School board OKs hiring community partnership coordinator
Published 2:37 pm Friday, December 20, 2024
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent The Elizabethton High School Robotics Team is recognized by school board members during Thursday night’s regular meeting.
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent Elizabethton High School golfer Bryson Hardin (left), accompanied by coach Zach Ensor, is recognized by school board members during Thursday night’s regular meeting.
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent Former longtime Elizabethton Mayor Curt Alexander (right) listens as Director of Schools Richard VanHuss reads from a plaque recognizing Alexander’s support for city schools during Thursday night’s regular school board meeting.
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent Dr. Jon Minton, principal at Elizabethton High School, discusses the XQ Institute Super School grant during Thursday night’s regular Elizabethton School Board meeting.
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent Dr. Robert Lewis, newly elected Elizabethton School Board member, attends his first meeting Thursday night.
Buzz Trexler/Star Correspondent Harper Shelton, who designed a Christmas card for Elizabethton City Schools, is recognized by school board members during Thursday night’s regular meeting.
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By Buzz Trexler
Star Correspondent
The Elizabethton School Board approved a $375,000 XQ Institute Super School grant extension that will fund a full-time community partnership coordinator, a position also approved during the regular monthly meeting Thursday night.
According to a job description posted on employment sites earlier this month, the coordinator “will play a pivotal role in advancing experiential learning for students, with a particular focus on internships, work-based learning, and community-engaged learning.”
Among the key responsibilities will be overseeing the development of a Community Partnership Advisory Group, creating partnerships with local businesses and organizations to create work-based learning and community-engaged learning opportunities, conducting work-based learning site assessments, and establishing postsecondary partnerships.
The annual salary and benefits are budgeted at $118,000 for 2025, with $25,000 budgeted for 2024, and $34,000 for 2026, with the remainder of the budget including:
— stipends for a summer success coordinator, $6,000;
— storytelling and professional learning, including airfare, lodging, food, and event fees associated with hosting school visits and Appalachian Learning Network events, $84,750;
— student technology and tools, which includes funding for student travel to events and school visits, $52,500;
— one-time disbursement to cover costs of completing the Community Development and Engagement Center (CDEC) at the former Union Prescription Shop building on Bemberg Road, $25,000;
— consulting services for implementation of vision and programming, $15,000;
— funding for communication materials, including design work, printing, digital materials, and Cyclone U, $7,500; and
— funding for student practicum experiences, including travel, supplies, and other associated needs, $7,250.
“It’s really hard to believe that it’s been almost a decade since we submitted the original application for the Super School grant,” said Dr. Jon Minton, Elizabethton High School principal. According to previous reporting, the system received its first XQ Institute Super School grant in 2016, followed by a $2.8 million award in 2018.
In other action, the board:
— voted to appoint Eddie Pless as chairman, and Jamie Schaff as vice chair;
— recognized Dr. Robert Lewis, who was elected to the board on Nov. 5; and
— recognized the Elizabethton High School Robotics Team, Harper Shelton, Bryson Hardin, and former City Mayor Curt Alexander.
— approved a corporate purchasing contract with Central Technologies to install cameras, access control, and halo sensors (vaping detectors) in the Dave Rider Center for Athletic performance at a cost of $42,261.44;
— approved creating two full-time classified teacher assistant positions to meet the needs of special education students;
— approved a three-year contract with Sherry Grubb Photography, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, with the option to renew annually for an additional two years;
— approved a three-year contract with Randall Bennett Photography, beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, with the option to renew annually for an additional two years; and
— approved the 2026-2027 school calendar.
Personnel Actions
The board approved the following teachers for tenure: Brittany Johnson and Kendall Treadway, East Side Elementary (ESE); Abigail Thacker, Hannah Calhoun, and Devin Whitehead, T.A. Dugger Junior High (TAD); and Sarah Heatherly, Chantal Sastre, and Jessica Lynn Honeycutt, Elizabethton High School (EHS).
The board approved the following new hires: Kaitlin Bailey, substitute teacher, effective Dec. 9; Jonathan Baker, educational assistant at Elizabethton High School (EHS), effective Dec. 2; Noelani Diaz, custodian, Harold McCormick Elementary (HME), effective Dec. 6; Michael Hutson, substitute teacher, effective Dec. 9; Emma Herman, substitute teacher, effective Dec. 9; and Steven Reese, substitute teacher, effective Dec. 10.
The board approved the following additional positions: Maggie Johnson, substitute teacher, effective Nov. 21; Colby Garland, extended school program (ESP), effective Nov. 21; Alyssa Fisher, interim part-time teacher, West Side Elementary (WSE), effective Dec. 4; and Morgan Guinn, substitute teacher, effective Nov. 26.
The board approved the following transfers: Elly Cash, regular educational assistant to one-on-one special education (SPED) assistant, effective Dec. 9; Brittany Tipton, one-on-one assistant to SPED classroom assistant, effective Dec. 9; and Brian Adams, full-time assistant to SPED one-on-one assistant, effective Dec. 9.
The board approved the following resignations: Arista Bremer, ESP, effective Dec. 6; Haley Caroline, ESP, effective Nov. 18; Alexis Kirby, ESP, effective Dec. 4; Karoline Warnick, ESP, effective Dec. 13; Triston Bowden, ESP, effective Dec. 14; Mary Price, custodian, effective Nov. 29; and Isabella Cranford, boys assistant soccer coach, effective Dec. 9.
The board approved the following leaves of absence: Ellie Phillips, EHS, effective Dec. 3 to Dec. 20; Cindy Sweeney, WSE, effective Dec. 9-Dec. 20; Jessi Norman, WSE, effective Jan. 6 to May 2, 2025; and Joy Lowe, central office, effective Dec. 18 to Jan. 6, 2025.
The next regularly scheduled meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025, in the Mack Perce Board Room of the Elizabethton Board of Education, 804 S. Watauga Ave.
