SCHOOL MAY RESTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT

The Cape Girardeau Board of Education will hear a proposal to restructure top-level administration for the district.

The school board meets Monday at 5 p.m. at the Central Junior High School cafeteria.

Also up for discussion at the meeting is a retirement incentive plan, similar to the one offered by the school district a year and a half ago.

A new two-year school calendar is also up for approval, as is a list of summer building projects.

Superintendent Neyland Clark explained that the administrative revamping proposal calls for changing the existing positions of director of secondary education and director of elementary education to assistant superintendent for human resources and assistant superintendent for instruction.

"We have over 500 employees," Clark said. "We are one of the larger employers in the city. But we have no single department or individual responsible for personal operations. That is probably not a wise business practice."

The current director of secondary education, James Englehart, has announced plans to retire at the end of the school year.

Clark proposes recruiting a director for human resources.

"We would look for someone with expertise in human resources as well as a secondary education background," Clark said.

Instructional duties would be consolidated with Richard Bollwerk, who is currently director of elementary education.

The person in the new position would oversee recruitment and hiring processes.

"There are also a lot of laws pertaining to personnel -- Americans With Disabilities, family leave. And Senate Bill 380 includes components of professional development," Clark said. He envisions all these duties being delegated to the new administrator.

Clark said administrators have been looking for ways to generate money for the school district.

"A retirement incentive program serves a potential long-term financial benefit to the district and to employees who might exit," Clark said.

A year and a half ago, teachers who met specific requirements were offered an incentive to retire as part of a budget cutting process.

The proposed school calendar would be for 1994-95 and 1995-96. Clark said the Community Teacher Association's calendar committee came up with the suggestion. Staff members have voiced their preferences.

"Both calendars call for starting school before Labor Day," Clark said. The 1994-95 calendar calls for the last day of school at the end of May. The 1995-96 school year would end the first week of June.

A sale of the Campster school property has been negotiated. Approval of the sale is also on the agenda, as is a change in the policy concerning senior photographs for the high school yearbook.