West Carroll Superintendent Fights Against TISA Fund Loss

West Carroll’s school board met Thursday night after a short hiatus due to weather that caused members to miss February’s meeting. Attendees enjoyed a provided meal. Members of the elementary school Beta Club joined and were able to sit down with board members during the meal and chat. All board members and Director Preston Caldwell were present.

Director of Schools Report
Director of Schools Preston Caldwell announced that he had just returned from the Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents Conference in Nashville, where they discussed TISA funding, the main source of funding for public schools. Caldwell expressed concern regarding the opening of a new virtual school, Clarksburg Virtual Academy of South Carroll Special School District in Clarksburg.

South Carroll is a statewide virtual schooling option that could result in West Carroll School District possibly losing upward of $67,000. This is because enrollment of students in Clarksburg Virtual Academy counts as enrollment when sales tax dollars are divided among all Carroll County districts. South Carroll will receive a larger share on top of TISA funds due to the virtual enrollment.

“I’m fighting hard against this so that students not living in Carroll County will not take funding away from students who do live here,” Caldwell said.

Youth Basketball Program
Jr./Sr. High Principal Adam Douglas, along with new Athletic Director Nick Cobb, presented a pilot program for youth basketball to the board for approval. The premise of the program is to redevelop youth through basketball. It will encompass first- through eighth-graders. Douglas and Cobb hope the program will teach responsibility, sportsmanship and love of the game. Students will play year-round, and games will take place on Saturdays. A grant was awarded to help with costs, and there will be no cost to students and their families unless families want to purchase special shoes, etc. Douglas expressed that running the program through the school will increase safety by allowing the use of school buses for travel. The program will cost anywhere from $10,000 to $12,000 to run for two years.

The question was posed about who the coaches would be. Douglas answered that it could be individuals already employed by West Carroll School District, or the district could hire someone outside of West Carroll employees. Caldwell added, “I want Dr. Douglas to be able to interview the best possible coaches for the job.”

Chairman William Robinson advocated for the program. “Football and basketball bring people in. This pilot program could help other sports as well, and we can continue to rebuild,” Robinson said.

Board member Betty Wallace expressed concern regarding Douglas currently being the principal as well as the athletic director. “Our main purpose is academics, and we don’t want to forget that.”

Douglas responded by agreeing with Wallace and expressed that he would be stepping down as athletic director so he could focus all of his attention on academics, and Cobb would be named the new athletic director. After much discussion, the board approved the start of the program.

Field Trips and New Equipment
Several field trips were presented for approval at Thursday’s meeting. A field trip for Future Business Leaders of America to Chattanooga on first reading was approved, where seven students will be competing. A band field trip to Chesterfield, Missouri, on second reading was approved. Future Farmers of America’s field trip to Gatlinburg on first reading was approved. Noah Rogers expressed that the trip would be special because they have a student who has qualified to compete at the state level. A field trip for Family, Career and Community Leaders of America to Chattanooga on first reading was approved by the board.

New equipment for the nursing program in the form of mannequins was presented to the board. The bid for the mannequins came in at $43,507. “These mannequins are state of the art and can generate actual patient responses that would put our nursing program at the next level,” said Kristen Lindsey, head of the WCJSH nursing program. The board approved the purchase.

West Carroll’s business program requested to purchase an embroidery machine. The bid came in at $21,561.74, and it was approved by a unanimous vote.

Other Business
A policy regarding who is responsible for student safety and behavior at away games was brought up for discussion. This refers to all students, not just the athletes participating. The board discussed changing the terminology in the policy.

Policy No. 4.301 reads: “The principal/designee shall accompany an athletic team on trips.” Board members expressed concern that this responsibility often falls on the coach of the athletic team. He or she is typically selected as the “designee,” and being responsible for coaching as well as keeping an eye on all students is almost impossible.

“The designee does not need to be the coach. They have enough responsibility,” Robinson said.

Board member Wallace asked about having the school’s SRO at all away games. Director Caldwell responded: “The SROs are employed by the sheriff’s department. I’ve discussed this with them several times and requested that SROs be at every away game, but I can’t push them to send an SRO to every away game. I’ll keep working with them to see what we can come up with,” Caldwell said.

The board debated whether the “designee” had to be a school employee. Caldwell suggested it should be someone employed with West Carroll because of the background checks already run on employees as well as payroll purposes.

The board decided to keep the wording in the policy as it is, under the premise that there was an understanding that the “designee” would no longer be the coach of the athletic team competing at those away games.

The board also approved the WCES Dollar General Literacy Foundation Grant valued at $3,000. The grant will help advance the Summer Reading Program by expanding library programs as well as the reading material available. The goal of the program is to expand students’ reading comprehension, which will in turn raise TCAP scores.