LIMESTONE COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING

ATHENS — Limestone County School board members gave final approval to the 2011-12 budget and approved various personnel items during a work session and meeting Tuesday.

Board members approved an updated spending plan that includes $275,000 for school resource officers and restores the $60,00 travel budget.

The 2011-12 budget includes $49,724,113 in revenue and $44,593,633 in expenditures.

Board members had agreed earlier this year to cut $4 to $5 million in planned spending in order to make ends meet following a third-year of state budget cuts caused by the recession.

At Tuesday’s meeting, the board settled on a $4.9 million list of cuts, which included allowing only required and emergency spending, a “spending freeze” aimed at saving $2.2 million; cutting 30 local teaching units and 10 support employees to save $1.8 million as well as other cuts.

However, the board agreed to provide $275,000 to continue paying school resource officers from the Sheriff’s Department, who help ensure safety in the schools. The board also agreed to restore the $60,000 travel budget that had initially been on the list of cuts.

Superintendent Barry Carroll defended the restoration of the travel budget, saying after the meeting, “ Professional development is vital part of education.” He said without it, school personnel “would be handcuffed” because they would be unable to attend state meetings and because directors, teachers and board members would be unable to grow by attending professional development events. He noted that the travel budget made up only a small portion of the initial list of proposed cuts.

The board settled on and approved a $4,902,000 list of cuts, which includes the following:

• Buying no new buses, saving $120,000;

• Spending freeze (allowing required and emergency spending only), saving $2.2 million;

• Leaving buses at school during the day, saving $63,000;

• Publishing school handbook online rather than in print, saving $10,000;

• Reducing energy expenses (like removing the many individual refrigerators, heaters, microwaves and other items from classrooms), saving $120,000;

• Eliminating 30 local teaching units, saving $1.8 million;

• Eliminating 10 support employees, saving $300,000;

• Eliminating Aspiring Administrators Academy for 2011-12, saving $8,000;

• Eliminating professional development training at the Central Office, saving $100,000;

• Eliminating supplemental pay for one assistant football coach at each school, $21,000;

• Moving sixth grade from Piney Chapel Elementary School to Elkmont High School for 2011-12, cutting one teacher unit and saving $60,000;

• Moving sixth grade from Owens Elementary School to West Limestone High School in 2012-13, saving amount unknown at this time;

• Reducing student allocations, saving $100,000.


Limestone County school board members approved new contracts, hired new personnel and added two positions and approved other personnel changes during their regular monthly meeting Tuesday in Athens.

Here is a synopsis of action:

• Approved the following new positions: special education bus assistant at Johnson Elementary School and special education inclusion assistant at Piney Chapel Elementary School.

• Approved the following contracts: Traci Cherry as Title I English language teacher; Vickie Curtis as Title I intervention facilitator, Lori Gibson as special education homebound teacher, Nancy Foster as special education parent transportation, Terrance Galloway as special education homebound teacher, Albert Long as special education homebound teacher, Lisa Flanagan as homebound teacher, Colton Hill as non-employee middle school baseball assistant coach at West Limestone High School, Jud Meadows as non-employee basketball assistant coach at West, Mitchell McCormick as non-employee football assistant coach at West, and Brandon Wallace as non-employee football/softball assistant coach at West.

• Approved the following new personnel: Clarissa Glanton as teacher at Cedar Hill Elementary School for rest of school year only, Jonathan Hicks as English language instructional assistant at Clements High School, Chrysanthia Jones as social science teacher at Clements for rest of school year only, Johnny Stephens as collaborative teacher at East Limestone High School, Linda Smith as technical Specialist at Elkmont High School, Whitney Stephen s as special education inclusion assistant at Owens Elementary School, Tara Brinkley as Title I Instructional Assistant at Owens for rest of school year only, Larissa Dison as teacher at Piney Chapel, Dale Brown as general science teacher at Tanner High School for rest of school year only, Jillian Nelson, Title I mathematics teacher at Tanner for rest of school year only, Mary Ward as special education inclusion assistant at West for rest of school year only.

• Agreed to transfer the following personnel for the 2011-12 school year: Miranda Looney to bus assistant at Blue Springs Elementary School, Leah Taylor to behavioral unit elementary teacher at Blue Springs, Kim Adcock to bus assistant at Creekside Elementary School and East, Kim Flanagan to bus driver at Creekside and East, Katy West to collaborative teacher at Creekside, and Anita Weaver to itinerant English language teacher at Creekside, East and Johnson.

• Granted Frank Hutchinson’s request to retire as social science teacher at Clements, effective Oct. 1

• Accepted resignations from the following personnel: Tricia Gleason as collaborative teacher at Blue Springs, Cam Broadway as collaborative teacher at Creekside, Melinda Haynes as special education inclusion assistant at Creekside, Yolanda Moore as extended day school nurse at Creekside, Tracy Ball as middle school football/basketball cheerleader sponsor only at Tanner, and Doug Ezekiel as boys/girls cross country coach only at West.

• Granted extended leaves of absence to Lloyd Birdwell, custodian at Tanner, and Benny George, custodian at West.

• Granted leaves of absence to Charlotte Campbell, CNP cashier at Ardmore High School; JaDonne Stowe, teacher at Blue Springs; Aimee Pressnell as bus driver at Creekside and Amy Bassham as teacher at Owens.

• Agreed to hire the following as substitutes: Deborah Craft for a special education collaborative teacher at Elkmont for the first semester of the school year; Tonia Hanback as language arts teacher at Tanner through Oct. 14; Elizabeth Cox as language arts teacher at West through Dec. 2; and Kyle Montgomery as maintenance worker at bus garage through March 23, 2012.

• Also approved supplemental pay for Nancy Page, Jan Wilbanks, Kelly Kelsoe, Bart Nave, Angela Biggs, Chad Drake, Josh Davis, Brett Nave, Chasity Legg, Nicole Eslick, Brittany Green, Bill Tribble, Dean Hester, Cole Mitchell, John Zirbel, Laura Root, Brad Brazeal, Deshonna Ford, Kevin Abernathy, Patrick Chambless, Brad Carwile, Jennifer Janzen, Darian Cox, Tracie Speer, Michelle McCrary, McKenzie Thomas, Jeremy Mitchell, Bill White, Rita Schrimsher, Autumn Rowe, Ericka Baker, Mary Lou Norris, Joy Yost, LeAndrea Hobbs, Kelly Ford, Mary Beth Lewis, Tammy Britton, Tennille Harkins, Patsy Poole, Cindy McKee, Laura Murray, Jordan Paul and Glennis Black.


SOURCE:  JEAN COLE - ATHENS NEWS COURIER