Board President's Effort to Reinsert Coffees Into Platform

According to Josephine Posti's Center Court blog, Community Coffees, there are three opportunities to meet with school board directors.  Here is the schedule:

September 18
7-8:30 pm
Coffee Tree

October 3
7-8:30 am
Uptown Coffee

October 4
7-8:30 pm
Orbis Caffe

This round of coffees is a little different.  This year, in order to handle the crowds of residents flocking to speak with the SB, there will be four directors at each meeting, instead of three. There is no indication as to which directors will be present. Last year's coffee with Josephine attracted two residents. Their concerns were the Grievance, the Feasibility Study, and cuts to staff.

Take advantage of this opportunity to share the latest rumors, discover Steinhauer's sentence, discuss student parking, ask about Pursuant Ketchum, and to show your thanks for the YSA's generosity. You may get an answer besides, "File a Right To Know."

New JMA Amendment signed by Mrs. Dave Franklin

Through a Right To Know, here is the link to the Joint Maintenance Agreement Amendment signed by Timothy Steinhauer and Stacy Franklin, a.k.a. Mrs. Dave Franklin, on August 20, 2012. You may remember how Dave said on August 24, 2012 at 1:11 PM:

I'm not a member of the YSA. I never have been. I actively participate in several associations that are part of and contribute to the YSA, but I have no formal position or voice within the YSA itself. In fact, assertions to the contrary only underscore the misconceptions and frankly the lies that have been published here, not only about me but about the YSA.

Here is part of the amendment showing YSA's contribution being reduced to $23,000.

1. Paragraph 5 of the Agreement is hereby amended by the addition of the following sentence: "For the 2011-2012 school year, YSA's contribution is reduced to $23,000 due to a reduction in the number of fields, and YSA agrees to pay such $23,000 contribution on or before August 31,2012."

Wait a second!!!

Looking at the newly posted agenda for Monday's Commission meeting, I see the following action item:

Consideration of a Joint Maintenance Agreement with the Mt. Lebanon School District, Municipality of Mt. Lebanon and the Youth Sports Alliance of Mt. Lebanon.

A joint maintenance agreement has been in place for the past 12 years for field turf maintenance of athletic fields on school district property. The agreement expired on June 30, 2012.

The successor agreement is for a six-month period, and the payments shall be in four monthly installments of $8,925 totaling $35,700. The price has been adjusted due to the temporary elimination of two of the 14 original school fields during construction at the high school.

Recommended Action: Move to authorize the proper municipal officials to sign the agreement.

This was never a discussion item. How could the commissioners be voting on this, in light of all the confusion over payments by the YSA? The school district has more homework to do before they try to jam this down the commissioners' throats.  When will the YSA clean up their arrearages? Why is this successor agreement for six months? How was $35,700 calculated? Show us the math. The school board just approved this on Monday. When did it show up in the commissioners' packets? Who put this on the agenda? Mr. President, did you? Dave, please tell me how you plan to vote and WHY??? Folks, contact the commissioners at commission@mtlebanon.org and ask them how they plan to vote, and more importantly WHY.

YSA Payments To Date

I bit the bullet and filed another Right To Know asking for a list of YSA payments made from 1998 to the present time. As of August 15, 2012, here is the list of payments.
Note, they are NOT up to date in their payments.

School Board Agenda Part 4...Joint "Field" Agreement

There is too much going on with the August 13 agenda to have it all in one post, so I thought I would break it up into parts. Here's Part 4....Joint "Field" Agreement.

Joint Field Agreement Revision and Extension with Municipality and YSA – The Municipality and the YSA have been in discussion with the District concerning revision of the current agreement to account for fewer fields in play as a result of the construction at the high school. Also in discussion is the possible extension of the Joint Field Agreement for a six month period through the end of this calendar year recognizing that there are fewer fields for the youth sport groups to use. The proposed changes will be reviewed with the Board at the meeting.

First of all, it is the Joint Maintenance Agreement, not Joint Field Agreement. Extending the agreement for a six month period, as I interpret it, means extending the expired contract six more months. I am confused by their logic. If there are fewer fields for the youth sports groups to use, why are we extending it? And what about that minor detail called the $30,000 fee?

Latest LeboALERT and Poor Field Conditions UPDATED

This is an important notice from LeboALERT.

 Due to inclement weather & poor field conditions, Lil Sluggers is cancelled today (7/20).


If we had artificial turf, we still wouldn't have Lil Sluggers due to the heavy rain and thunderstorms.


Over on Lebo Fields, Dave Franklin put up a video from Penn State in his latest post, The Facts About Injuries and Turf.  Dave provides an excellent link to Penn State's studies. I found the following information.  http://plantscience.psu.edu/research/centers/ssrc/news/2011/from-the-field-december-2010

So what do these studies tell us? Based on the results of the available research, the notion that athletes are at a greater risk of suffering injury when playing on synthetic turf is not valid, if they are playing on infilled synthetic turf. It is important to look at these studies collectively, as a whole, and not cherry pick the data from one part of one study. The fact of the matter is that while these studies are the best way to track injuries occurring on various surfaces, all research suffers from inherent limitations. For example, it is sometimes difficult to determine whether the surface contributed to an injury. Additionally, lumping all natural grass fields into one category is problematic, as the condition of grass fields can greatly vary. Surely, a hard, compacted field with little turf cover has a greater potential to cause an injury than a finely manicured field. This is true for infilled synthetic turf as well. The age, type, and maintenance of the surface can affect the playing quality. Nevertheless, when looked at collectively, the take away message from the available research is that the rate of injury on natural grass and infilled synthetic turf is comparable. 

OK, so artificial turf adds zero slots to playing time during thunderstorms. Injury rate is comparable to both natural grass and infilled synthetic turf. What about costs?  Surely artificial turf is cheaper according to the YSA. Well, according to the same Penn State link, their studies say no.  Resources

The general conclusions listed under Natural turf or synthetic turf: The numbers game:

• Synthetic infill systems can handle up to six times more traffic than natural turf fields in high-use situations
• Synthetic infill systems are less expensive to construct and maintain than sand-based fields; but they are much more expensive than soil-based fields.
• An existing sand-based field will be less expensive to maintain over a period of 10 years, than constructing and maintaining a new synthetic field that will need to be replaced at the end of that period.
• Existing soil-based fields are the least expensive of all to establish and maintain.

This and the lack of documentation from the School District showing YSA's payments make me question why the Municipality considered the YSA worthy of linking their proposal.  I see that it has since been removed.

Update: Friday, July 20, 2012 3:09 PM An important seminar for the YSA:

	501(c)(3) Status: Keeping it Legal with the IRS
	This full day workshop hosted by the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management and presented by IRS Exempt Organizations specialists, explains what 501(c)(3) organizations must do to keep their tax-exempt status. Topics covered will include: Tax-exempt status Unrelated business income Employement issues Form 990 series Required disclosures Fee is $50 and includes lunch. This session will take place at the Robert Morris University Holiday Inn at 8256 University Blvd. Moon Township, PA 15108 on Tuesday, September 11 from 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.For more information go to www.stayexempt.org. Pre-registration is required. Register online or by calling Shelby Gracey at 412-397-6000.

Someone is lying. UPDATED

A little history...June 7, I posted this thread, NSF YSA Makes The Trib!

Then-school Superintendent John Allison dismissed the amount owed in 2008 because of the group's insufficient funds;

June 20, 2012, this appeared on Lebo Citizens. Another hole in Jan's story - Updated 2x - 990's added - Trib's correction This sums up the thread:

For the record, I never did see the statements from Jan Klein that Chip Dalesandro was referring to in the post, I had a visitor today...  How could George Wilson dismiss the amount owed when he wasn't even the superintendent? Who dismissed it? The School Board at that time? Or was it Jan Klein?

On June 20, 2012, I filed two Right To Know requests with the School District. I heard from Mrs. Szalinski on June 26 with this response and this response, both requiring extensions up to thirty days.

That brings us up to today. I heard from Mrs. Szalinski by email. Dr. Tim Steinhauer, Thomas Peterson, and Gavin Robb were cc'ed. Peterson and Robb are with Tucker Arensberg. I don't understand why two attorneys would have been involved. Double legal fees?

Here are the responses.

On June 20, 2012, you requested any and all communication regarding the dismissal/forgiveness/release/waiver of funds owed by the Youth Sports Alliance for the years 1998-present by any superintendent, financial director, school board director, or YSA member. Please be advised that the District is not in possession of any records responsive to your request. Official response

On June 20, 2012, you requested any and all communication between Jan Klein and Chip Dalesandro regarding the YSA payment schedule and funds received. Please be advised that the District is not in possession of any records responsive to your request. Official response

So no records of ANYONE dismissing YSA fees in 2008 or ANYTIME. No copies of records that Chip has in his possession from Jan Klein accounting for all of YSA's payments. Where are the records? If there is nothing, why were two attorneys involved? Why the extensions?

Update: July 20, 2012 3:10 PM An important seminar for the YSA:

501(c)(3) Status: Keeping it Legal with the IRS
	This full day workshop hosted by the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management and presented by IRS Exempt Organizations specialists, explains what 501(c)(3) organizations must do to keep their tax-exempt status. Topics covered will include: Tax-exempt status Unrelated business income Employement issues Form 990 series Required disclosures Fee is $50 and includes lunch. This session will take place at the Robert Morris University Holiday Inn at 8256 University Blvd. Moon Township, PA 15108 on Tuesday, September 11 from 8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.For more information go to www.stayexempt.org. Pre-registration is required. Register online or by calling Shelby Gracey at 412-397-6000.

Is this what they are trying to sneak in?

The School Board usually has two meetings per month, a discussion meeting followed by a business meeting (a voting meeting) the following week. For the first time that I am aware of, the School Board will have the discussion meeting and the voting meeting all rolled into one on Monday, July 16.  The agenda has some irregularities this time.

(2) Revision to 2012-2013 Administrative Salaries – The Board will be asked to approve a revised list of salary adjustments for administrators previously approved by the Board. Revision to 2012-2013 Administrative Salaries: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the revised 2012-2013 list of annual salary adjustments for administrators effective July 1, 2012 

(3) Act 93 Administrative Agreement – The Board will be asked to consider an Act 93 agreement with the District’s administrators. Act 93 Administrative Agreement: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the Act 93 Administrative Pay for Performance Plan as presented effective July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2017.

A revision to the administrative salaries?  What are they? Will we find out after they are approved? Where is the transparency?

Act 93 Administrative Agreement - isn't that Jan Klein?  Is she getting a raise? Where is her agreement? Will we have to file a Right To Know? Again, where is the transparency?

I am sure that Josephine Posti will say that the Board is transparent. Look at:

(6) Publication of Listing of Liened Taxes – Annually, the Board approves the publication of all properties on which taxes for the prior year have not yet been paid. This list is provided by the Tax Office and is recommended for public view. The Superintendent recommends approval of this action.

List of Liened Taxes: RESOLVED, That the Board approves for public display the list of liened taxes for the 2011 tax year.

They are quick to approve for public display the list of liened taxes, but what about YSA payments for the Joint Maintenance Agreement? Why am I waiting for 30 days to find out the status of my RTK? We don't want to shame them, now do we?

Another hole in Jan's story - Updated 2x - 990's added - Trib's correction

None of this is adding up.  June 7 Trib article:

The forms show that the YSA paid the district $10,000 in 2010, $3,597 in 2008 and $26,000 in 2005 -- about $50,000 short of what it owed. But district Finance Manager Jan Klein said the forms don't reflect that YSA members did $4,000 worth of work in 2005 to the fields.[YSA Payments from 1998-present from today's RTK request] Then-school Superintendent George Wilson John Allison* dismissed the amount owed in 2008 because of the group's insufficient funds; [John Allison was hired in June 2007 and left in the summer of 2009.] and the organization paid the $20,000 balance for 2010 last year. [No payments are shown for 2011.] 

"The payments weren't always made on exactly the dates in the agreements... but our records are very clear," Klein said. "We've confirmed every one of the payments in their records, and we're completely in agreement."[I don't think so.]

          YSA 990-2008 Line 28 shows $3597 contributed towards agreement
          YSA 990-2009 Line 28 shows $30,000 contributed towards agreement
          YSA 990-2010 Line 28 shows $10,000 contributed towards agreement 

For 2011, which hasn't shown up yet in the online IRS records, the YSA paid $10,000, and will soon write a check for the other $20,000, Klein said. [Sorry, but that is not what is being shown on the RTK I received today.] The payment for 2012 will depend on renegotiation of the agreement. In all, the only outstanding payment is $20,000 for last year, Klein said. [I calculate over $100,000 according to the RTK.] 

For the record, I never did see the statements from Jan Klein that Chip Dalesandro was referring to in the post, I had a visitor today...  How could George Wilson dismiss the amount owed when he wasn't even the superintendent? Who dismissed it? The School Board at that time? Or was it Jan Klein?

I think this needs to be investigated, Folks. Nothing is adding up.

*The article now reads, "John Allison."

Can't even title this due to my recent development of Tourette's

I am trying very hard not to interject any profanity for this post. My RTK was just granted.  Here is a copy of the email.

Cc: Dr. Timothy Steinhauer TSteinhauer@mtlsd.net, Thomas Peterson TPeterson@tuckerlaw.com, Jan Klein JKlein@mtlsd.net

Gillen response 2012-30 

Dear Mrs. Gillen,

Thank you for writing to the Mt. Lebanon School District with your request for information pursuant to the Pennsylvania Right-To-Know law.

On June 18, 2012, we received your request for a copy of the YSA payments made by date for years 1998-present which Dr. Steinhauer presented to the school board directors at the June 11, 2012 school board meeting.

Attached is a response to your request.

Please acknowledge receipt of this email.

Sincerely,

Jeanine Szalinski
Administrative Assistant/Open Records Officer
Superintendent's Office
Mt. Lebanon School District
7 Horsman Drive
Pittsburgh PA  15228
412.344.2077

YSA Payments from 1998-present

Have fun with this one, guys! Don't miss the response. No document was presented to the Board at the June 11 meeting. I want to thank Mrs. Szalinski for providing the information I requested.

The never ending story about YSA contributions

Last week, I had sent the following email to the school board.

From: egillen476@aol.com [egillen476@aol.com]

Sent: Saturday, June 16, 2012 10:12 AM 

To: School Board Email list 

Subject: YSA payment schedule 

School board directors, 

Would one of you be so kind as to share a copy of the YSA payment schedule which Dr. Steinhauer passed out to you at last Monday's meeting? Since Mrs. Szalinski is working on so many other RTK's that are coming her way, perhaps you can lighten her workload a tad and share this information with me informally. 

Elaine Gillen

From:  Josephine C. Posti <JPosti@mtlsd.net>

Date:  Mon, Jun 18, 2012 1:43 pm

Mrs. Gillen,
In accordance with Commonwealth law, please send in a Right to Know request and 
Mrs. Szalinski will process your request.


For the Board,

Josephine Posti
President
Mt. Lebanon School Board
412.667.1479
http://jposti.blogspot.com/

Mission: To provide the best education possible for each and every student


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So it looks like I have to file another Right To Know. 

While I am on the subject of RTKs and the YSA, a RTK was granted today with these results.
RTK George Wilson/YSA

So that puts a hole in the story that Jan Klein told the Trib.