The first reading of a policy related to a change in Tamaqua Area School District's point-of-sale system has been given the green light.

That's after the school board's Education Committee on Tuesday recommended approval of the first reading of the policy.That action comes after Superintendent Ray Kinder told the board last month that the district plans to change its point-of-sale system, effective this school year.Kinder said at that time that the district plans to change the system to a numeric code for students, in which they will get a four- to six-digit number, and after their food is rung up, they will enter in their code.He said the change will result in a more effective way for the district to get through its current cafeteria issues.Kinder said there were consistency and reliability issues with the scanning, and said a numeric code is more reliable.The Primero system will cost the district about $8,400, he said.Kinder said breakfast and lunch costs will remain the same for the 2016-17 school year.Other action• The board's Education Committee on Tuesday recommended approving the request of the district's special education director to apply for an A ACHIEVE (An Autism College and High School Integration for Education and Vocational Experience), July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, for $10,000.• The board's Finance Committee recommended approving the membership agreement with the Schuylkill County Area Vocational-Technical School Authority to extend the existence of the authority to an additional 50 years.• The board's Education Committee recommended approving the request of high school teacher Roseann Weinrich to take the AP biology students to the Sam Rhine Genetics Update Conference in Wilmington, Delaware, on Oct. 13. The cost for registration is $20 per student.