Youngstown schools to replace buses

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

The city school district will spend nearly $2 million to replace 37 buses in its aging fleet.

The buses — 30 from 2007 and seven from 2005 — are being bought from Community Bus Service Inc., Youngstown.

Harry Evans, district chief of operations, said the district’s fleet includes 70 buses, and more than 30 of them are more than 20 years old. Many have 240,000 to 300,000 miles on them, and breakdowns are frequent.

“Some days we don’t have any spare buses,” Evans said at a school board meeting Thursday.

The buses being purchased from Community Bus are equipped with digital-video recorders and global-positioning-system devices.

Another 22 DVR and GPS devices also are part of the $1.97 million total price. They will be placed in 22 of the district’s current buses.

The Youngstown city school board approved contracts for several administrators at a meeting Thursday. Those awarded two-year contracts and their pay:

William Christofil, principal, Choffin Career & Technical Center, $75,486.

Wanda Clark, principal, Williamson Elementary, $74,937.

Deborah DiFrancesco, principal, University Project Learning Center, $77,733.

Catherine Dorbish, principal, Martin Luther King Elementary, $74,937.

Jerome Harrell, principal, Wilson Middle School, $83,325.

Diane Hunsbarger, principal, Volney Rogers Middle, $75,496.

Larry Johnson, administrator, $81,088.

Pamela Logan, head of guidance, $73,818.

Holly Seimetz, principal, East High School, $86,681.

Deborah Zitella, gifted and talented program, $85,003.

Those awarded one-year

contracts and their pay:

Donna Cox-Bing, principal, Kirkmere Elementary, $71,581.

Jennifer Damico, administrator, $68,226.

Artemus Scissum, principal, Paul C. Bunn Elementary, $68,226.

Patricia Trell, technology, $72,141.

Erik Thorson, principal, Chaney High School, $85,003.

James Vivo, assistant principal, Chaney, $64,871.

Source: Youngstown school district