The Union County Board of Education will have a new sound system that will include individual microphones that can be controlled by the member and a central location such as the chairperson. The board's action at its November meeting addresses concerns from board members and parents who had difficulty hearing the discussion at the meetings. Chip Brown offered the board several options but recommended the local vendor known as Avco because of the high quality at less expense.
The board heard from several supervisors regarding various aspects of the school system program and organization. Roxanne Patterson shared the 2023-2024 school calendar which was praised by Carolyn Murr, the UCEA president, for returning to a true nine weeks with intervening breaks. The board unanimously approved the calendar.
Susan Oaks presented the list of teachers who have achieved tenure as well as the report on which teachers are teaching on a waiver. Parents of students who have a teacher that is not certified or is teaching out of the area of certification will be notified of the fact according to a requirement of federal programs.
At this time, all teachers are in compliance by either being certified, permitted or under a state-approved waiver, according to Oaks.
Mike Johnson updated the board on the maintenance projects and their status. He requested and received approval to apply for a Tennessee Risk Management Safety Grant.
Johnson also reported on the results of the energy audit and introduced the company that had done the review of the lighting in all of the schools. But the board chose to further research the nearly one-million-dollar proposal.
The board also approved the LEA Compliance Report for Federal Programs and adopted a drug prevention awareness program for fifth graders that is contracted through the University of Tennessee and sponsored by ICARe.
The board reviewed most of Section I that covers school administration at its policy review meeting on November 29. The board discussed school board and director responsibilities, board meetings, instruction days, school closure and other organizational topics.
The board intends to review the entire policy manual during this school year. The board will meet on December 5 at 6 p.m. at the high school to review the ten applicants for Director of Schools. On December 15, the board will hold its regular meeting at Big Ridge Elementary.