DECATUR — Students must attend Decatur High School for their entire junior and senior year in order to qualify to be the class valedictorian or salutatorian, school board members decided at the Sept. 12 meeting.

The existing high school handbook states that students must be a student at Decatur High School for four full semesters to qualify for the honored positions.

Superintendent Larry Ben said the handbook could be interpreted in two ways, as four consecutive semesters immediately prior to graduation, or as any four semesters during high school.

The interpretation could make a difference in who will be chosen class valedictorian this year, Ben said.

“There are several good students in that class that are very competitive and very interested in being the best,” he said.

Since none of the board members or school officials were in place when the handbook was written, it was up to the board to decide how the situation was handled.

Board member Kevin Smith said that when he attended Decatur High School, his class and the class that graduated the following year faced a similar situation and it was understood that the valedictorian and salutatorian must attend Decatur school during their junior and senior year.

School board presidentIke Owens and board member Darleen Holly agreed that their initial impression was that students must attend the four semesters immediately prior to graduation.

Ike Owens and Aaron Owens both pointed out that it would be unfair for students who had been competing for the top grades to be ousted by a newcomer at the last minute.

The school board voted to clarify the wording of the handbook to show that students must attend Decatur High School for at least four consecutive semesters immediately prior to graduation.

DSB Disclosure

School board members voted on Sept. 12 to pass a resolution disclosing the relationship between the school’s district treasurer Terri Burden and her husband Marc Burden, who was recently promoted to manager of the Gentry branch of the Decatur State Bank.

The disclosure was necessary because of the business relationship between the Decatur State Bank and the school district. The district holds a checking account and an investment account at the bank.

Ben said that after seeking advice from a state auditor and the Arkansas Department of Education, it was his understanding the law required the school to disclose the relationship to the board and ask for approval from the state to make sure everything was “on the up-and-up.”

The resolution explainsthat Decatur schools have had a business relationship with the Decatur State Bank since it was chartered in 1954 and points out that it is the only bank in town. It also states that the Decatur School Board had determined years prior to the relationship between the Burdens came into being that doing business with the Decatur State Bank was in the best interest of the school district.

“It was an arrangement (between the school and the bank) that was completely independent of this relationship (between the Burdens),” Ben said.

The resolution, along with bank statements for both accounts, will be sent to state commissioner of education Tom Kimbrell for final approval.

Rogers Group Agreement

School board members voted to renew a 2006 agreement between the Decatur School District and the Rogers Group of Lowell that will coordinate bus transportation along a section of Bethlehem Road with a proposed rock quarry.

The company applied to Benton County for a permit to develop a rock quarry at the intersection of Bethlehem Road and Burgin Valley Road inside the Decatur School District in 2006. One of the county’s conditions for granting the permit was the company must arrange a transportation agreement with the school, since school buses and trucks will be sharing the same road.

Although the quarry has never been opened, theRogers Group is seeking to extend their permit with the county and needs an updated agreement with the school, Ben said.

If the quarry is developed, Rogers Group will be paving a 24-foot-wide section of Bethlehem Road from Arkansas Highway 102 to the quarry. Ben said that he and transportation department manager Sherman Robinson both felt that 24 feet was wide enough for a school bus and dump truck to pass.

The original agreement had allowed for radio traffic between the school bus so employees at the rock quarry could hold truck traffic while the school bus was passing. Ben said he was not sure if radio contact was necessary, but that it would be included in the agreement as a possibility.

Robinson estimated that about 10 students live along the route.

Other items the school board took action on included;

◊Approval of a tuition agreement with Ozark Guidance Center for Therapeutic Day Treatment.

◊Approval of a special service agreement with OGC for school-based therapy for all students.

◊Approval of a special services preferred rate agreement with OGC for school-based therapy for special education students.

◊Approval of the 2011-2012 district budget.

◊Approval of the Subteach USA Agreement for substitute teachers.

◊Approval of staffing changes.

School News, Pages 11 on 09/28/2011