Unpaid obligations still a problem at Blair

Nine hundred twenty-three students owed Blair over $63,000 for IDs and unreturned textbooks from the conclusion of the 2002-2003 school year.

"It's a big problem," said Business Manager Anne Alban. "A lot of that obligation money is because students have lost their textbooks," she said. "We have to spend textbook money that is not really budgeted." Also, Alban said the unpaid obligations limit the principal's response to funding requests from department heads and after-school clubs.

Currently, the administration has implemented new policies regarding outstanding obligations, one of which stated that students who owe money would not be allowed to participate in extracurricular activities. "We're looking at student privileges as an incentive to make them pay [their obligations]," Alban said. In addition, Homecoming tickets will not be sold to students with unpaid obligations.

Previously, Blair policy required that the report cards of students with outstanding obligations be withheld. However, according to Alban, the policy was not carried out at the end of the last school year. "We want to make sure the parents get the report cards [quickly]," she stated. Prom tickets and parking permits were not sold to students with obligations last year, and seniors with obligations did not receive their diplomas.