VETERAN JACKSON BOARD MEMBER WON'T RUN

JACKSON -- The senior member on the Jackson Board of Education said Tuesday he will not seek re-election when his term expires next April.

The board member, John Lorberg, made the announcement after the board set the filing period for school board candidates.

The filing period will open at 8 a.m. Jan. 7 and close at 5 p.m. Feb. 4.

Lorberg has served on the school board for 13 consecutive years. He is completing his fourth, three-year term. He was first elected to a one-year, unexpired term.

"I've served 13 years, and now I feel it's time to let someone else come on the board," said Lorberg. "I have really enjoyed my time on the board. The past several years have been especially rewarding to me personally. We have an outstanding district and an outstanding administration."

Board member Jeanette Bollinger, whose one-year term expires next spring, said she plans to run for a full three-year term.

In other business, School Superintendent Wayne Maupin said the final bill for last week's school bus vandalism at the Jackson School District's Bus Transportation Center will be around $25,000.

"So far, I have bills for $22,000, and more bills have arrived on my desk for tires, tubes, and labor. By the time all of the bills are in, the total cost will be around $25,000," said Maupin. "We do not know at this time how much of the loss will be covered by insurance. We are working with our insurance carrier on this matter."

Vandals punctured 104 tires on 24 of the 25 school buses parked at the center last Wednesday night and early Thursday morning.

Maupin said $2,000 has now been pledged toward a reward for the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the damage.

"We've also received numerous calls from patrons, parents and students expressing outrage over the act," Maupin said.

In response to questions from board President Jack Knowlan Jr., Maupin said the administration will take a another look toward improving security at the transportation center. "We'll talk to the city about the cost of putting in some more lights on the east side of the lot where it would not be offensive to homeowners," Maupin said.

Knowlan said the district might also consider some other security measures, such as installing barbed wire along the top of the chain link fence.

Board member and Jackson Police Chief Larry Koenig said police department investigators have received numerous calls concerning the vandalism of the buses, but no arrests have been made.

On another item, Maupin said the district does not plan to purchase any new school buses in fiscal year 1992-93 because of the tight budget.

"This will help with the general fund," he said. "I have discussed this with Mrs. (Jean) Kurre (director of bus transportation) and we feel we can do this for one year. That will help keep some funds. I think one year is about the maximum we ought to do that sort of thing.

"With the financial crunch we are in, this is one measure that would at least help retain some money in the general fund for another year. Our (bus) fleet is in pretty good shape right now, but I wouldn't want to go two years without getting back on the cycle of replacing the buses."

Maupin said current district policy is to replace school buses after they have been in the fleet seven years. But he said when the district converts over to an all-diesel-powered bus fleet, it will go on a 10-year replacement cycle because the diesel buses are more durable and efficient than gasoline-powered buses.

The board authorized the superintendent to conduct a "garage sale" to get rid of unused equipment no longer needed by the district. The date and time of the sale will be announced later. "We had a fair amount of luck in past years with sales from these garage sales," said Maupin.

Maupin also reminded the board that the district's first semester ends Dec. 20, which marks the start of the Christmas-New Year's holiday break.