Claremont — The SAU 6 School Board, which includes Claremont and Unity, has voted to hire an individual to work eight hours a week monitoring the district’s school lunch program.

The decision comes after the Claremont School Board recently learned of a $32,000 debt in the breakfast/lunch program for the 2017-18 school year, when The Abbey Group was hired to provide food services.

Claremont School Board Chairman Frank Sprague said on Friday that 90 percent of the individual’s work will be to ensure compliance with federal and state rules and that records and documents are up to date and accurate. There also will be time spent calling families that owe money, but not for the purpose of collection, Sprague emphasized. Instead, the district hopefully will learn more about the reasons for past-due amounts and specific circumstances of each family.

Sprague said a phone call can be much more effective and bring desired results more so than a letter home.

The Claremont district is expected to forgive any debt of $20 or less, which would eliminate about $5,000 of the debt.

There was a recommendation at a Claremont School Board meeting on Oct. 14 to discuss the lunch program and The Abbey Group in a nonpublic session, but Sprague said Unity was not inclined to do that because it is owed less than $1,000 and sees the debt as a Claremont problem.