PIERCETON — Whitko School Board of Trustees granted permission for the purchase of three new buses in its meeting, Monday night, Dec. 16 at Pierceton Elementary School.

The board approved the purchase of three buses through Kerlin Bus Sales in Silver Lake. One minibus and two 81-passenger buses will replace buses in the current fleet which have met the 12-year maximum allowance of usage, said Whitko Schools Superintendent Dr. Brandon Penrod.

Once the order is placed, he said, Kerlin should have the new buses ready in six months.

Following the approval, Penrod thanked the transportation department for their dedication to servicing the buses for the past 12 years. He emphasized the two additional years of serving following the bus usage rotation increasing from 10 to 12 years.

“That’s extra time, extra care and extra maintenance on behalf of the transportation department. So that’s appreciated,” he said.

In other business:

• In the monthly superintendent update, Penrod said Feed the Children donated 248 lbs. of school supplies and children’s books to the school corporation with a total value of $2,418.31.
• Following a food service audit, the board approved a five-cent increase in the price of extra milk purchased in addition to milk already included in a regular lunch to .35 cents.
• The board approved the corporation to enter into a clinical residency agreement with Indianapolis-based Marian University. The opportunity provides a paid residency program between the school corporation and the university’s graduate students pursuing their master’s degrees.
• According to Transporation and Maintenance Director Jim Bumbaugh, in an effort to increase bus safety, the after school athletics bus stops in Pierceton will be shifted to the parking lot of Pierceton Elementary instead of buses stopping on SR 13.