Budget preparation this year wasn’t an easy task for the Seneca Valley School Board. In the end, the board adopted a $94 million 2011-12 spending plan financed in part by a 5.6 percent property tax increase and savings from the elimination of 31 positions.

Budget preparation for 2012-13 doesn’t look any easier.

That said, district taxpayers have cause to question the board’s judgment regarding a proposed agreement with former district Superintendent Donald Tylinski, who officially retired on Wednesday, for temporary consulting services.

The board wants to use Tylinski’s experience to help with the transition between his leadership and that of new Superintendent Tracy Vitale.

The issue isn’t that the board is seeking Tylinski’s help. Using outgoing superintendents in that way is a common practice among school systems.

What taxpayers should consider troubling is the fact that the proposed agreement calls for Tylinski to be paid $800 a day for up to 40 days of help. If his services were to be used for the full 40 days — and, maybe that’s unlikely — Tylinski’s pay would be $32,000.

That rate of pay calculates to an annual salary of $208,000.

The $32,000 figure is more than many district residents earn in their full-time jobs over the course of a full year. That pay rate also doesn’t reflect a district that still is not out of the financial woods.

There’s also the issue of how much help Vitale should need, considering that she worked with Tylinski for four years as an assistant superintendent.

The board reportedly will vote on the proposed agreement during the coming week. Between now and then, board members should seriously reflect on the rate of pay — or, perhaps, shorten the transition period.

The money in question could buy school supplies or help with some other need.

A reasonable transition is acceptable; one that involves excessive expense for the district is not.

Cheer Members of the Pennsylvania state House, who rarely agree unanimously on anything, deviated commendably from that on Wednesday in approving new rules governing how coaches and parents handle concussions and traumatic brain injuries sustained by student-athletes.Under the bill, the departments of Health and Education would compile guidelines to limit when injured students would be allowed to return to the playing field. Also, an appropriate medical professional would have to sign off on the return.The bill, dubbed the Safety in Youth Sports Act, would require coaches to receive training on recognizing and dealing with such situations, as well as requiring them to remove students from games if they exhibit signs of such injuries.The proposed law is a measure that should be fast-tracked to implementation.As for the Legislature, it’s commendable that it recognized the importance of the measure in a unanimous way, not subject it to unnecessary delays.

Jeer Coaches must motivate their players to do well during practice and in actual competition. That’s part of their job.Unfortunately, a junior varsity football coach in Marcellus, N.Y., took that responsibility too far when he borrowed from a scene in the movie “Remember the Titans.”After a loss, and in an effort to motivate the team, he told the driver of the bus transporting the team home to stop at a cemetery, then had the players lie down on graves.The coach then talked with them about the importance of playing hard.The place to get better is on the practice field, not in a cemetery. The way to maintain respect for a coaching staff is for coaches to help players improve their skills, not belittle them.The coach was suspended for two weeks without pay, and he later apologized to his players and their parents.What happened in the Marcellus school district offers a message for coaches here and everywhere else.That message is to motivate players — but find acceptable ways to do so.