001I call to order this meeting of the Kawita County Board of Education, agenda 8:42, 6:30 p.m. July the 8th, 2025. Please rise for the pledge of allegiance and the moment of silence to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. May be seated. I have a motion to approve the agenda. So move. Any discussion? All those in favor? Motion passes seven to zero. Dr. Hordon, no recognitions this month. Understand? Um, go on. Do I have a motion to approve the minutes of June the 10th, 2025? Any discussion? All those in favor? Motion passes five to zero with I'maining with one abstain. Okay. And I have a motion to approve the call minutes of June
002the 24th, 2025. Second. Any discussion? All those in favor? Again, the motion passes five to zero with Mr. Dos abstaining. Dr. Horton, action items, group one. Thank you, Mr. Chair. We have two items in group one tonight. The first one that I have for you is to approve the GSBA FY26 policy maintenance service renewal. GSBA utilizes Assembly Solutions to provide policy maintenance services for school districts. Assembly Solutions is an online service um that includes our bylaws, strategic plan and meeting documents. It also allows alignment of these important documents. Recommend approval of the policy maintenance service uh purchase in the total amount of $2,750. Recommend approval. Superintendent's recommended approval of the GSBA FY26 policy maintenance service renewal in the amount of $2,750. Do I have a motion to approve? Second. Any discussion? All those in favor?
003Motion passes seven to zero. The last item I have for you in group one is to approve a required nutrition meal price increase per federal regulations. Uh federal regulations require meal prices to meet specific price targets. When these targets are unmet, guidelines require programs to increase meal prices. I have the the regulation there for you below. I won't read the entire regulation. Uh but our uh school nutrition program uh to meet this requirement uh is requesting uh that elementary breakfast uh increase 10 cents from $1.25 to $135 for students uh and that lunch for elementary increase from $3 to $310. At Midland High School, we're requesting breakfast to go from $1.25 to $135 and for lunch to go from 325 to 335. Board members, I will mention to you uh in addition to this being
004a required action, I know there is often uh question uh related to um whether or not uh Kawita qualifies like districts around us uh for universal free meals for students, something that's called community eligibility provision. Uh based on the uh socioeconomic level of our county, our county does not qualify uh for community eligibility provision. uh we've researched that again this year uh but we do not qualify. So with that being said and in order to meet the federal regulation I recommend the increase in breakfast and lunch prices in the amount of 10 cents. The superintendent has recommended approval of the required nutrition meal price increase of 10 cents per the federal federal regulations. Do I have a motion to approve? Any discussion? All those in favor? Motion passes seven to zero. Uh action item group
005two with bids. I don't we don't have anything on the agenda. So we'll go to action items group three for trips. Call on Dr. Jamal Kemp to bring you trip. Dr. Kemp. Thank you Dr. Horton. Principal of East Kawita High School requests permission for the ROC team to travel on a two-day, one night leadership trip to uh Chattanooga, Tennessee from July the 23rd, 24th. There will be no um school days missed and no cost to the school system. Recommend approval. Superintendent's recommended approval of the East Kawita High School field trip. Do I have a motion to approve? Any discussion? All those in favor? Motion passes seven to zero. Superintendent report. Dr. Horton. Thank you, Mr. Chair. At this time, I'll call on assistant superintendent for finance, Mr. Keith Chapman. Mr. Chapman, we completed our year
006in June. Uh, currently we're right at 99% of our budget, approximately 2 and a.5 million under budget on re excuse me, on expense side. That number will change as we work through closing our books over the next couple months, but we will not be in to reserves for the fiscal year. Sales tax still see good numbers there. Just under three and a half million years uh three and a half million a year, excuse me. I'll get it right in a minute. Uh three and a half million this month. Year over year, we're about 1% down. Thank you, Mr. Chapman. Call on Dr. Kimp once again to bring your board goal report and our policy revisions. Dr. Kemp. Thank you again, Dr. Horton. For this month's uh board goal report, the school council serves as an
007advisory body to our school principal and our school system. These councils may advise and make recommendations on matters related to school improvement and student Achievement. The purpose of the school council is to bring communities and schools closer together in a spirit of cooperation to solve difficult education problems, improve academic achievement, provide support for educators, and to bring parents into the school-based decision-making process to demonstrate our compliance with the Georgia law OCGA 20-2-85 and the Kawita County School System Board Policy BBFA. The 2024 2025 school council annual reports will remain on file at the school board office for your examination. As you know, we visit and revisit our policies each July and table recommendations and revisions for the month. I'd like to go through some policy revisions for this year. Policy BDH, suspension of policies/wavers, has
008been updated to remove the reference to bylaws as we do not have board bylaws. The revised policy clarifies that any portion of our policies conflicting with state law will be void upon the approval of such legislation by the governor. Policy GHB, paid parental leave, has been revised to increase the maximum allow allowable paid parental leave for eligible employees from 120 hours to 240 hours within a rolling 12-month period. This applies regardless of how many qualifying life events occur during that time. Policy GBM-R transfer requests have been updated to reflect the new deadline. Actions on transfer transfer requests will now begin in the spring of each year and continue through June the 15th based on availability of positions and the needs of the school system. This replaces the previous July the 1st timeline. We have also
009updated the contact number to reflect the direct line of the Department of Human Resources. Policy BBB, new member orientation, was also updated by removing the term bylaws. Each new board member will receive a copy of our board policies and administrative regulations. Policy BBA uh duties of the chair also had the word bylaws removed. The updated wording now states that the chair will perform other duties as prescribed by law. Policy BCBA board meeting time and place now reflects the board meetings are held here at the Kawita County School System central office no longer at the former Jackson Street location. Lastly, policy FGCB facilities bid advertisement and solicitations has been updated to raise the bid threshold for state funded school construction contracts. Projects exceeding $250,000 must be advertised for four weeks and awarded through a seal bid
010proposal process. Policy DJed will govern contracts under the $250,000 threshold. All of these will be tabled for one month and the board will be able to vote next month. Board members, these policies uh as he mentioned will be tabled. Uh we will have hard copies of them available uh at the Jackson Street office should anyone uh wish to come uh and review those. Hope to bring them to you for action uh at the regular August board meeting. Last thing I have for you uh is the facilities and construction report. You can see there uh the final pay request on noon and high has been submitted to the architect, but we're holding on that. Uh still waiting on a little bit of door hardware uh to be received and installed. Northgate High School tennis courts. I
011was out there today. All the French drains are in uh and it looks like they have prepped for uh resurfacing to begin uh on those courts uh later this week. Uh Central Educational Center, a lot been going on in preparation for uh getting that bid advertisement out hopefully around the August 6 timeline. Uh and hope to get bids uh on November 4 or excuse me, September 4th uh of this year. So, more to come on the central educational center addition, renovations and modifications. Work is ongoing on the Arnold kitchen uh re-roof uh installation of final trim, gutters, and downspouts hopefully will be completed uh this week. Progressing nicely on our shield projects, those remaining middle schools uh at Arnold, East Kawita, Lee, Madress, and Smoky Road. Uh installation of devices is progressing. Uh we we
012anticipate that work at all locations will be completed uh this summer. Sewer upgrades, the sewer upgrades themselves are complete. Uh we're working through uh floor covering installation uh at both Arnico Sergeant and uh East Side Elementary School. Renovations uh have been completed on turf fields. I was actually out at Nunan today and it looks like they put the finishing touches on that one. Uh so those uh renovations have been completed uh at no cost uh to the school system. Already mentioned floor covering uh at Arco and East Side. We also did floor covering at Nan High School this summer. Uh that project is nearing completion uh and we anticipate that it will be done uh by the time that that school starts as well. Work here in the central office to add a couple of
013uh workspaces. Demolition work is ongoing. Uh we'll get the new walls constructed as soon as we can. and hopefully we'll complete work late this summer. Of course, that work uh will take second priority to any work that's going on out in schools. We'll finish it first and we'll finish the work here last. Northgate High School hitting facility. I was out there today. Um demolition has has finished and we will see that begin to take shape hopefully over the remainder of the summer. anticipate probably toward uh the latter part of August, early September maybe for that project uh to be near substantial completion. Cannon Gate, while I was on the north side today, checked out Canon Gate paving. They do have black top going down and they have installed some additional storm water flumes up there
014for us. Uh paving will be completed with no issues uh by the time that school starts. Uh and then you can see the list there at the bottom. We've done over the summer a great deal of painting, a great deal of flooring. uh had a lot going on and u and really good job this summer by Mr. Cheek, Miss Ingram, uh Walter Drake and the facility staff, our custodians. I've been out in several buildings this week. Everybody's just done an incredible job to get us to where we are. Uh and in three short weeks, we better be finished because they're all coming back. Uh so, Mr. Chair, that's all I have for you. Thank you, Dr. Horton. Um at this time, we always set aside a period for public comments. Uh we do not have
015anyone from the public uh signed up to speak at this meeting. So with that, we'll move on to board comments. Do I have any board comments tonight? I' I'd like to start um with one very special comment. I see that um the the littles are out there, Miss Pat. And and if that's the reason you're leaving us, then that's a pretty good reason. Um, I just wanted to say to you, um, I have done this job for 15 years and there is no one that can bring grace to a room like you can. You're you're just you're intelligent, you're smart, but the grace that you bring to this boardroom is is so much needed and it will be greatly missed. But I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate you, how much
016I have missed you. We are elected. we have chosen to sit here and face that firestorm that we have often gotten and I'm usually the one that will speak back really quickly. Um, and you have reminded me on some occasions maybe I shouldn't speak so quickly sometimes. Um, and it was looking at you and your example and just your god-fearing grace that you have been given and I am so appreciative of it and you are going to be so greatly missed. Anyone else? Yeah, I want uh just want to let Miss Pat know and I've already told her this, but I'm going to tell her again. I'm going to miss you. I'm going to miss you terribly. Um when when Miss Pat took over that the position, uh that was probably one of the most
017seamless transitions that I have ever seen anywhere, not just at the school system, but anywhere. Um, Miss Connie Hansen was very good, but Miss Pat just stepped in and didn't miss a beat. Um, and Amy mentioned her calmness. She's the calm before the storm, during the storm, and after the storm. Um, just unbelievable. Um, and I see I see one of the reasons why she's retiring. And I know she's going to have a lot of fun and going to stay really busy. And I just want to tell her that um she's going to be missed. I know uh that Miss Dana will do a do a great job. Um tell David that uh if he ever needs help umpiring, I might not see him as much as I do now. If he ever needs help
018umpiring, let me know. I'm sitting on the second row on the visitor side. So he needs help with balls and strikes, I can help him out there. So he and he knows that. So, but uh we're going to miss you and I'm going to miss you and uh hopefully you won't be a stranger. You'll still come back around. So, uh we appreciate everything that you've done to keep this group uh I'm not going to say under control, but at least hemmed up so somewhat. So, thank you very much. We appreciate it. I can't add a whole lot to that. They've described Miss Pat really well and she's just one of the nicest people you'll ever meet and I'm just a been my privilege and pleasure to have worked with you and you really looked after
019me and you know that was pretty good big job and I appreciate I'm going to miss you and I wish you well in your retirement. Thank you for your all your years of service. Miss P, there's not much I can add to uh what the others said, but I think Miss D's said it best. Uh but I'd put it, you are one of the few people that make people around you better in in every aspect. And at least in my life, those are kind of few and far between that that make me better and make everyone around them better. So, um, you go into I I know it's not going to be much of retirement because I see two little ones out there that probably going to be more work than this crowd is, but
020uh, you know, enjoy it and, uh, these five years a little bit plus that I've had the pleasure of being on the board. You know, it's been a pleasure to to sit on one side of you and now the other side and uh, I appreciate the friendship. I appreciate the guidance and appreciate you make making me better. Thank you. So, I've said everything I'm going to say in private. So, I I'll end us by lightening it up. The day I knew you were going to retire was the day you told me number two was coming. And I'll tell everybody like I told Miss Lauren today. I can compete with a lot of things, but I can't compete with Miss Lauren. And I can't compete with with what it's like to be a loving grandparent. I'm
021going to miss you. You have taken care of me, but you're not going far. You're not going far. But I I appreciate you, but I know my limits. And when number two was on the way, Dustin and Chrissy, I knew. So, y'all got me. You got me. Um, we love her. I know you love her. Um, but don't keep her from me because you know I'm going to be calling. Okay. Love you, Miss Pat. You're the best. Anyone else? Go ahead, Miss Bat. You what I feel in my heart here midnight. So I just down the course of what's in my heart. It has indeed been an honor and privilege to serve in this role for many years and to serve you with each of you. Even though it has been many years, it doesn't
022feel that way at all because of the great experience I have been able to share in my sincere deepest gratitude for those incredible experiences and for your support and for making my time here so fulfilling. Thank you, Superintend. I've witnessed your dedication for this job and your commitment to our students and the school system employees. You have always kept the faith during both good and challenging times and you kept us too. What you all do is truly valued and I know that your commitment will result in Kita County school system continuing to shine. I feel without a shadow of a doubt my professor Dana will do an outstanding job in part because she's surrounded by good people. And finally it has been said that when thank you is shared from the heart it reaches the
023heart intended. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you all from my heart. [Applause] Do I have a motion to approve to enter into executive session to discuss personnel, real estate, and potential litigation? All those in favor? Motion passes seven to zero. Thank you for everyone being here tonight.