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September 23, 2002
The Catawba County Board of Education met in regular session on
September 23, 2002 at 5:30 p.m. at the County Schools’ Administration
Building with Chairman Betty Blackburn presiding. The following members
were present: Mrs. Sherrill, Mrs. Butler, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Wyant and Mr.
Biggerstaff. Also in attendance were Superintendent Ann Hart, Assistant
Superintendents Stephen Hilton, Nancy Yount and Joyce Spencer, Finance
Director Sondra Wolfe, Technology Director Terry Bledsoe, Construction
Coordinator Ernest Williams, Testing and Accountability Director Joe
Famulary along with Vickie Matthews from his department, Catawba
Intermediate Principal Cynthia McKee, Karen Cale and Public
Information/Grants Writer Sonya Gordon. Mr. McRee and Attorney Alex
Williams were absent.
Allison Hilton represented Hickory Daily Record and Kathryn
Wellin represented the Charlotte Observer. Al Mainess
represented WNNC. Also in attendance were Tonya Self and Tim
Jennings from the YMCA of Catawba Valley.
The meeting opened with a moment of silence followed by the Pledge of
Allegiance led by Mr. Wyant. Chairman Blackburn declared the minutes of
August 28-29, 2002 and August 29, 2002 meetings approved. The Consent
Agenda was amended by Superintendent Hart to add six additional field
trips and New Business #8 – Funds to Hire Consulting Attorney Fees.
After the amendment, the agenda was unanimously approved upon a motion
by Mrs. Butler and seconded by Mrs. Sherrill.
Public Hearing:
Superintendent Hart conducted the public hearing phase of the meeting
for comments concerning any agenda items. No person present wished to
address the Board on any agenda item.
Superintendent’s Report:
Superintendent Hart began her report by recognizing the
school system for receiving a Head Start Volunteer Award for outstanding
volunteer service to the Head Start Program during 2001-2002. Other
items of Superintendent Hart’s report included:
•The speaker at the October 24, 2002 Annual YMCA Prayer
Breakfast will be David Chadwick. He is the author of The Twelve
Leadership Principles of Dean Smith, which is the basis of the
character-based leadership seminars that the administrators in the
district have been participating in.
•Catawba County Schools’ International Newcomer Center will
be sponsoring a Hmong Parent Meeting on Saturday, October 5, 2002 from
9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. in the cafeteria at Lyle Creek Elementary
School.
•The school system collected one hundred seventy-five pounds
of school supplies in August as part of the School Tools Program through
TV Channel 9 and Food Lion. One hundred needy students will be helped
throughout the year.
•The Bandys High School Livestock Show Team won two first
place ribbons and one-second place ribbon at the Caldwell County Open
Beef Cattle Show in the Senior Heifer Open Division, Reserve Champion
Ram and Reserve Champion Ewe. At the Junior Division Caldwell County
Show, the team won first place in the Senior Heifer Division and in the
Late Heifer Division, as well as Grand Champion Ram for the county. The
junior team members also won Grand Champion Suffolk Ram and Grand
Champion Suffolk Ewe at Hickory American Legion Fair’s Show.
•The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS)
recently congratulated Catawba County Schools for having all of the
schools accredited. According to SACS, the school system is now
considered a “Super System for Quality Schools” for its schools’
accreditation accomplishments and continued successes in improving
educational opportunities for the young people. Our elementary and
middle schools are having their SACS verification visits on September
26, 2002.
•The regional NCSBA meeting will be on Wednesday, September
25, 2002 in Wilkesboro. The meeting will begin with registration at
3:30 p.m. and the sessions will begin at 4:00 p.m.
•St. Stephens High School’s Navy JROTC Unit won the
inaugural annual Hickory Pre-Season Regional JROTC Drill Meet held in
early September. The competition included five area JROTC high school
teams competing against each other. Bunker Hill High School’s team came
in fourth place.
•All of Catawba County Schools’ middle schools participated
in Lenoir-Rhyne College’s Public School Partnership last Saturday.
Students enjoyed drama, music and athletic activities followed by a
concert and meal. To “wrap up” the day’s activities, participants
attended the Lenoir-Rhyne versus Concord football game.
•On a sad note, Superintendent Hart informed the Board of
two students’ deaths; Catilyn Painter, a five year old that was served
by the Preschool Department and Brittany Heafner, a seventh grader from
Mill Creek Middle School. Also, she gave an update on Attorney Alex
Williams’ condition.
•Superintendent Hart informed the Board that information has
been submitted to Surry Insurance and currently is waiting to hear back
from the company to determine which attorney will be handling the
pending civil action.
•A general update on the budget was the last item of
Superintendent Hart’s report. There was approximately $531,931.00
reduction in the state funding with anticipated additional reductions
along with possible reductions in the local funding. Superintendent
Hart emphasized that schools were not impacted by this reduction. At
this time, only eighty percent of the budget has been distributed to
schools. Distributions to the schools did include the additional one
dollar per ADM for instructional materials, one dollar per ADM for
school improvement and two dollars per ADM for library books, which were
included in the base budget request. Once a final budget is approved,
additional dollars will be distributed to the school. The budget will
be submitted to the Board for approval at the October Board of Education
meeting. The 2001-2002 Audit Report will be submitted to the Board for
approval at the November Board of Education meeting. Superintendent
Hart commended Finance Officer Wolfe and the finance department for
their closely monitoring of the budget.
The following Consent Agenda items were transacted:
Field Trip Requests and Camps:
*St. Stephens High School FCCLA to Raleigh, NC, September 27-28, 2002
*Bunker Hill High School AFJROTC to Raleigh, NC, September 27-28, 2002
*Bandys High School Livestock Team to Raleigh, NC, October 16-20, 2002
*St. Stephens High School FCCLA to Atlanta, Georgia, November 15-17,
2002
*Mt. View Elementary School Sixth Grade to Hendersonville, NC, December
2-4, 2002
*St. Stephens High School Wrestling Team to Winston-Salem, NC, December
13-14,
2002
*St. Stephens High School Wrestling Team to Chapel Hill, NC, December
26-28, 2002
*Bunker Hill High School Chorus to Orlando, Florida, April 22-27, 2003
Personnel Requests:
*employed certified employees Margaret Breazeale, Kelly Harris, Donald
Hensley,
Samuel Hovis, Janelle Miller, Michael Morettie, Leigh Sigmon, Kenneth
Simmons and Faye Smith;
*employed VIF employee Jesus Moran;
*employed classified employees Christine Ehlert, Joe Franklin, Melissa
Greene, Patty
Howard, Pam Lackey, Geraldine Lowery, Amanda Phillips, Ann Scronce,
Harold Shuford, Dawn Stanley and Mary Wright;
*employed non-staff coaches Gayle Boyles, Thomas Hand and
Gordon Osborne;
*granted leave of absence to classified employee Cynthia
Brown;
*accepted the resignations of certified employees Renea
Featherstone and Marissa Garst;
*granted the retirement requests of certified employee
Billie Jo Drum; and
*accepted the resignations of classified employees Lillian
Coulter, Sue Greene and Teresa York Dyson.
The Board was also furnished a listing of substitute teachers.
There being no questions or discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Wyant
and seconded by Mr. Huffman to approve the presented field trips and
personnel requests. The motion carried.
There were no items of old business to be transacted.
The following items of new business were then transacted:
NB#1:
Superintendent Hart and Testing and Accountability Director Joe Famulary
presented the 2001-2002 Report on Student Performance. This
user-friendly, comprehensive report on student performance enables
school-based staff and central office staff make informed decisions
about how to improve student achievement. The report is broken down
into two parts: Part I being the Narrative section and Part II being
the statistical information. Each school report puts all data in one
place to present an overview of performance. Highlights were presented
with the intent to give a full picture of the performance made by the
students. The report will be located on the Catawba County Schools’ web
page. Superintendent Hart emphasized that this report gives a good
handle of the status of the district. She then thanked Director
Famulary and his staff for their dedicated work with this valuable
report.
NB#2:
Superintendent Hart presented the schools’ request of school fund
raising activities for the 2002-2003 school year. Board policy requires
the Board to approve these activities, not the fundraisers sponsored by
the PTA/Os or Booster Clubs. There being no discussion or
questions, a motion was made by Mr. Biggerstaff to accept the requests
submitted by the schools. Mrs. Sherrill seconded the motion. All
members were in favor.
NB#3:
Recommended members for the 2002-2003 Catawba County Schools’ Advisory
Council were presented by Chairman Blackburn. Mrs. Butler asked if a
member’s child should attend the school that the member was recommended
for. Superintendent Hart answered by stating that the member had to
reside in that school district. The child did not have to attend that
school. The current board policy relating to selection of advisory
council members will be reviewed. A motion was then made by Mrs. Butler
to accept the names as presented. The motion was seconded by Mr. Wyant
with no opposition. Notification letters will be sent to the approved
members.
NB#4:
Superintendent Hart introduced Tim Jennings and Tonya Self from the YMCA
of Catawba Valley. Mr. Jennings and Ms. Self presented to the Board a
proposal for consideration of facility usage of a classroom at Lyle
Creek Elementary School for expansion of a pre-school childcare. This
childcare would be available for three and four year olds within the
Lyle Creek and Oxford communities. The goal of the expansion would be
to provide a quality childcare program that would enhance the
developmental stages for elementary school readiness. Areas of focus
development would include social/emotional, physical, cognitive and
language. Operational hours would be the same as after-school hours
with cost being comparable to other childcares. Currently, the YMCA
child development centers maintain three-star ratings with the goal of
being four-star by 2004. As long as space is available, all members
felt this childcare would be a valuable asset to the system. Mrs.
Butler made the motion to approve the Lyle Creek Preschool proposal as
presented. Mr. Huffman seconded the motion with no opposition.
NB#5:
Assistant Superintendent Hilton presented the revised proposed Eight
Year Long Range Facility Plan for 2002-2011. The development of the
facility plan came as a result of a request from the County
Commissioners for a plan to address school construction needs over an
eight-year period. The initial proposal was discussed at the August
Board Retreat with input and revisions being made by the Board at that
time. Revisions included: Phase II of the Fred T. Foard High School
project in budget year one; land acquisition for an elementary school in
the Banoak/Blackburn area in budget year four; and the construction of
new elementary schools for the St. Stephens and Banoak/Blackburn areas
in budget years four-five and six-seven. Order of construction would be
based on needs in the areas. Presented construction cost represented a
5.5% total increase for plan years one through eight due to
inflation. Mr. Wyant made the motion to approve the presented revised
Eight Year Long Range Facility Plan. Mrs. Sherrill seconded the
motion. All members were in favor.
NB#6:
As a result of discussion at the August Board Retreat, Assistant
Superintendent Hilton presented to members four options for Catawba
Intermediate attendance district. He reviewed each option containing
2003-2004 projected enrollment and capacity numbers. The options were as
follows:
Option 1: All sixth graders from the Oxford Elementary School
attendance district would remain at Oxford Elementary School. Sixth
graders from Sherrills Ford Elementary, Claremont Elementary and those
sixth graders from Balls Creek Elementary Schools who are in the Mill
Creek Middle/Bandys High Schools’ attendance area would attend Catawba
Intermediate. Sixth graders from Maiden Elementary and Balls Creek
Elementary Schools who are in the Tuttle Middle/Maiden High attendance
area would attend Tuttle Middle School. If this option is chosen, there
is available classroom space at Catawba Intermediate. This option would
increase enrollment.
Option 2: All sixth graders from Oxford Elementary and Claremont
Elementary Schools would remain at home schools. Sixth graders from
Balls Creek Elementary School (Mill Creek Middle/Bandys High Schools’
attendance area) and Sherrills Ford Elementary School would attend
Catawba Intermediate. Sixth graders from Maiden Elementary and Balls
Creek Elementary Schools who are in the Tuttle Middle/Maiden High
Schools’ attendance area would attend Tuttle Middle School.
Option 3: Same as Option 2, except sixth graders from Oxford Elementary
and Claremont Elementary Schools would attend Oxford Elementary School.
Option 4: Same as Option 2, except for minor change of school district
lines between Claremont Elementary and Oxford Elementary Schools.
Mrs. Butler made the motion to approve on first reading Option 1 for
Catawba Intermediate attendance district with Mr. Biggerstaff seconding
the motion. All members were in favor of the motion. Information will
be made available to staff, students and parents for additional input.
Option 1 will be brought back to the Board at the October meeting for
second reading.
NB#7:
The 2002-2005 School Improvement Plans were presented to the Board on
September 9 and 10. Assistant Superintendent Yount distributed waiver
requests and discussed the requests. Mr. Huffman made the motion to
approve the 2002-2005 School Improvement Plans and waivers excluding the
local requests of Claremont Elementary School and Oxford Elementary
School. Mrs. Sherrill seconded the motion. All members were in favor.
The Board commended Superintendent Hart and the schools for the
outstanding plans.
NB#8:
Due to Attorney Alex Williams’ illness, Superintendent Hart asked for
authorization from the Board to contact attorneys for consulting fees
dealing with general school law issues and property issues. Her
recommendations included Chris Campbell from Asheville, Gill
Meadowbrooks from Charlotte and Terry Taylor from Hickory. Procedures
for civil actions will first be handled through Surry Insurance. Mrs.
Sherrill made the motion to grant the authorization to Superintendent
Hart, as she deems necessary. Mrs. Butler seconded the motion with no
opposition.
Public Comments:
Superintendent Hart conducted the public comments section of the agenda
at which time no person present desired to address the Board.
Upon a motion by Mr. Wyant and seconded by Mrs. Sherrill, the Board
unanimously went into closed session for the purpose of discussing
information that is privileged, confidential or not a public record
under federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA)
North Carolina G.S.143-318.11(a)(1).
CLOSED SESSION (Separate minutes for closed session are prepared and
kept confidential.)
The Board returned to open session with a motion by Mrs. Butler,
seconded by Mr. Biggerstaff with no opposition.
There being no other items of business to be conducted, Chairman
Blackburn declared the meeting adjourned at 7:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
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Betty C. Blackburn, Chairman
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Ann Y. Hart, Secretary
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