GRAVETTE -- Members of the Gravette High School band who had been selected for all-region honor band attended the January meeting of the Gravette School Board and led the Pledge of Allegiance to open the meeting. Aaron Ray, band director, gave an overview of the year's band program and told about recent events in which the band has competed.

Dennis Kurczek, business manager, gave the December financial report and submitted a detailed statement of changes in fund balances, assets and liabilities.

Richard Page, superintendent of schools, reported there have been almost 300 responses to the surveys sent out by the school. Most responses were supportive of a district millage increase.

Paul Hively, with Nabholz Construction, was present at the meeting. Superintendent Page announced he had given a donation in support of the Lions Golf Classic coming up in May.

Page asked board members about a proposed trip to tour the Fayetteville High School gym. Several members showed interest in a tour of the facility and the trip was set for Friday, Feb. 2. Other upcoming events include a district safety meeting Jan. 29, a program on the Bella Vista TV station on which board member Jodi Moore will moderate and the next facilities committee work session Feb. 1.

Scott Beardsley, financial advisor from First Security, spoke to the board about 2018 election options. School elections must now be held in May or November. Gravette has chosen the May election date and Beardsley reminded board members that the proposed budget for 2019 must be submitted 60 days prior to the election. Beardsley also explained debt mills to the board. Beardsley explained that if a millage increase is placed on the ballot, the district must specify how many years the new millage is to be collected. If passed in the May election, no new money will be received until the fall of 2019 and, then, funds must be spent within three years of their being deposited. If a millage increase proposal is decided on, an informational flyer explaining what the board is asking for and the cost to the taxpayers will be prepared for distribution.

Superintendent Page gave a report on five-year financial projections for the district.

Two proposed school calendars for the 2018-2019 school year were submitted for review. Board members voted to submit calendar #2 to the personnel policy committee and the classified personnel policy committee for review.

Page reported on the proposed Alternate Method of Instruction days. The school year will begin on Aug. 15 and must include 178 instructional days. After three school days are missed due to inclement weather, AMI instruction will begin on the fourth day. Board members voted unanimously to approve the recommendation of AMI days.

Board members voted to approve a student transfer request from a Gravette student who has moved to Decatur but wants to continue attending Gravette schools.

Richard Carver, transportation department supervisor, submitted a request to seek bids for two new school buses. Board members voted to approve seeking bids for the two buses. In response to a question about seat belts in buses, Carver said they are not mandatory and would add $10,000 to $11,000 to the cost of a bus.

Daniel Rice, technology director, submitted a proposal to purchase 14 new security cameras for the district at a cost of $24,835, citing inadequate coverage at the high school. Taos Jones, assistant high school principal, confirmed the great need for more cameras at the high school. Some of the cameras will be installed there and some will replace older analog cameras at other schools. The proposed new cameras will have better resolution and picture quality than the current cameras and tie all campuses into the Avigilon security system. Board members voted unanimously to approve the new cameras. Cost of the cameras will be paid from the student growth fund.

Board members went into executive session shortly after 8:30 p.m. After the executive session, lasting almost an hour, they returned to regular session and voted to approve hiring Randal Martin as a bus driver on a long route for the remainder of the 2017-2018 school year and voted to approve hiring Charles Zutell on an average route for the remainder of the 2017-2018 school year.