Board puts off adopting volunteer coaching policy

NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- The city school board has delayed adopting a policy that would prohibit certain board members from serving as volunteer coaches until the district solicitor can review the policy.
School administrators, at a caucus earlier this week, said the policy was drafted to bring the district into compliance with state law that specifies a board member elected or re-elected after May 2004 cannot be a coach in the school district where he or she serves on the board.
Superintendent George Gabriel asked the district attorney, Charles Sapienza, to look at the matter further after several board members questioned the policy.
The decision to table the issue was made at the board's public meeting Wednesday.
In other business, the board agreed to make student tickets available at the gate for basketball games. Tickets remain $2, but administrators said some students were complaining because they recently had to pay the $3 adult fee at the gate.
The board also agreed to move forward with its plans to auction the contents of the Ben Franklin Junior High School building on Cunningham Avenue and authorized administrators to hire an auctioneer for the sale.