At its most recent meeting, the Kosciusko School Board voted for lease options to fund a $1.5 million roof replacement at the high school.
The move comes as the district is scheduled to finish paying off debt incurred for lighting, ceiling and window replacement at Lower Elementary and air conditioning installation at Upper Elementary in August.
The board moved its March meeting from the second Monday (March 9) to March 16 to avoid Spring Break and approved the district 2020-21 calendar (at right).
Superintendent Billy Ellzey said the administration and school principals developed three different calendar scenarios which were then presented to teachers for a vote.
“This was their favorite with Spring Break a week later and four days of professional development at the beginning of the year,” he said.
The calendar also matches the one approved by the Attala County School District, he said.
When the agenda turned to personnel matters, board member Farrah Wilder asked to have the item approving the reappointment of all six school principals moved into executive session prior to a vote.
After the executive session, which lasted more than 90 minutes, the board voted unanimously in favor of all personnel items on the agenda, including the principal reappointments.
High School Principal Henry Coats, Junior High Principal McElwain, Upper Elementary Principal Josh Dodd, Middle Elementary Principal William Anderson, Lower Elementary Principal Michelle Nowell and Dave Woodfin of the Alternative School were unanimously reappointed.
The board then accepted the resignations of Cory Blaylock (student services), Justin Hunter (KHS football coach), Beth Moss (second-grade teacher), Kelly Farmer (third-grade teacher), Carlie Graves (SPED teacher) and Karen Causey (school secretary).
Kimberly VanCise and Lauren Edwards were named assistant teachers at Middle Elementary, and Denice Parish was approved as a substitute teacher for the remainder of this academic year.
Toward the end of the meeting, the board reviewed 26 professional development, field trip and fundraiser requests.
Board Vice Chairman Randy Fuller questioned the amount of travel being undertaken by certain personnel, potentially leaving holes in coverage.
“There’s a lot of traveling going on with our counselors,” he said.
Ellzey said the district will be reviewing travel and training to ensure school counseling needs would be appropriately covered going forward.
Fuller also questioned teacher recruitment efforts. Although Jerrelyn Jackson was listed as going to recruitment events at the University of Mississippi, the University of Southern Mississippi, Jackson State University and Mississippi State University, during February and March, Ellzey said he had made some of the recruitment trips himself.
Fuller asked that the district expand recruitment efforts to include Alcorn State University and Mississippi State Valley University.
