Board approves Sarah Price as Blackford County Schools director of student services

The Blackford County Schools Board of Education on Saturday unanimously approved Sarah Price as the district's director of student services, a role the superintendent said will oversee special-education compliance, teacher training and student supports.

"So it is with no hesitation, that I recommend that we move Sarah Price, to the position," the superintendent said during the board meeting. The board voted to approve the appointment 4–0.

The superintendent told the board Price has prior experience as a special-education teacher and assistant principal and holds a special-education director license. He said the district currently has "320 or 330" students with individualized education programs (IEPs) and "another 40 or 50" students with 504 plans, and that Price will oversee IEP quality, Medicaid reimbursement tasks, staff training and federally protected compliance work.

To support testing, the superintendent said Ball State has agreed to provide two graduate doctoral students, supervised by Ball State, to perform student testing. The superintendent also reported the outgoing director, Dr. Trinkle, has accepted a new position and will remain with the district through Aug. 14. The board packet included a pay memo and a stated "2220 day contract" for Price's position (term as written in the packet), which the meeting record did not further clarify.

Board members asked how the director's duties would interact with building principals and assistant principals. The superintendent said Price will operate at the district level, be assigned 80% of her time to buildings, and serve as a parent and teacher advocate for special-education concerns. The board's approval completes the personnel action; the superintendent said the district will introduce Price to staff on Monday and begin the transition process.