At Thursday night’s meeting of the Chester County Board of Education, a concerned parent approached the board requesting that her son be reinstated to attend Chester County High School this August. The mother of the child spoke to the board on behalf of her son who is an upcoming freshman. Due to behavioral problems and unexcused absences, the student was denied enrollment for the 2019-2020 school year. After an apology and much discussion, the board voted unanimously to reinstate the student as a Chester County High School student.
The board also voted on recommendations from Tennessee School Board Association (TSBA) for changes in CCBOE Board Policies. Many recommendations were due to changes in laws. With a voice vote, the board voted unanimously to approve the recommendations.
Next on the agenda was a request for approval of purchase of district vehicles. The board considered the purchase of two vehicles due to the amount of outgoing funds for mileage reimbursements for several faculty/staff members. It was also discussed that one of the vehicles would possibly be used to transport a student to West Tennessee School for the Deaf in Jackson. The board decided unanimously, with a voice vote, to approve the purchases.
Also, during Thursday night’s meeting, the board voted on approving a bid for audio-visual and lighting equipment for Williams Auditorium. The bid for the equipment was for $50,461.49, and all members of the board voted to approve this bid.
Staffing changes for the 2019-2020 school year were also reviewed by the board Thursday night. After a few questions regarding the staffing changes, the board moved on to personal reflection of 2018-2019 Superintendent Evaluation. During this portion of the meeting, Director of Schools Troy Kilzer II reflected on the scores he received during his most recent evaluation. Kilzer shared that he wanted to grow from the feedback and that he had set a new personal goal, “I want to have an overall one-point overall increase in that score, so that’s what I’m shooting for.”
Last on the agenda was the “Updates” portion of the meeting. During this time, updates were shared regarding progress on new baseball and softball facilities. Updates about Williams Auditorium’s recent renovations were also discussed: New seats are set to be installed on Aug. 26.
Before the meeting adjourned, concerns about transportation to and from sporting events were brought before the board. Wes McPeake, Chester County Junior High Assistant Principal, and Dr. Ricky Catlett, Chester County High School Principal, expressed these concerns, stating that often there are not enough buses to accommodate CCJHS and CCHS sporting event travel. Both stated that the purchase of two to three extra minivans would be extremely helpful, especially for certain sporting events such as tennis and cross-country matches. The board agreed to officially address this concern at next month’s board meeting.
The next CCBOE meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on August 22.
