Maryville R-II exiting ACES program
CODY THORN/DAILY FORUM
The Area Cooperative for Education Support, located at 1212 “A” S. Main St. in Maryville, will be looking for a new fiscal agent for the 2018-19 school year. The school board for Maryville R-II, the current fiscal agent for ACES, voted to leave the co-op following the 2017-18 school year.
The Maryville R-II Board of Education has approved a recommendation for the district to leave the Area Cooperative for Educational Support (ACES) following the 2017-’18 school year.
The move means the district will no longer serve as the fiscal agent for the program, which serves 21 school districts in northwest Missouri.
ACES, located at 1212 “A” S. Main St. in Maryville, provides help for students with behavioral or academic issues from pre-school through 12th grade. Some of the most notable services include speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy.
“I feel we can do those same programs ourselves for a similar cost,” Maryville Superintendent Becky Albrecht said. “I don’t know if we can guarantee we can save money, but we will have the flexibility to do what is best, and I don’t think it has to be the demise of the group.”
Maryville is one of only two districts that spends more than $50,000 a year for the ACES program. The total cost for the district last year was $94,596.
Currently R-II, as fiscal agent, oversees the hiring, firing, evaluation, management and bookkeeping for ACES.
“They are aware,” Albrecht said of the other ACES districts. “I’m not sure they are all happy, but they understand why. Their biggest concern moving forward is naming a fiscal agent.”
A call to the ACES administrator wasn’t returned by press time.
One of the biggest benefits of ACES is that small schools that can’t hire a full-time psychologist or speech pathologist can have access to such specialists for a fraction of the cost.
This year’s members included Albany, Fairfax, King City, Nodaway-Holt, Pattonsburg, Stanberry, West Nodaway, Jefferson, Maryville, North Nodaway, South Holt, Tarkio, Union Star, Worth County, Avenue City, Craig, Mound City, North Andrew, Northeast Nodaway, Rock Port and South Nodaway.
Albrecht told the board that Albany is pulling out of the co-op, which lowers the number to 20 districts for the 2017-’18 school year.
According to information released in a newsletter, ACES provided 50 diagnostic assessments, 19 psychologist visits, 37 social worker visits and 11 director visits in March.
