Board of Education Approves Millage Rollback
Announcements, Board of Education, Community August 23, 2022
WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- The White County Board of Education voted to approve the FY22 millage rate rollback at their work session.
At the work session, Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented this month’s ESPLOST request and the Aug. construction update. Cindy Free presented the board with two new policy updates that will be tabled for 30 days.
Finance Director Julie Dorsey presented the board with the millage rollback rate at their July meetings. For a refresher on that meeting visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/07/29/school-resource-officers-agreement-amended/.
The notice that the Board of Education put out in advance of the meeting.
The previous year’s millage rate was 16.060 mills and the rollback rate suggested and approved was 14.222 mills. This will result in no tax increase for the Board of Education.
The projected revenue for collections at this rate is $16,488,245. This is $700,000 over the projected revenue budgeted for in the FY23 budget.
Heard in the clip above is Dorsey explaining a little about the millage rate. She also can be heard stating that this will not cause a tax increase.
This month’s ESPLOST request is for $22,636.00. This is for new equipment for the finance department, window furnishing for Warrior Academy, and two facility updates. One of the facility updates will be slipt with the Helmet club. The board will take action on this at the Regular meeting on Thursday.
Justus also gave an update on construction. Testnee Gap roof is 100% complete and the HVAC is 98% complete they are just waiting on two heat strips that are on backorder. The transportation facility is about halfway complete and the hope is to have it open around Oct. or Nov.
The full details on the performing arts center and the athletic fields.
The Performing Arts Center and the athletic fields are 100% complete with the clearing, grubbing, and aggregated piers. The foundation has become being poured for the center.
The two policies that Free introduced are IEDA and JRB. The first policy states that students in K-8 have to have scheduled break time, which they already do.
The second policy is JRB which is in response to House Bill 1178, this bill is the Parental Bill of Rights. To read through the entire bill visit https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1178/2021. This policy will help promote parent involvement and give parents options to object to materials their students are being taught with.
Most of the elements in the policy are already part of different policies the school district has in place. To see any of the board of education policies visit https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Policy/PolicyListing.aspx?S=4176. The policies have to sit for 30 days before the board can take action on them, after they are approved the protocols for JRB will be posted on the home page of the school system website.
Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett also reminded the board that on Aug. 23 at 6:00 p.m. in the Middle School cafeteria there will be an informational parent meeting on vaping. All parents are encouraged to attend. The Board of Education redid the vaping protocols over the summer for more information on those go to https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/04/29/board-approves-new-vaping-procedures/.
Rowland Provides Nutrition Update
Board of Education, Community May 24, 2022
WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- The School Nutrition Director Abby Rowland provided the Board of Educaton with an update on the upcoming school year’s nutrition progress.
The board also heard a construction update from Charles Black Construction. Jack P. Nix Elementary school also sent out a club formation request that the board reived, and lastly they approved for Dr. Amanda Lammers to pursue a grant on behalf of the school system.
There have been recent rumors circling that there will be no food distributor for the next school year. After months of hard work and Rowland informed the board that they found a distributor that and they signed a contract on May 12. The distributor is Goldstar Foods and they deal only in K-12 food sales and have no retail or restaurant business.
The reason Rowland had a hard time finding a new contract is that it is more profitable for the companies to sell to retail chains and restaurants than it is to sell to school systems. These businesses are facing the same struggles with the supply chain, gas prices for their trucks, and truck driver shortages that every other business in the country is facing currently.
Another issue that has come up recently is people concerned with the change in standards for the types of food allow to be served to the children. To review anything to do with the White County school system’s nutrition program visit https://www.white.k12.ga.us/departments/school-nutrition. The standards change all the time and Rowland and her staff works every year to keep up with the changes and to ensure that the students have the food they will eat available at school.
“Sometimes we don’t like the guidelines, sometimes we wish they wouldn’t be as restrictive but in White County we have always worked through that process, we find a way to put food out there that the kids will eat. We got their back and we are feeding them,” stated Rowland.
Rod Nix while presenting the construction update for Charles Black.
Charles Black Construction provided the current update for the projects going on within the school system. The football field is complete and ready for graduation Friday. The materials are on site for Testenee Gap’s reroofing and HVAC project and they are set to start work next week.
The new transportation center has a pad down. Concrete was supposed to be poured this morning for the footings but due to the rain, it has been pushed back until next week. The metal frame should go up on Jun. 14. The grave off of old the nature trail has not been disturbed and will not be, and once the construction is complete a new nature trail will be set up for the students.
Charles Black has received bids for the new performing arts center. The bid is for 729 seats and is $17,991,955. The current hope is to begin construction in the spring and have the center open by Aug. of 2023 however there are supply chain issues and weather details that could cause delays in the project.
Allison Lundey has requested to form a cooking club at Jack P. Nix elementary school. This club will help students work on many skills including math. If approved the club will be on the first Tuesday of the month for K-2 and the third Tuesday for 3-5 for an hour and a half. The board will take action on this at their meeting on Thursday.
The board did take action on granting Dr. Lammers a White County School System Social worker permission to apply for a $200,000 grant on behalf of the school system. The grant is through the Department of Health and DFACS.
If the grant is awarded to White County it will be used to create a school-based health center for families. This would be a place for families to come if they needed to wash clothes and take a shower, it would have a clothes closet along with the school supplies closet the system already maintains.
A possible location for the center would be the old Warrior Academy due to its private entrance so the families could be discreet. Nothing on this project has been deiced on and is still in the process of planning.
Reminder, White County High School will be hosting a graduation on Friday, May 27 at 8:00 p.m. There will be traffic delays around the school before and after the ceremony takes place.