Board Reviews Policy Update

Board of Education, Community, Education

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- The White County Board of Education reviewed an update to policy BCBI and reviewed the procedures outlined in the policy at the work session on Sept. 27.

Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented the board with the Sept. ESPLOST also at the meeting. Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett spoke briefly about the Ribbon Cutting ceremony for the new Warrior Wellness Center.

Policy BCBI is the policy the board uses for its public participation. The only change to the policy is to add a sentence “All members of the public attending any meeting of the Board must follow the Rules of Conduct set forth in the procedures.”

To read through the current policy before this change is added visit https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Policy/ViewPolicy.aspx?S=4176&revid=cw8i16Om5RSxpaslshH8Fen2g==&ptid=amIgTZiB9plushNjl6WXhfiOQ==&secid=&PG=6&IRP=0. The board will vote to place the policy update on the table for 30 days during their regular meeting on Sept. 29 at 6:00 p.m.

Some of the procedures for public participation.

The board also reviewed the procedures for the policy which are also already in place. There was an addition to those as well, the additional states that speakers are to keep their comments civil. The board will vote on implementing this at the regular meeting.

Heard in the clip above is Burkett explaining why the procedures need to be approved by the board and why she feels the law was passed. The procedures and policy updates can be found at https://www.white.k12.ga.us/board_of_education/meetings/board_highlights.

The ESPLOST request for Sept.

The ESPLOST request that Justus made for Sept. is for a total of $440,907.84. A portion of that will be refunded from the state. The request is for window tinting in the boardroom at the Administration building, one special needs class C school bus, two conventional school buses, work for the gyms floors at the middle and high schools, and two hot water heaters for the middle school.

There is also a request for funds for tree removal at Mt. Yonah, a walkway at Mt. Yonah, and the track at the high school being repainted. The refund comes from the bus allotment from the GaDOE which will be $264,300.00.

This is part of a three-year purchase plan for 10 additional buses. They will all have the air conditioning on them and will also have additional LED lights to add to the visibility.

Transportation Director Sharon Hipps while explaining the new features on the buses.

The Warrior Wellness Center will have its grand opening and ribbon cutting on Oct. 7 at 10:00 a.m. It is possible that Richard Woods Georgia State School Superintendent could be present for the opening.

Currently, the wellness center only offers medical attention through Med Link but the school system just received a $50,000 grant that will go towards adding more resources for families such as washers and dryers. Dr. Amanda Lammers a White County School System Social Worker got the process going for the wellness center back in May, to review that meeting visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/05/24/rowland-provides-nutrition-update/.

August ESPLOST Request Approved

Board of Education, Community, Education

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- The White County Board of Education approved the August ESPLOST request that Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented to the board at their work session on Tuesday, Aug. 23.

The board also approved the first reading of the new policies that will sit on the table for 30 days before being voted on. They recognized students from The Mossy Creek Beta Club that placed in the National competition over the summer.

During the board work session on Tuesday, Justus presented them with both the ESPLOST and a construction update. To review the meeting visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/08/23/board-of-education-approves-millage-rollback/.

The ESPLOST request for the month of Aug. is for $22,636.00. $3,000 of that will go towards purchasing six new scanners for the finance department. $3,296.00 will go to installing perforated film over the windows and doors at the Warrior Academy, this will provide more privacy since it enables viewing only from the inside out.

$4,840 will go towards helping the Helmet club light the school logos on the new Jumbotron. The total cost of the lighting project is $8,840 but the Helmet club will be paying $4,000 of that total cost.

Lastly, $11,500 will go towards the meter charge and cost of sewer hookup for the new transportation facility. This was not included in the project cost from Charles Black Construction. The board approved all of these items for the Aug. ESPLOST.

Director of School Improvement Cindy Free presented the board with two new policies at the Tuesday work session. Those policies are IEDA and JRB.

IEDA is a policy stating that students in Kindergarten through 8th grade will have unstructured break time also known as recess. The students already receive this, the State just requires a policy for it now.

JRB is a policy in response to House Bill 1178 and is called the Parental Bill of Rights. Most of the elements of this policy are already in practice in other policies the school system has, the major change is parents’ ability to object to materials being taught in the classroom.

The policies are outlined specifically at https://white.k12.ga.us/board_of_education/meetings/board_highlights. The board had the first reading of both of these policies and now they are sitting on the table for 30 days to give the community time to review them and make comments if there is a need.

Once these policies are approved specific protocols for JRB will be placed on the school system’s website. For more information on any policies, the White County School System has in place go to https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Policy/PolicyListing.aspx?S=4176.

The BETA Club students and their teacher from Left to Right are Deticia Oostuizen Audrey Whitaker, Rachel Anne Godfrey, Harper Murphey, Haynes Jackson, and Cooper Funk.

The Mossy Creek BETA Club competed over the summer in the national competition in Nashville, Tennessee. The board recognized the efforts of the students that placed in the competition at the meeting. This was the first time in two and half years that students have been recognized by the Board of Education.

Heard in the clip above is Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett thanking everyone that came out for recognition. She also talks about how good it is to have students back at the meetings.

Board of Education Approves Millage Rollback

Announcements, Board of Education, Community

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/.

Board of Education Reviews First Budget Hearing

Board of Education

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- Director of Finance Julie Dorsey presented to the board at the first budget hearing for the fiscal year 23 budget.

The board also approved the JBC(4) awarding units and transferring credits amendment to the policy. They additionally approved the May ESPLOST request and a new bid for propane.

Dorsey presented the board with a tentative budget for fy23 at the Apr. 26 work session and the board approved it at the Apr. 28 meeting. To review that budget visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/04/29/board-approves-new-vaping-procedures/.

The tentative budget

The estimated revenue in the general fund for the fy23 budget is $41,704,310. The estimated expenditure is $42,964,405.  The estimated fund balance for fy22 is $12,308,125 with an estimated ending fund balance is $11,148,030.

The new budget includes salary increases that were part of Governor Kemp’s initiative. There is also a more significant fuel expenditure than in previous years due to the rising fuel prices. The fuel expenditure is $150,00.

There is also an increase in the utility cost and that has been planned out in the budget. During COVID the operations for the schools were decreased 20%, and in the coming year’s budget, it is being allocated 10% back.

The board will review the budget again on Jun. 28 at 7:45 a.m. The budget then will be voted on at the Jun. 30 board meeting.

The JBC(4) policy is the policy for awarding units and transferring credits. Staff also took the time to clean up the policy while making the changes. The changes come from the Georgia Board of Education Rule 160-5-1-15. To view the new policy visit https://www.white.k12.ga.us/board-of-education/board-of-education-meetings/board-highlights, the policy begins on page 3.

May ESPLOST request the board approved was for $37,250.00. The request is for $11,250 for power and data for the new donated LED football sign and $6,500.00 for Georgia Power to put in a new transform for the sign. $6,500.00 of the request is to help get the facilities into compliance with OCR review.

This year was also the five-year review for the fire sprinklers and that is $7,000.00 from the ESPLOST request. The last item on the request is for a new fence at Jack P. Nix’s bottom playground along ABC drive, at this time the exact position has not been decided.

Blossom Gas has placed the only bid for this year’s propane contract. They are the current provider of the school system’s propane needs. The current cost is $1.49 per gallon the new contract price is $1.849 per gallon.

March ESPLOST Request

Board of Education, Community, Education

WHITE COUNTY, Ga. – Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented the board with the Mar. ESPLOST request during the work session on Tuesday, Mar. 29.

School Nutrition Director Abby Rowland also brought the board a proposed school nutrition meal price increase for the next school year. Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett informed the board of a request for a new club to form. The board also reviewed a presentation from Warrior Academy during the meeting.

The Mar. ESPLOST request is for $154,348.00. The request is for new chairs for graduation and that is $10,500.00. A new power source for the sign and dinosaur at Jack P. Nix Elementary school is $3,500.00 The request also has $6,600.00 for improvements at the Administrative building.

Transportation Director Sharon Hipps is also requesting $18,748.00 in the ESPLOST for a new app for parents and bus drivers. The app will allow parents to be able to track where their child is on the bus. In order to access the app parents of children enrolled in school will be given a code so that they will be the only ones able to access the information. If approved at the meeting Thursday, the software should be up and running by the beginning of the school year.

The last request on the ESPLOST is for $115,000.00 to purchase new Chromebooks for the rising ninth graders. This is an annual expense for the board however due to supply chain issues Director William Sperin is requesting this earlier than usual.

The proposed school nutrition meal price increase is due to the rising cost of materials. The increase will be from $2.00 to $2.25 for elementary school students and from $2.25 to $2.50 for middle and high school students. If approved this increase will not take effect until next school year.

The new club that Burkett introduced to the board is called Sources of Strength and the advisor is Francesca Smith. This is a club to encourage students that are struggling to turn to other students for help. These students will be able to report issues to Smith or another teacher and encourage their peers to focus on their strengths to get through whatever they are struggling with. This will be voted on in the regular meeting on Thursday.

Shelly McDonald and a student presenting to the board for Warrior Academy.

Warrior Academy led by Shelly McDonald gave a presentation to the board at the meeting. It opened in 2018 with nine students and two staff members now they are up to five staff members and 54 students. The mission of the academy is to help nontraditional students meet their learning goals.

Through the program, two students were able to graduate early in Dec. McDonald explained how they take Thursdays to highlight the things that the students are really good at. They call them Sliver lining Thursdays. For more information about Warrior Academy visit https://sites.google.com/white.k12.ga.us/warrior-academy/about?authuser=0.

The board will meet on Thursday, Mar. 31 at 6:00 p.m. for their regularly scheduled meeting. To view the agenda for that meeting visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/03/27/board-of-education-meetings/.

Board Reviewed Options for 2023-2024 Academic Calendars

Community, Education, Indian's Corner

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.-Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett presented the board with two possible academic calendars for the 2023-2024 school year during the work session on Jan. 25.

Burkett also gave the board the Jan. dispositions and the COVID update. Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus present the Jan. ESPLOST request to the board and Director of Student Services Dr. MaryKay Berry gave out the 2022 Philip Wright Award.

The two options for the academic calendar for the 2023-24 school year. Option 1 is on the right and option 2 is on the left.

Burkett presented the board with the two possible options for academic calendars for the 2023-24 school year. These options if approved at the meeting on Jan. 27 at 6:00 p.m. will be given out to the community for their vote.

Calendar option 1 does not give as long of a winter break for the teachers as they usually receive. Option two is closer to the academic calendars that are currently in place.

If the board votes to send these out to the community there will be a survey to fill out. The numbers will be split up between those who work for the school system and the regular community. This way the board will have an idea of what the staff wants and also what the community wants and the decision will be made from there.

Next Burkett gave the board the list of the Jan. dispositions. Each school has items on the list. Those items are old Chromebooks, old Ipads and mini Ipads, and old calculators. The Chromebooks will still be used as spare parts when needed for the ones currently in use.

The Friday COVID report.

On Friday the current COVID report was released to the community. The only update from that is due to the shorter quarantine time, of the 17 staff members that were counted as positive on  Friday 14 of them were able to return to work yesterday.

“We feel good about where we are, I’ve looked at the county numbers yesterday and the county seems to be trending down and we are usually a week behind the county, so I feel like we, I hope that we’ve hit our peak and that we’ll just continue to go down,” stated Burkett.

Justus brought to the board the Jan. ESPLOST request. The request is for $43,937.50. This will go to a new trailer for Ag which costs $40,346.00 and a new windscreen for the tennis courts which will cost $3,791,50. The board will vote on the request at their regular meeting.

Lastly, Berry presented the 2022 Philip Wright Award. The award is given on behalf of the Pioneer RESA group to an individual with a strong commitment to improving educational outcomes for students with disabilities. To learn more about Pioneer RESA and what they do with the school systems visit https://www.pioneerresa.org/page/about-us.

Dr. MaryKay Berry, with Laurie Higgins and the student she helped this year.

This year’s recipient is Laurie Higgins an administrative assistant who also serves as the community-based work site in the student services department. Higgins rearranged her office to accommodate a student with special constraints that she was working with and was able to get the student to a point where they could perform a task completely independently.

“She works tirelessly with the students to make sure they understand what they are learning and we are just blown away with her dedication to making sure the student feels successful,” highlighted Berry.

Board Approves November ESPLOST Request

Board of Education, Community

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- The White County Board of Education approved the November ESPLOST request at the Nov. 18 board meeting.

The board also approved the October financial reports and the Series 2021 Bond Resolution and Purchase Agreement. Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett brought a couple of awards to the board’s attention.

Following the work session on Tuesday, Nov. 16 the board approved the remainder of the November ESPLOST at the regular meeting. On Tuesday the board approved the request for a new freezer for Testentee Gap Elementary School. For more information about the freezer, approval visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2021/11/17/board-approves-new-freezer/

In addition to the items presented on Tuesday three conference chairs were added to the list. The price for the chairs is $131.04 each. The other items are $153,803.20 for Erate CAT 2 Funding for updating firewalls and $600.00 for administration office signs.

The Erate CAT 2 will cover $417,536.00 of the firewalls. The total for the November ESPLOST request is $154,803.20. The board approved unanimously.

Finance Director Julie Dorsey presented the board the October financial reports at the meeting. Year-to-date revenue for October is $3,290,659.36. The year-to-date expenditure for the month is $8,909,894.58.

The fund reserve for the month of October is $9,320,629.19. The board approved the report as presented.

Tom Owens while presenting to the board.

Tom Owens from Raymond James presented the board with the series 2021 bond resolution and purchase agreement. The premium price for the funds is $23,229,955.20. The bond was approved by the voters of White County in May of 2020.

The first interest payment is due April 1, 2022, and the first principle payment is April 1, 2024. The final principle and interest payment date are expected to be April 1, 2028. The interest rate is 1.06%.

Superintendent Burkett informed the board of School Nutrition Director Abby Rowland received the Pioneers in Education from the Pioneer RESA. The board was also congratulated on receiving the 2021 GSBA Quality School award.

“We are super proud of her and grateful for what she does for our school district,” congratulated Burkett.

 

Board Approves New Freezer

Board of Education, Community

WHITE COUNTY, Ga.- Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented the board with November’s ESPLOST request which included a new freezer for Tesnesstee Gap Elementary School and the board approved the purchase of the freezer.

School Nutrition Director Abby Rowland gave the board an update on the free and reduced lunch count. Justus also informed the board of the sale of surplus buses.

On Wednesday, the 23-year-old freezer that had been planned to replace this summer, during the roof construction project, went out. They were able to use an army surplus freezer they had on hand to save all the food in the freezer. The surplus freezer is currently being run on a generator.

“That was the army surplus freezer on the trailer, and it worked perfectly,” commented Vice Chair Charlie Thomas.

Justus found a freezer for $15,900.00 in Florida. The timeline for getting the freezer up here and installed is unknown at this time. The board amended their agenda to make this an action item to try to speed the process up since Thanksgiving break begins on Monday, Nov. 22.

Rowland presented the board the numbers for free and reduced lunches for the past three years. For the district in SY20, they had 54.66 which is around the normal number. The following school year, SY21, the number was 52.79 and this year SY22’s number is 46.44.

Due to the pandemic during SY21 the schools were able to begin offering free lunches to all students in September. They were able to still encourage parents to fill out the forms due to not knowing how long it was going to last. This school year began with free lunches and they will be offered until June 30, 2023, so parents did not understand the need to fill out the forms.

“This information is used for so many other things besides whether their student eats free, reduced, or paid rate. It’s used for technology funding, it is used for our type 1 funding, it’s used for every grant that we apply for, for the students individually during high school it is used for waivers for college applications fees, for your SATs, ACTs fees, for your AP fee,” explained Rowland.

Justus also gave a breakdown of surplus buses that have been sold in an auction. Currently, five buses totaling $18,150.00. Three of the five were sold to the tubing companies in Helen.

An additional bus was sold but then returned due to a miscommunication. It is on auction until Nov. 29, with bids already ranging around $2,000.

The ESPLOST request breakdown.

The remained of ESPLOST requests will be voted on at the meeting on Thursday. That is $154,403.20 and it is broken down between Erate CAT 2 funding for updating firewalls on the system and signs to hang up outside the administration offices. The Erate CAT 2 funding will reimburse $417,536.00 to the system.

For a look at what is coming up at the board meeting on Thursday, Nov. 18 at 6:00 p.m. please visit https://www.white.k12.ga.us/board-of-education/board-of-education-meetings/tentative-boe-meeting-agenda

Board Approves new turf for football field

Community, Education

WHITE COUNTY, Ga. – The Board of Education voted to approve the new turf for the football field and the timeline for work to begin at their meeting on Oct. 28.

The Board also approved the ESPLOST request for October, the dispositions for all schools and the August and September financial reports.

Rod Nix from Charles Black construction gave the board two possible timelines for the new turf for the football field at their work session on Tuesday, Oct. 26. To view what both plans were as well as the other construction plans to come in the future visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2021/10/26/board-of-education-reviews-construction-plans/

The board went with option 1 for the project. The demolition of the current field will begin on Feb. 28. The new turf will begin to go in on April 25, with projected completion on May 13. The price for the new turf field is $950,000.

It will last about 10 to 12 years before it needs replacement. When that time comes, the system will not have to pay the full cost due to the infrastructure already being in place. There are also possible revenues options that can be pursued at that time for the used turf. It will also save on the cost of yearly maintenance of the field.

“Everyone coming to the county is paying for the bill instead of the property owners, basically we are saving the property tax owners money by putting this in,” explained Boardmember John Solmon.

The board also approved the ESPLOST request for October. The request was for $295,890.00. This is broken down between the WCHS Theater Department, the Athletics Department, the Technology Department and Student Services.

Another item that the board approved was the dispositions from each school. Jack P. Nix Elementary school is getting rid of IPads from 2012, Apple Computers from 2008 and Printers from 2013. Mossy Creek Elementary is losing some MACs they’ve had since 2008.

Mt. Yonah Elementary is also disposing of old IPads. Tesentee Gap Elementary has some computers they’ve had since 2011 that need to be disposed of.

The High school and Middle school are both disposing of Chromebooks. All items have been replaced or are currently being replaced in the schools.

Julie Dorsey, the Finance Director, presented the August and September financial reports. The board then approved both reports unanimously.

The August General Fund Report.

The revenue for August is $895,989.16 and the expenditures are $1,805,334.93. The September revenue is $3,086,747,18 and the expenditures are $5,521,837.83. These are the year-to-date numbers.

The September General Fund Report.

” The chart is a little skewed in August and as we get to September you’ll see it start to rotate a little more to the norm, it’s because of the payroll accruals for salary and benefits were still in play in the month of August,” Dorsey elaborated.

Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett also recognized Stephanie Hill of White County News for her work with the board. Hill is departing from White County News and there will be a new representative that covers the news at the Board of Education.

Stephanie Hill (left) and Dr. Laurie Burkett (right) when Hill was being recognized.

Board of Education reviews construction plans

Community

WHITE COUNTY, Ga- Rod Nix presented the board of education with the upcoming construction plans for the new developments happening in the school system at their work session on October 26.

Rod Nix explained the construction plans and timelines to the board.

Rod Nix from Charles Black Construction presented the board with construction plans for the new football field, baseball field, the new transportation building, and the new roof and HVAC system for Tesnatee Gap elementary school. He also talked briefly about construction going on at the practice field beginning on June 22 which could impact the new football field.

He explained to the board the options for when they could move forward with putting in the new turf for the football field. The first option was to being work on the turf in February.

Under this plan, the field would be done in time for the community to see it on graduation. Soccer and Track would be displayed for part of their season under this plan but they would still be able to use the fields at the middle school.

The second option is to wait till after graduation to begin working on the turf for the field. This plan overlaps with the construction taking place at the practice field.

If this plan goes forward then the football team and band will have nowhere to practice. The field should be finished before the first football game if this is how the board moves forward.

“There are so many things to figure out, we tried to work and figure out the way to do it so that the least number of people can be inconvenienced,” explained Superintendent Laurie Burkett.

Construction on the new baseball field should be finished by January. However, due to the proximity to the softball field softball will be displaced for one season. The roof and HVAC unit for Tesnatee Gap are set to be bid on November 11, but there is a possible delay in the roofing materials.

The transportation building is also facing a possible delay due to materials at this time. The hope is to put the project up for bid in November. Nix projected that all construction should be done by August 2024.

Assistant Superintendent Scott Justice gave the board this month’s ESPLOST request. The request is for $295,890.00. It is broken down between White County High School Theater Department, the Athletics Department, Technology, and Student Services.

The theater department needs $920.00 for a new band saw and air compressor. Athletics needs $8,200.00 for weight room bumper plates. Technology needs $282,420.00 for tech rotation at Tesneatee Gap, and Student Services needs $4,350.00 for a patient lift to assist students in wheelchairs.

The construction projects and ESPLOST will be voted on at the board meeting on October 28 at 6:00 p.m. Other items that will be voted on are field trips and dispositions. To view other items on the agenda for that meeting visit https://www.white.k12.ga.us/board-of-education/board-of-education-meetings/tentative-boe-meeting-agenda

Superintendent Laurie Burkett gave an update on the graduation rate. It has increased from 93.57% to 93.77%. The graduation rate for students with disabilities in the 5-year cohort group is 100%.

Superintendent Laurie Burkett delivering her reports to the board.

“We are really doing a great job, all of our high school administators they do a great job of not letting a kid fall through the cracks,” commented Burkett.

Board of Education addresses Warriors for Social Justice Group

Community, Indian's Corner, News

WHITE, GA.- The Board of Education addressed the community and the concerns about the Warriors for Social Justice group at their board meeting on Thursday, September 30.

On July 27, former substitute teacher James King brought to the notice of the board of education a group operating on google classrooms. The group was called Warriors for Social Justice. This was the first of many times King and his growing group brought the matter to the Board’s attention.

On July 27 according to Chairwoman Missy Jarrard, the board began investigating the claims King made about the group. However, the board never released an official statement to the public on the investigation or the findings. Due to this, King and his group believed that nothing was being done with the information they provided.

Former substitute teacher James King speaking during the meeting.

King and four others spoke again about their concerns dealing with the Warriors for Social Justice group at the meeting on Thursday. It was then that the board made a formal statement to the public about the matter.

” Tonight I would like to make a formal response on behalf of the board. The White County Board of Education has thoroughly investigated the allegations brought forth regarding the social justice teacher discussion group that took place after hours, we have found nothing to support the claims that critical race theory has been brought into any curriculum or has impacted instruction in any way. Through our investigation, it was found White County School System has followed the state board standards, curriculum, and policies. The members of the board of education supports the White County Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett and the teachers and staff of the White County School System. At this point and at this level the White County Board of Education considers this matter closed,” stated Chairwoman Missy Jarrard.

Jarrard’s statement was met with applause from the majority of the people in attendance. King and his group made no further comments at the meeting.

Board Business

Chairwoman Missy Jarrard delivering her formal statement for the board.

The ESPLOST request is $59,174.00. It is broken down to $7,174.00 for two pottery wheels and one Olympic oval kiln for the high school. $12,000.00 for new band equipment also for the high school. $36,500.00 for renovations of the main public restrooms at the central office which was built in 1972. Finally, $3,500.00 for a large format printer, ink, laminator and laminate rolls to be used by all the schools.

For the June and July reports, Finance Director Julie Dorsey presented the Board with the numbers. The June revenue in the general fund is $41,033,546.04 and the expenditures are $3,160,107.13. The July revenue is $305,238.38 and the expenditures are $771,502.61.

The July financial report for the general fund.

 

Board Reviews Tentative June and July Financial Reports

Board of Education, Community

White, Ga.- Finance Director Julie Dorsey presented the board with the tentative June and July financial reports at their meeting on August 26.

Also at the meeting, the board voted to accept Capital Outlay Program Funds. They approved the current field trip request and the ESPLOST request.

Finance Director Julie Dorsey presented the board with a draft of the June and July Financial reports. These will be finalized and then voted on in the September meeting.

The June General Fund Report

The June revenues are $6,185,398. The expenditures for June are $7,709,051.91. These are still rough numbers there are more invoices coming in that need to be organized into the numbers.

The July revenues are 292,922.83. The expenditures for the same month thus far are $794,210.53. These numbers could change as well once all the invoices are received and organized into the financial reports.

Capital outlay funds are $270,000 being given back to the school system. These funds will go towards the construction of the Performing Arts Center and the two classrooms that will be housed there.

“Anyone against it,” joked board member Charlie Thomas.

The next item the board approved was the current field trips. Due to COVID-19, only teams competing are allowed to take field trips. The current field tips that have been approved are in large part FFA competitions.

Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus presented the board with his request for the August ESPLOST at the work session on August 24. The request was for projector screens and installation at White County High School Auxillary Gym, Gym 68′, Teseneet Gap Lunchroom, and Mossy Creek Elementary. This project cost $52,300.96.

Another item in the request is for a new van for the technology department. The current van is 26 years old and has 225,000 miles on it. This item will cost $24,800.00. For a grand total of $77,100.96 for the ESPLOST request. The board did vote to approve the request.

The Director of Student Services MaryKay Berry and the Family Connections have also come together on a project for the students. They have bought a display for high traffic areas in the Middle School and High School filled with school supplies.

The display to hang in the schools.

This is for when students forget something they need, it’s right there for them to use. The supplies came from the Stuff the Bus program the school system does every school year in front of Wal-Mart or the school drive.

“MaryKay Student Services and Lindsey has a great idea to locate those in every school so when a kid forgets a pencil or needs whatever it is they need they are able to just grab it instead of having to go ask,” explained Burkett.

Superintendent Gives Update Board on COVID-19

Board of Education, Community, Education

CLEVELAND, Ga – Superintendent Laurie Burkett gave the Board of Education an update on how the school system is doing amid the new strain of COVID. She puts out a community update on Fridays with the most current positive cases only.

“We had thought COVID was gone away, COVID has not gone away. We deal with it every day, we watch those numbers every single day,” stated Burkett.

Last Friday, there were 17 reported positive cases at the middle school since coming back from the weekend there are an additional 13 cases. There are currently 14 positive cases among the staff which included seven teachers. Five are set to return to work this week.

The report that will be given out on Friday will not include the cases that have already returned to school. Those that have been exposed and asymptomatic individuals are strongly encouraged to wear masks. There has been a pause put in place for visitors into the school, as well as a pause on the use of water fountains in the schools.

Other things have been done to help prevent the spread. The district meeting will be held virtually this year. The lunchrooms are spread out as much as they can be, and in some of the elementary school students are having lunch in the classrooms to make more space in the cafeteria. Classroom lunches are spread out as well.

For more information about COVID in White, County schools visit their homepage at https://www.white.k12.ga.us/

Superintendent Laurie Burkett giving her reports to the board.

Burkett additionally gave the current count of how many students are enrolled in White County schools. The count is a 10 count. There are currently 3,845 students with 37 of those being pre-k students.  This means the school system has 53 more students than last school year.

“Comparing apples to apples, we ended up this past school year with at 37,055 so we are up about 53 students right now,” committed Burkett.

School Projects

Assistant Superintendent Scott Justus gave the board an update on current projects that they have previously approved. The new stadium seats have been delayed due to materials and labor shortages. The hope is to have the seats in by the second home game

For more information about the stadium seats visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2021/05/28/board-of-education-accepts-grant-pre-k-classrooms/

The six new buses that have been ordered have also been delayed due to materials and labor shortages. The buses will hopefully arrive for use at the schools by next week.

The parking lot projects have almost all been completed with the expected of the road leading from the main road to the Mossy Creek school. The schools that have been completed are Jack P. Nix, Tesnatee Gap, and Mt. Yonah.

Justus also made an ESPLOST request for $77,100.96 for new equipment for the schools. His request will be voted on at the regular meeting on Thursday, August 26.

Director of School Improvement Cindy Free presented the board with her Strategic Plan Update and the District Improvement Plan drafts. The two work together to create a plan for the district. The District Improvement Plan had three goals to be addressed this school year.

Free broke them into categories, the first being academic. The academic goal is for 65% of kids in kindergarten through second grade to meet expected growth on their MAP test, and also for there to be a 3% improvement on the Milestone test.

The second was the graduation rate. The goal is to have a 92% or higher graduation rate for the class of 2022.

Free’s last category was social and emotional. Her goal for that is to decrease the number of kids in sixth through twelfth grade that self-harm on more than three occasions.

Director of School Improvement Cindy Free delivering her presentation for the Strategic Plan and the District Improvement Plan.

“The district improvement plan is very specific, there are certain things we have to do every year in order to do it. So we are really trying to make this a cohesive, flowing, one kind of thing, this is what we do in White County,” explained Free.

The board approved the early graduation request for Ethan Johnston.

Schools distributed more than 60,000 meals during the COVID-19 shutdown

News

WHITE COUNTY, Ga. — Led by Nutrition Director Abby Rowland and Transportation Director Darren Sledge, the White County School System has distributed 63,706 breakfast and lunch packs to students during the COVID-19 school closure.

“That is pretty incredible,” School Superintendent Dr. Laurie Burkett said during Thursday’s Board of Education meeting. She credited School Nutrition Director Abby Rowland and Transportation Director Darren Sledge for making the program a success.

Dr. Laurie Burkett

Burkett said distribution of the breakfast and lunch bags will continue until May 22 when the Backyard Buddy program will deliver double bags. Distribution will then end for one week before it resumes on June 1.

She also told Board members the Wi-Fi system had been expanded to cover the parking lots at the high school and middle school. “This will allow someone to pull up in our parking lot and receive some free Wi-Fi,” she added.

Technology Director William Sperin explained that “about 100 students don’t have Wi-Fi at home. This would be an opportunity for them to stay in their car, not have to get out and do their assignments.”

One school board member questioned whether the expansion would just be for the duration of the school closure. Sperin said it will be permanent. There was another question about who would be allowed to use the system. Sperin said the whole community could use it. “It doesn’t cost us anything and for anybody to drive up and use it and we can monitor it,” he said.

It was noted during the meeting that the 2020 ESPLOST promotional campaign has started. There will be a Facebook Live question and answer session on May 14 and additional social media posts will start soon including a video. The campaign will provide necessary information for voters to make a decision on the $20,500,000 penny tax referendum.

May 4-8 will be the final week for teachers to introduce new material to their students. On May 22, the high school will hold a drive-in graduation at 7 p.m. On July 24 the WCHS prom will be held from 7-10 p.m. and on July 25, the traditional graduation ceremony will begin at 7 p.m.

Board members unanimously approved the finance and budget statements presented by Julie Dorsey.

Dorsey said the school system received approximately $339,000 in General Fund Ad Valorem taxes for March and $131,000 for April as well as $110,000 in Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) for March and $150,000 for April. Total revenue for March was just over $2 million and expenditures were reported at approximately $3.3 million. Year end fund balance on June 30 is estimated to be $10,847,078.

Dorsey then alerted Board members to the difficulty of meeting the state-mandated June 30 deadline for approval of the budget. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, state legislators are not in session and are not expected back before June 11.

If the Board does not pass a budget by the June 30 deadline, Dorsey said it may need to pass at least one spending resolution. A spending resolution would allow the Board to spend the equivalent of one twelfth of the FY ’20 budget in the month of July.

 

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