GRAVETTE — Officers of the Gravette High School Student Council were present at the January meeting of the Gravette school board and led the Pledge of Allegiance to open the meeting. The students, Robin Davis, STUCO president; Alex Krewson, secretary; and Drew Hendren, treasurer, also received a plaque from board president John Edwards from niche.com honoring Gravette High School for having been named one of the "Best High Schools in Arkansas" for the third year in a row.
Niche.com is a website that ranks schools and places to live. The ratings are determined by these factors: academics, school culture, school safety, parent/student surveys, teaching staff, resources and facilities, clubs and activities and athletics. Gravette High School was rated as the 24th Best High School in Arkansas out of 298 total high schools.
Karen Kerr introduced her foreign exchange student, Anne Katherine from Denmark. Anne talked about her experiences at Gravette High School and activities in which she participates, including basketball. She will return to Denmark in June. She thanked the board for approving the foreign exchange student program, allowing her to be a part of it.
Becky Rangel, public relations representative for Gravette schools, emphasized the importance of social media when she reported on the school's recent post about Bouncy Bands being used in a Gravette middle school classroom. The story has gone viral, with responses from all over the U.S. and internationally.
Bill Hayford, financial director, gave the financial report. He told the board that parameters were being established for use of school classes' funds that were held in the activity accounts and class officers from past classes were being contacted to learn their wishes about how those funds should be spent. He said the school's audit was finally complete. Expenditures were a little higher in December because of the purchase of a new bus.
Richard Page, superintendent of schools, noted that January was School Board Member Recognition Month and read a proclamation from Governor Hutchinson acknowledging the celebration. Each board member was presented with a plaque in appreciation for his service. Board members were also recognized at halftime of the Gravette-Pea Ridge basketball game Friday night.
Page reported One Book One School program started last Monday with the book Ivan, the One and Only Gorilla, and will continue about three weeks. A National Junior Honor Society recognition will be held on Feb. 27.
Michael Spaeth, with BiLD Architects, gave a photo update on the maintenance building progress. The outer building is essentially complete. Nabholz representatives gave an update on Upper Elementary addition progress. Nabholz and BiLD representatives were present at a facilities committee meeting on Tuesday to discuss options for construction of the middle school library.
Jay Chalk, high school principal, gave a brief vocational education report. He reported that superintendent Page gave a good presentation at the consortium meeting on Dec. 16. General consensus is that a regional center is the best way to go to promote vocational education efforts but Chalk acknowledged that some legislative support will be needed before that can happen. Jay Oliphant, school board president, asked board members to consider funding opportunities for the vocational program and bring ideas to the February board meeting.
"Our job is to figure out priorities on educational needs and figure out the funding for them," Oliphant said.
Haidee Larsen of Sulphur Springs, Tim Craig of Gravette and Gary Rowlands of Bella Vista were presented as new members of the facilities committee. Board members voted to approve all three. Oliphant reminded board members that they are ex-officio members of all such committees but with no vote.
Richard Carver, maintenance director, presented the master facilities' plan and board members voted to approve it. The state mandates that a master facilities' plan be presented and approved each year. Board member Hope Duke noted that she was hearing the desire for a new gym from several district residents. She cited safety issues with the current gym and the desire to be competitive with neighboring schools' facilities as reasons for a new gym.
First reading of the 2017-18 school calendar was held. It includes 190 school days, with 178 instructional days. It was being reviewed in committees on Thursday and Friday.
A board resolution was passed and a contract approved for new board member Dr. Ty Russell to continue to provide physicals for school bus drivers. He said he would be able to provide services at a reduced price.
Sharla Heltzel, special education supervisor, requested a change be made to the 2016-17 school calendar, to make Feb. 20 a required professional development day. It was listed as a PD and a possible snow make-up day. Board members voted to approve the change and delete the make-up day.
Brian Wheeler, high school welding instructor, presented a proposal for a night welding class for adult education. Board members voted to approve the class. Board member Tracy Moorman announced that Longhorn Tank had openings for summer work for welding students.
Board members adjourned for a brief break and convened in executive session shortly after 8:45 p.m. After almost two hours in executive session, the board reconvened in regular session at 10:42 p.m. and the following actions were taken:
Resignations were accepted from Jason Hill, sixth grade English teacher, and Mickala Tipps, middle school paraprofessional. Gloria Calloway was hired as a bus driver for the remainder of the school year. Theresa Anderson was hired as upper elementary special education teacher for the remainder of the year. Richard Page's contract as superintendent of schools was renewed for the 2018-19 school year. An amendment to Stacy Bingham's contract to include years of experience was approved.
General News on 01/25/2017