By CALEB FREY

Staff Reporter

RESERVE — St. John teachers might be finding a little extra spending money for their classrooms with a proposed $275,000 allotment to be used for the purchase of necessary supplies over the course of the school year. The proposal was initiated after the board met in executive session to discuss the possibility of altering school supply lists to help alleviate the burden on parents with low incomes.

In a letter Ory gave to the other school board members, he talks of the cost of actually attending public schools due to fees imposed by the school or by teachers asking for supplies.

&#8220Most of our schools on the registration date ask students to pay $15 or $20, sometimes more depending on what each school offers, sometimes less,” Ory said. &#8220My point is, if it’s mandatory to purchase items in order to attend that school it should be incumbent on the school board to finance those items.”

Board member Dowie Gendron sided with Ory about imposing unnecessary charges on students and their families but pointed out why the fees came about in the first place.

&#8220I’m not in favor of imposing anything on anyone but these fees came about because of necessity,” Gendron said. &#8220Once you forgive all of that (fees), the day you try to reinstate it, that’s when you’re really gonna get a backlash.”

Member Russ Wise asked the board to add the vote for a $500 allocation for each teacher to buy necessary classroom supplies, something that Wise said often comes out of teacher’s own pockets.

&#8220We could well afford to buy basic supplies for all of our classrooms now and we should,” Wise said. &#8220And I squeeze a penny til Lincoln squeals, but if we have it, we should spend it for the benefit of the kids in our classrooms.”