Hoover and Mancino cast negative votes.
Dr. Donna DeBonis, superintendent, said the district may lose one half-time position, but is facing no other staff cuts in the new school year.
Sharon cut 17 positions last year when the board raised taxes 7.9 mills.
Kindergarten program
In other business, the board voted to increase its kindergarten program from half-day to full-day sessions beginning this fall.
DeBonis said Sharon is getting a one-year, $388,000 state Accountability Block Grant to cover the cost of expanding the educational offering. That grant is expected to be renewable each year.
The goal is to better meet the academic needs of the district's young pupils, she said.