An unofficial summary of discussions, presentations, and actions of the Columbia County Board of Education

May 23, 2006

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION:
Jack Eubanks and Leslie Wood parents at GBE, expressed concern about Mr. Pike's leave of absence and spoke on his behalf.

Barry Paschal, editor of the CC News-Times, made the Board aware of the Red, White, and Blue  Celebration that will occur this weekend on 5/27 at 6:30pm.

NEXT MEETING:
The next scheduled Board meeting will be a Budget Study Session -on June 6 at the Board of Education Office in Evans at 4:00pm. The regular Board Meeting is scheduled for June 13 at the Board of Education Office in Evans at 6:00pm.

The agenda for the next BOE  meeting can be found here and is updated by the Friday before the next BOE meeting.

BOARD APPROVALS
Consent Items.  The Board gave tentative approval of consent items: minutes of 4/25/06 and 5/9/06, April financials, employee travel, fundraisers, and partners in education.
Budget Amendments/Transfers. The Board gave tentative approval to the following General Fund or Special Revenue Amendments/Transfers: General Budget Amendment No. 42 - Budget the difference in the actual midterm adjustment revenue and the actual amount received ($1,933,431); Budget Transfer No. 11 - Transfer funds for North Columbia Elementary special board grant ($10,000); Budget Transfer No. 12 - Transfer K-8 Reading Grant funds for Martinez Elementary; and Budget Transfer No. 13 - Transfer funds from general fund to building fund for future building projects; Budget Transfer No. 14 - Transfer funds to reimburse Greenbrier High School for athletic trips.
Graduation Waivers/Variance Requests.  The Board approved all the requests from current and previous students  for waivers/variances to the State Board of Education for high school graduation requirements.
Approval of Bid Results for Purchase of Desktop Computers.   Mr. Price recommended to award the lowest bidder a renewable three year contract for desktop computers to Dell Inc. for the purchase of 940 replacement computers at a cost of $637,868.
BOE Policies.  The Board gave tentative approval to Policy GBA (2) - Fair Labor Standards or Overtime/Compensatory Pay; Policy JB - Attendance; Policy JBD - Absence and Excuses. All BOE policies can be viewed by going to: http://www.ccboe.net/boe/policies/home.html
Social Studies Curriculum - AP Human Geography.  The Board gave final approval of the social studies curriculum committee recommendations for AP Human Geography textbook. 
Career Technology Local Plan.  The Board gave final approval of the Career Technology Local Plan.  View the document here.

BUILDING PROGRAM
Project Update.   Mr. Price updated the Board on the various building projects going on within the county: painting at LHS/LMS/HMS; Evans Middle (projected completion date of 7/10/06),  New Administration Building (projected completion date 5/17/06), and the New Middle School on Blackstone Camp Road (projected completion date of 7/1/07).  David Hartley, architect, gave a status report on EMS.  Mr. Hartley reported a move-in date of July 10, with the gym completed after the start of school.  The Board has scheduled a walk-thru of EMS on June 6.
Change Order No. 1 - Elementary School No. 6.  The Board approved the change order of $4,560 for the installation of a french drain at the New Elementary Site No. 6.
 

SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT
Columbia County Board of Commissioner's Offer for Purchase of School System Property.  The County Commissioner's accepted the Board's offer of $16,000/acre to purchase the Old Leah school site (4.2 acres) in Appling. The County will assume any costs for inspections and site surveys.
Code of Conduct Update.  Mr. Price reviewed changes to the Code of Conduct based on legislation and recommendations from school principals.  Additional clarification is noted for student behavior at athletic/extracurricular events, accumulation of offenses, computer misuse, possession of cellular phones, and parent permission for participation in high school clubs.
Results of the Georgia High School Graduation Test.  Mr. Price reviewed the results from the Spring 2006 GHSGT. Sixteen out of the twenty areas tested showed an increase over last year scores.  Science is still lowest score throughout the state, and it is expected that the new GPS will help improve results.  View the results here.

PERSONNEL RECOMMENDATIONS
On the recommendations of Superintendent Price, the personnel recommendations were approved as presented. 

This newsletter is produced by the Superintendent's Office.  Any questions can be directed to Karen Ribble