No Decision Announced Concerning
Lady Owls Basketball Coach

By ANNE HOLLIDAY
WESB/WBRR News Director

The Bradford Area School Board on Monday approved a budget and a comprehensive plan for the high school for the next academic year, but did not take any action regarding the Lady Owls basketball coach.

Before the second public comment portion of the monthly meeting superintendent Katy Pude acknowledged the people in the audience who were “looking for an explanation” as to why Ann Nuzzo was not going to be recommended to continue coaching the girls’ basketball team for the 2013-14 season.

She said it is a personnel issue that she can’t discuss in public, but she did talk about “what did not lead to this decision.”

“The truth is there were several parent complaints during basketball season and these were dealt with individually and at that time,” Pude said. “There has not been a recent outcry by any of these parents asking for the coach’s dismissal.”

She apologized to any parents or students who were hurt by those rumors.

Pude went on to say that for well over a month she and the administration were in total agreement as to whom they would be recommending for the position, and they are still in agreement. But she added that they have yet to make a recommendation to the board.

“Unfortunately,” she continued, “recent information I am not free to disclose in this public forum, nor would I if I were able to, has caused the administrative team and I to no longer be comfortable with making that same recommendation to the board. We are sure our decision is in the best interest of the players.”

No one in the audience commented. Nuzzo and athletic director Tim Walter were at the meeting.

As for the budget, Pude said very few changes were made from the proposed budget introduced last month. Revenues and expenditures both decreased by $36,500. The $36.8 million budget includes no tax increase.

In regard to the comprehensive plan, high school principal David Ray said it’s basically a continuation of the plan used during the last school year but it will contain more ways to include students who feel “disengaged.”

He said the district has not received results from the Keystone Exams yet but he believes they are “on the right track.”

Also Monday, School Street Elementary School principal Sarah Tingley gave a presentation on the newly established bookmobile program.

The program started last week and will continue through August 8. Monday through Thursday the bookmobile will be at a different city park. (Monday, Callahan; Tuesday, Hanley; Wednesday, Brookline Court; Thursday, Kendall Avenue). Students are allowed to take out two books a week and, Tingley said, so far 180 books have been checked out.

She said the school libraries were opened last summer, but "the students weren't really coming to us, so we're taking the books to them."

Another presentation was delivered by Jason Blatchley who talked about how the career and technical teachers are trying to engage younger students in the program.

For example, he said, kindergarten through second grade students at GGB were given presentations about carpentry and computers in which they were told how important math and reading are to careers in those areas.

School Street fifth-graders were taken to Bradford Area High School and did “rotations” in some of the classes.

“The kids loved it,” Blatchley said.

In other matters, the board approved a cyber summer school option. The IU9, in conjunction with Waterfront Learning, is providing an online academy that districts are able to use as an alternative option.

Also, Pude noted that 2013 graduate Chris Borland is the male winner of the Olean Times Herald Davis Frey top scholar athlete award.

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