Gravette board hears patron concerns, expels student, hires staff members
GRAVETTE — Two persons spoke to school board members at their regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 21. Diana Allen expressed concerns about the CSSO (Commissioned School Security Officers) program and had questions about the location of lockboxes, safety procedures and training. She also asked about the possibility of teaching Spanish classes at the middle school level and expressed a need for better communication about upcoming meetings. Melanie Nichols thanked the board for a positive parent-teacher conference experience, saying she felt all students were benefiting from the new grade card system.
Dennis Kurczek, business director, gave the September financial report, saying the schools are “right on track, right where we need to be” on the year’s budget. He said custodial and maintenance costs were a little higher than usual but overall expenditures were looking good. He also reported the district had received $29,000 from the 21st Century grant.
Board members voted to expel a student in the alternative learning program for a period of 365 days. The student had been given the opportunity but chose not to hold a hearing.
Board members voted to hire Brian Wilmoth as a bus driver and Madella Dodson as a cafeteria worker for the remainder of the 20192020 school year. Dodson will replace food service worker Shawnda Craig, who has resigned. Votes were also made to hire Kristina Hanson as a self-contained paraprofessional and Noemi Smith as the migrant/ESL paraprofessional for the remainder of this school year.
Robert Adams, with Crossland Construction, and Clay McGill, principal architect at BiLD Architects, gave an update on construction of the new gym. They presented drone photos showing the building’s progress from June through September. They said everything is coming along really well and work is right on schedule. Adams projected a completion date in early July 2020 and reported a balance of $380,000 in the contingency fund.
Board members voted to proceed with finishing the lobby floor with a black and orange glass design previously reviewed by the board.
Richard Page, superintendent of schools, reviewed the attendance report. He presented enrollment averages for the last 10 years and reported on the homeschooled student numbers. He also reported there were 211 school choice students at the high school and presented current info and future school choice trends. Page said that helpers are needed for the elementary school fall festival at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 1.
Rebecca Sears, assistant superintendent of curriculum, presented the annual report to the public. Each of the building principals gave a brief report on their ESSA scores and presented their plans for improvement. The high school and middle school received A grades and the upper elementary and elementary received Cs.
It was noted that poor attendance is a big issue at the middle school. An attempt is being made to enlist the parents to team up with the school to get the kids to school. Administrators are excited about the reading initiative, they said, and Superintendent Page agreed that reading is a key and an area in which improvement is needed. “Don’t just teach a class, teach students,” he told the teachers. “At risk kids are not just developed at middle school.”
The upper elementary principal has invited coop specialists to work with students in math and reading, two areas that show a need for improvement. Good results have been seen from including special ed students in the general school population.
Board members voted to approve both the CCSO policy and the advertising policies. CCSO policy provides that some info will be exempt from FOI regulations as it would be dangerous for the students to have it publicized. Advertising policies have been reviewed by David Matthews, school attorney, to insure the legality of all actions and specify where funds are deposited and how they are to be disbursed. Separate naming and sponsorship policies will be established.
Board members moved into executive session shortly after 8 p.m. to discuss employee performance and returned to regular session an hour later. The meeting was adjourned at 9:05 p.m.