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Board of Education to terminate agreement with school builders The Wilkes County Board of Education, meeting twice in both a called meeting last Wednesday and a regular meeting Monday night, agreed to formally terminate construction agreements after agreeing that funds were not available to build the planned school complex. Board members also agreed on teacher salary supplements, approved the system's school improvement plan and school codes of conduct, and extended the superintendent's contract for another year. In the called meeting last week, the board agreed to have board attorney James Roberts draw up a letter to formally sever the board's relationship with Torrance Construction Company of LaGrange. The letter was presented and approved at Monday night's meeting. Coach Russell Morgan addressed the called meeting in support of an increase in coaching salary supplements. Morgan talked about the paid coaching positions and their importance to making the system's athletic teams competitive. "To hire and retain quality coaches," he said, "and to keep top quality coaches, we need to pay competitive supplements." Board members discussed at length the individual supplements and the increases Morgan requested. Vice chairman Bob Guin objected to the increase in the athletic director's supplement, from $6,500 a year to $12,000. He also pointed out that the requests came at the wrong time, after teaching contracts had already been signed for the year. After the discussion, Superintendent Joyce Williams recommended that the supplement schedule be approved as proposed, and the board voted in favor of the recommendation, with board members Guin and Steven Albertson voting in opposition. The board members discussed, at both meetings, a request by Transportation Director James Callaway to use a trusty from the new corrections facility to work in the bus barn. The trusty would be in his supervision at all times, he said, and would never come in contact with school children. Board members were concerned about transportation of the prisoner, liability issues, and the fact that the bus barn was adjacent to the primary school. Board members agreed that they needed to know much more specific information before they could consider the request. In Monday night's meeting, Williams said that on further investigation, the request to use a trusty was withdrawn for now. In Monday night's meeting, the principals of each of the four schools were presented with certificates of accreditation with quality. Williams congratulated the principals for their schools' achievements. Williams proposed the board's acceptance of a state-mandated school improvement plan. "Since the state changed the program completely," she said, "Marie Echols has shed blood, sweat, and tears over this plan, and she's to be congratulated on it." The board voted to accept the plan. Board members also voted to accept each school's Code of Conduct. The board also voted to allow Williams permission to work with the state Board of Education in developing a new facilities plan for Wilkes County in preparation for the ending of the present plan in June 2007. Board members agreed, too, to put out for bids on the mowing of hay on the new school property and the cutting of grass around the edges. The board also voted to allow teacher Donny Swinson to attend a workshop for AP teachers in Richmond, Virginia. The trip would be paid out of staff development funds. In other business, the board agreed to pay $3,900 to rid two elementary school buildings of bats and to seal the buildings from the bats' return. Bats had not gotten into any classroom yet. Board members also discussed at length the expected need for emergency lighting at Tiger Field. Facilities manager Shelton West said that the fire marshal was expected to require lighting in all stadium stairwells and ramps. He had estimates in hand from two companies. Chairman Ricky Callaway told West to make sure that any proposed emergency lighting system would meet the fire marshal's standards before the project was put out for bids.
Finally, in Executive Session after Monday night's meeting, board members approved a one-year extension of the Superintendent's contract. They also approved the addition of one food service worker, Karen Moss, and two bus drivers, Brian Allen and Kenneth Poss.
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