Board Tables Second Apple Lease Vote

The Bethlehem Area School District voted 4-3 to table the decision on whether or not to extend the district's contract with Apple Computers for an additional two years at their meeting Monday evening.

The majority said they wish to wait until the entire board of nine was present to put the matter to a final decision. Members Aurea Ortiz and Rosario Amato were not present.

This is the second time the matter has come before the board in as many months. At their , the board split 4-4 on the matter of the lease extension.

Voting against tabling the matter were board members Loretta Leeson, Benjamin Tenaglia and Eugene McKeon.

The lease extension would roll the existing contract into a new four-year lease, and provide the district with up to 909 new computers for the middle schools and high schools.

The current lease agreement expires in 2012.

Those opposing the extension have said they wish to explore other options, including the costs of PC computers, before committing the district to a four-year contract.

“Unless we stop, we will never be able to migrate away from this one vendor,” Tenaglia said.

But others feel the district's needs are best provided for by Apple.

“I think education-wise, there is no better machine than Apple,” board member Michael Fascinetto said, adding that the additional cost of the computers was offset by the extras that come with them.

Superintendent Joseph Roy said the price of the extension is better than has previously been offered to the district.

Under the current lease, the district pays $737,188 annually. If the board accepts the new contract with the administration's recommendations, it will pay $755,916 in 2011, and $559,680 annually for the remaining three years.

Acceptance of the contract requires a clear majority, or five members, to approve it.

Some members were unhappy with the decision to table the matter, saying it was an attempt to manipulate the vote.

But board president Michele Cann disagreed.

“We recognize this as an important issue...and we just think it's important enough that we wanted the whole board,” Cann said. “I would like to consider the opinions of the people who are not here, and I know they do have opinions on this.”

She added that having the full board present would put the matter to rest once and for all.

“I don't call it a do-over vote,” she said. “There has been additional information.”