Beach board will revisit decision to increase summer school fees

VIRGINIA BEACH

Angel Carthon is afraid that $500 in summer school tuition might derail her high school plans.

In February, the School Board increased the prices for summer school classes. The classes had ranged from free to $265; now they would cost from $130 to $500. The change was one of several made to pare back summer offerings and save money.

Carthon, a sophomore, said she needs to take a class over the summer in order to take classes in the fall at the Advanced Technology Center and the Technical and Career Education Center. Her mother, Allyson, said $500 "is way too much."

"You're taking these children's dreams away," Allyson Carthon told the board at their meeting Tuesday night. At a workshop after the meeting, board members talked about reconsidering the increase.

"The amounts these were increased were too significant to bear" in one year, said board member Todd Davidson, who said he would support more modest increases.

Next month, the board will consider reducing the increase, as well as an alternate proposal that would leave the increases intact but establish a summer school scholarship fund.

Also Tuesday night, board member Lyndon Remias said he will step down from his post. Earlier in the day, the City Council appointed him internal auditor. Remias, who had represented the Princess Anne district for two years, will earn $96,000, with a $6,000 car allowance, in the new position.

"To ensure there isn't any real or perc eived conflict of interest, I will be resigning my seat effective May 14, 2008," he said Tuesday night. Remias, 39, will begin his new job the next day.

He said he "cherished" his time on the board and that it was "a joy to visit schools and see minds being shaped."

Applications from Princess Anne residents interested in filling Remias' seat through the end of the year have until noon May 13 to submit an application.

The board also heard early ideas from a group of city and school staffers looking for health care savings. Their suggestions for 2009 include establishing an optional, high-deductible health plan with a health savings account; HMO deductibles of $100 for single subscribers and $200 for families; and premiums of $10 a month for single subscribers who currently don't pay a premium.

Lauren Roth, (757) 222-5133, lauren.roth@pilotonline.com