Odyssey of the Mind and Girls on the Run club were approved, at the Jan. 13 board of education meeting, to receive Northampton Area School District funding.

Odyssey of the Mind, a program for 25 years in NASD, has approximately seven teams of 60 district students in grades K-12 who compete March-May. Contests emphasize STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) subjects.

Melinda McCann is in her 10th year as coordinator of Odyssey of the Mind, which is run by community volunteers.

Girls on the Run, in its first school year in NASD, has about 25 female students in third through fifth grades participating. The program includes guidance and training for girls to run in a 5K race. The program emphasizes curriculum that integrates running.

Doug Sherman, assistant principal at Northampton Borough Elementary School, is coordinator of the program.

It was reported a club stipend can range from $400 to $800. NASD Superintendent of Schools Joseph S. Kovalchik explained a district committee reviews clubs and stipend requests.

“If [a club] continues to grow, the stipend would continue to grow,” Kovalchik said.

Also at the meeting, school directors voted unanimously 9-0 at the Jan. 13 meeting to approve:

• Kimberly Haupt, long-term substitute kindergarten teacher, Moore Elementary School, effective retroactive to Dec. 17, 2019, for remainder of 2019-20 school year at $297.36 per diem

• Samar Sankari, cafeteria monitor, Siegfried Elementary School, effective Jan. 14, pending receipt of proper documentation, at $13.07 per hour

• Resignation of Brooke Magill, a special education instructional assistant, effective by Dec. 20, 2019

• Addition of Amy Nichols, swimming announcer, to the athletic event staff for the 2019-20 school year

• James Sansone and one student to attend Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District 10 Band Festival, Exeter High School, Reading. The student is attending Feb. 13-15. Sansone is attending Feb. 13-14. The approximate cost, $275, is in the board-approved district budget.

• One Northampton Area High School student to attend PMEA District 10 Chorus Festival, Jan. 15-17, Boyertown Area Senior High School. The student was to attend Jan. 15-17. Emily Reinsmith was to attend Jan. 15. The approximate cost, $133, is in the board-approved 2019-20 budget.

• Attendance of Kelsey Haviland and Trina Williams at National Association of School Psychologists 2020 Conference, held Feb. 18-21, Baltimore, Md. The approximate cost, $1,646.14, is in the 2019-20 board-approved curriculum budget.

• Ryan Mertz and two students to attend PMEA District 10 Orchestra Festival, held Jan. 29-31, Wilson Area High School, West Lawn. The students are attending Jan. 29-31. Mertz will be attending Jan. 29, and the performance is Jan. 31. The approximate cost, $519.63, is in the board-approved district budget.

• The Catalog Fixed Discount Program as awarded by IU-20 Joint Purchasing Board for Jan. 1-Dec. 31

• Bids for fuel oil for the 2020-21 school year as awarded by Northampton-Monroe-Pike County Joint Purchasing Board

• Single audit as completed by Gorman & Associates P.C.

• Settlement agreements and releases for two special education students

The school board meets 6:30 p.m. Jan. 27 in the meeting room at the administration building, 2014 Laubach Ave., Northampton.