The Decatur County Community Schools Board of Education met on Wednesday.
The board approved the payment of claims and payroll. The retirements of Terri West- ND Elementary and Mary Beth Meyer- ND Elementary were approved. The resignation of Stacia Neal- SD Elementary was approved. The medical leaves of Jesse Haley- SD Elementary, Lindsey Bledel- SD High School, and Allison Wilkerson- ND Elementary were approved. The hirings of Jacob Rader -SD Elementary Assistant principal, Andrew Hocker- ND High School math teacher, Katie Stokes- ND High School Ag Teacher, Jennifer Chastain- Dyslexia Specialist, Mary Kay Schwering- ND Elementary Secretary, and Jim Wall -SD Athletics were approved. The approved hirings for summer school teachers were as follows: Sue Hadler, Amy Hurley, Mary Ann Smith, Georga Cloud, Nancy Wamsley, Katy Prairie, Jonathan Black, Tara Youngblood, Laura Johnson, Sandy Storm, Allyson Beverly, Vicky Dixon, Kristen Ross, and Dawn Schwering. The approved hirings for summer school instructional assistants were as follows: Angie Melugin, Kaitlyn Woodhull, Kathy Taylor, Lynn Bryan, Christian McKinney, Angie Johnson, Marissa Miller, Amanda Reatherford, Katie Antunez, Erin Shafer, Jamie Meadows, and Kathy Rice.
The school field trips were as follows: SD High School Girls Basketball D-One camp in Fort Wayne, ND high School Music seniors cedar point in Ohio, and ND High School Senior Class kings island in Ohio. These were approved.
There were several parent requests to speak. Amy Smith believes that their children are prisoners of the pandemic. Smith believes that the restrictions for Covid are unnecessary for students. Would like the board to contact the governor along with her and several other parents and be bold enough to stand against Covid restrictions. Smith does not want masks or vaccines for students to be mandatory and to have medical freedom without discrimination. Kurt Mowrey a SD elementary parent, had the same views. Mowrey discussed a study he had seen that says there is little to no transition from kids K-12 for Covid. The parents are there to speak for the children who cannot speak for themselves. He stated we are a free country and state and they should decide on mask and vaccine mandates for their own children.
The extra effort awards were presented. The North Decatur Elementary recipient was Monique Wilson. She has always had a positive attitude and adjusts to anything thrown at her without hesitation. The North Decatur High School Recipient was Deidra Laker. She does great things for students and has taken on extras including academic teams and dual credit classes with enthusiasm.
The board approved Poole Group as CMC for the South Decatur High School Nursing Lab. The board approved CSO Architects as the architect for the South Decatur High School Nursing Lab; Pending the contract from Ice Miller. Bryan Jones was appointed to the Decatur County Public Library Board of Trustees. The summer school memorandum of understanding was approved. The Covid 19 stipend memorandum of understanding was approved. The use of McGraw Hill Social Studies Textbooks was approved. The disposal of obsolete equipment was approved. The donations totaling in $2,248.20 for North Decatur High School were accepted.
North Decatur Elementary Principal Rob Smith gave a report. They are having Mars yard demos and the 6th graders have been teaching the younger kids about it. Their PTO Walkathon raised over $37,000 which is the most they’ve ever raised. The 4th graders had their business day last week and 5th graders are preparing their wax museum. They had 2 student teacher this year, which was impressive considering they haven’t had any in a long time.
North Decatur High School Principal Debbie Reynolds gave a report. They had a successful play with family and friends being the only ones in the audience. The band got a gold medal in virtual ISMA contest and the Battle of the Books team placed first in Decatur county in their age group. Randy Frye is coming to have lunch with the seniors. May 26 is senior scholarship night and June 5 at noon is graduation. This will be in person.
Morgan Schofield
WTRE News
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