The Union County Board of Education elected Jimmy Carter as Chairperson and Harold Cooke as Vice Chairperson at its meeting on September 10 in a 4 to 3 decision. Danny Wayne Collins nominated Jimmy Carter, and Charlie Hamilton nominated Terry Washam to continue as chairman. Jimmy Carter, Harold Cooke, Danny Wayne Collins, and Scott Bates voted for Carter. Charlie Hamilton, Jessica Buck, and Washam chose Washam. For vice chairperson, Charlie Hamilton nominated Washam. Danny Wayne Collins nominated Harold Cooke. The voting resulted in the same split decision, four for Cooke and three for Washam.

Two people voiced concerns at the workshop and meeting. UCEA President Carolyn Murr voiced concern about the lack of girls’ bathrooms at the new Horace Maynard Middle School. She said girls were standing in line causing them to be late to class. She and others had asked during the construction if there were enough bathrooms. The architects said that the state requirements were being met. Apparently, the state requirements do not solve the issue.

Coach Josh Cantor outlined additional concerns. According to him, volleyball season started with no nets. In addition, the football program lacks a locker room, concessions and bathrooms. He also mentioned that students were assigned seating in the cafeteria, not allowed to sit at certain tables and had no talking. Director Greg Clay responded that the football field was planned as a practice field and games were intended to be played at either the old middle school or the high school. Cantor also inquired as to why a custodian who had been removed from the old school was re-hired at the new school. Carter responded Clay would check on these concerns.

County Mayor Jason Bailey requested a lease of enough property behind Sharps Chapel School to erect the new EMS building. The building is 70 ft. by 45 ft. and would need less than an acre of land. The mayor and the BOE viewed the location on September 15 and met in special session to approve the request.

At the August meeting, the BOE approved renovation of a section of the old HMMS for future use as a school but deleted the lighting upgrades at other schools. This action caused the energy rebate to be significantly reduced. Some board members did not understand that the rebate was a singular cost savings and did not require any other expenditures. Therefore, the BOE decided to reverse the previous decision and support the original proposal with the repairs and the interior and exterior lighting. This proposal includes a $200K rebate as opposed to a $49K or less rebate without the lighting. Skilled Services representatives Trevor Mitchell and Rob Smith also explained that much of the health concerns regarding LED lighting have been mitigated with the newer bulbs and the new codes.

Clay reported that traffic kinks being worked out at the new HMMS. Pine Street is not finished and will be four lanes eventually. The school zone signs are on John Deere Drive. The state will not allow the school zone signs on Hwy. 33 so traffic is directed to roads that intersect Hwy. 33 at a traffic light. Because there are no sidewalks or pedestrian signals, no middle schoolers can walk to the new HMMS.

The board reversed a previous decision and voted to allow the Communities in Schools program for Maynardville Elementary at no cost for this school year due to grant funding. Milicent Fritts explained that the program is intended to improve attendance, reinforce life skills and provide family support. A local person will be hired to implement the program. Scott County has used the program for a couple of years. Communities in Schools has state success including a 78 percent increase in attendance, 87 percent increase in life skills and a 97 percent increase in the number of students graduating on time. All content for the program will be reviewed by the principal and aligned with the current social workers program.

In other action, the BOE approved policy revisions to 2.806 Bids and Quotations, 5.302 Sick Leave, 5.303 Personal and Professional Leave and 6.4053 Outside Applied Behavior Analysis Therapy. The BOE approved all BETA Club trips, budget transfers and amendments, and contracts with Orkin, Waste Connections, and the architect fee for the Luttrell Elementary Roof. Members adopted a differentiated pay plan which was developed by former board member Rebecca Lock to give teachers who score an A $1000, those with a B $750 and teachers who maintain a C $500. The board also added a lane in the non-certified salary scale for county employed bus drivers and made it retroactive to August 1 of the current school year. The pay will affect a total of seven drivers. When asked about the electric buses and their cost, Transportation Supervisor Lenny Holt stated, “Electric buses continue to be cost effective. Fuel costs for electric buses tend to be about 20 cents a mile as opposed to the use of diesel at 55 cents a mile.

The next regular Union County Board of Education meeting will be on Thursday, October 15, due to fall break.