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Last week members of the board of education gave their approval to the property exchange. Village officials had approved the agreement in April.

Under terms of the agreement the village will obtain the south end of the 1970's section of the old elementary school building in trade for five wooded acres of property situation just north of the new elementary school currently under construction.

"This was never about us now - it was about the future of the community," Superintendent John Strycker said after the school board approved the accord last week following 18 months of negotiations between the two parties. "This is good for future generations. This was more than about trading a building for some property," added the superintendent. "It is about people working together for the future of the community. It is the hope of the school district to have the 'trade' completed by sometime in mid-June."

The approximately 7,200 square foot portion of the old elementary school will not be part of the demolition that will begin taking place when school is out for the summer. It will be preserved and ultimately renovated into a new village municipal complex including a home for the police department, according to village officials.

Currently the village shares space with Hazelton Township in the Community Hall. The new facility will allow for expansion.

Strycker said the wooded land is "a good investment" for the school district because of its location near the soon to be open elementary school. He said the property could be developed for nature trails, FFA projects and even a cross-country course.

No money was exchanged in the property swap but the two parties have agreed to have first right of purchase since the property the village is receiving is appraised at $75,000 more than the wooded land.

Board members received their monthly update from the administration, Hendrick Construction (Construction Management) and Wakely (the project architect) for the new elementary school. Both the high school Phase II project and new elementary building are ahead of schedule. "We have been very pleased with both the quality of the projects and the time in which we are completing them," stated Strycker.

In other business the board:

ïApproved high school and elementary school technology contracts to: Data Image Systems, Inc. for $35,035; Hewlett-Packard for $22,686; and Sehi Computer Products, Inc. for $152,089. The contracts will purchase upgraded computers and other technology for both buildings as part of the bond project.

ïAdopted new state-mandated high school graduation requirements for the Class of 2011. "I'm a big proponent of the arts and the practical arts like the industrial arts, music and art classes," said Strycker. "Our goal is to develop a well-rounded child with high self-esteem. Now we can move to the next steps of how to best implement these new requirements and how are we going to most effectively facilitate students meeting the requirements. For example, do we need to change the class hours in the day from six to seven? Should we look at block scheduling or trimesters?"

ïRecognition at last week's board meeting included Alicia Kelby who received first place at the Bavarian Inn's 14th Annual Art Show and Sarah Piazza who also was recognized for the outstanding job she has done as the district's art teacher. "We are proud of both Alicia and Sarah for what they mean to our art program," said Strycker. "We hope to continue to build upon this as our program grows.

ïThe next regular board meeting is set for Monday, June 18 beginning at 6:00 p.m. in the high school library.