001Good evening and welcome to the March 24th Jackson County Public Schools regular business meeting. Um just so that everybody is aware, Wes is joining us. Um he is joining um by phone this evening. Do I have a motion to approve tonight's agenda? >> I make a motion that we tonight's agenda. >> Second. >> All in favor? Okay. And at this time, if you don't mind to stand and join us in the pledge of >> allegiance. I aliance 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. Okay. And at this time we have some special presentations from Jackson County Early College. I'm principal Evelyn Granny. >> Good evening everyone. Thank you for having us this evening. Um
002it is with my pleasure that I get to introduce our students. Um we have been doing this at Jce um Miss Sutton tells me for at least 10 years. Um but this is an opportunity for students to be paired meaningfully into um an internship of their choosing that hopefully will lead to future career opportunities. um sometimes they get hooked into an internship and they figure out very quickly that it is no longer something that they are interested in. Um which is a win-win, right? So we want our students to be able to have these meaningful experiences. And so first up on our docket is Miss Harley Stevens. Um I hope that you enjoy these presentations as much as we have. So, um, my name is Harley Stevens and I did a job shadow at an
003accounting firm. So, the definition of accounting, it's the process of recording and organizing and an analyzing the financial information for businesses and individuals. So, the accountants, they help track the money coming in and out, and they prepare your taxes. They can help with payroll, and they create financial reports for the businesses and individuals. So, where did I shadow? The location that I shadowed was at DR Accounting and they work with small businesses, church, nonprofits and companies in different states and their main source of data keeping is QuickBooks. This is the most common force of data keep data keeping throughout all different accountants. So some of the tasks that I observed I observed data entry, payroll processing, tax calculations, filing forms, reconciling bank statements and financial reports. So payroll and taxes I observed how payrolls were
004done for the different businesses. So the employees will pay their um the employers will pay their employees bi-weekly and that gets sent to the accountant and they will upload it to QuickBooks and then send the payubs electronically. And then there's unemployment taxes which is FUDA which is the federal and SUI which is state taxes. So this is one of the documents that we used. These is this is how we could create our financial reports. We do these quarterly for businesses and it includes balance sheets which shows the assets and liabilities. The income statements which shows their profits and losses from that quarter and then their cash flow statements. So some of the special situations that you run to in into accounting is churches and nonprofits do not have to pay any employment or FICA taxes
005and this is stated in the FUDA section law 501c3. So FICA taxes are payroll taxes that fund the social security and Medicare programs. And since churches don't normally pay their because it's a nonprofit and they work mainly on volunteer work, they are exempt from having to pay this. Owners when they take a company on business trip, they get to claim up to 50% of their meals, but they cannot claim entertainment. So amended tax returns. One thing that the accountant worked with with me is showing how to do amended taxes. So, when you file your tax report, if um the federal government sees that there's a dispute or something, they will send it back to the accountant and we will go through it very meticulously to see if there's any errors and we will meet with
006you as well as someone who helps with the taxes. So, I did a personal interview with my mentor. Her name was Chandel Denton and she obtained her bachelor's in accounting from Western Carolina and the average paying salary is anywhere from 80,000 to 100,000. and her main thing that brings her joy with this job is just helping the clients and the data entry. So, what I personally enjoyed was meeting with clients. I got to sit in on a one-on-one tax consulting conversation with the accountant and her um customer, and I got to learn the business finances, how businesses bring in cash flow, and how they account for their losses throughout that quarter. Some of the challenges were it's very high responsibility and there's a lot of rules that you have to keep up with and regulations
007as they change depending on the individual circumstances of that customer depending on whether they have withdrawals or whether they have written permission for certain things like farm specifically is a very specified case because you can write off multiple equipment from a farm. So some of the lessons that I learned accounting is completely about your accuracy and organization is key. Without that organization you yourself can get fined or somebody can even to extreme circumstances get arrested for inaccuracy. So meticulous um organization is very key. In conclusion, this job shadow helped me understand what accountants do on a daily basis. And personally I would not consider this a career option for me. I am a very hands-on individual and so I will be transferring to Western Carolina University and getting a major in communication sciences and disorders
008so I can be a hands-on speech therapist. And this job just showed me I I want to work with people hands-on. I don't want to sit behind a desk. It's just it's not for me. But I can definitely see that it would be a good career for people who are very who like meticulous work. And that's it. >> Very good. >> AWESOME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. >> HI, my name is Stephanie Sanchez and I for my job shadowing experience chose to draw a social worker. So the basic overview of a social worker is that they support individuals, families and communities in overcoming hardships. And some key areas of that would be your child and family services, mental health and substance abuse services, and healthcare and hospital social work, which is what I chose to shadow
009under. But there's so many different types of social workers. So before shadowing even started uh it was very tedious process with my application in itself needing a bunch of documentation about me and with me being in a hospital setting I had to be properly trained and at the Cherokee Indian hospital they use Relias and through Relias I watched a bunch of training videos signed a bunch of different agreement forms and confidentiality forms and that is just a list of the different trainings that I would need to do to meet the requirements to be able to shadow at the hospital. So day one was orientation. I went into HR pretty early in the morning. I got a quick tour of the hospital. Um up there's the Honor Laneski inatient unit and then below there is where
010the primary care is. And you can see that the part of that building is actually designed based off of a Cherokee woven basket. Um after the tour, I sat through a two-hour long orientation. I learned a lot more about the hospital. Um, and after orientation, I received a temporary badge to be able to get through the doors and move around the hospital and I met my mentor Kathy. So, day two, I went in early in the morning again and I met Kathy at her desk. That's her desk up there. Um, we discussed what her morning routine looks like, which consisted of inpatient rounds, which is where we would go upstairs to the inpatient care unit and sit down with the inpatient care team and discuss different patients that were in the inpatient unit at the
011time and how we can effectively get them discharged from the unit. When we went back downstairs, we met with another pod. And a pod is just integrated care team. It's just a bunch of different healthcare providers that work together to discuss different patients and how to help them. And that table there is what we sat at to do our inatient rounds. And the program below is EHR, their electronic health record system. And that's where you keep up with consults, patients, documentation, all the documentation stuff. So day three was a followup on some of the previous consults. So just more phone calls and emails and waiting on emails to come back. But then we actually did a home visit to one of the residents that lives at Sully Manor, which is a senior citizen center in
012Cherokee, and it's a long-term care residence place. We talked about their upcoming appointment and the transportation that they would need to get there. And it was really interesting to watch Kathy do her job and talk to them professionally. When we got back to the hospital, we discussed education and what she learned in school, which was very helpful to me. Days four and five were pretty much the same. impatient rounds, uh, meeting with pods, but the only thing that was different was that I helped her prepare a resource binder, which is a binder full of different resources that she wanted to hand out to the different pods and to tribal option just to keep them up to date on what Cherokee has to offer people. Uh, and then after that, we did a clinical visit to
013visit someone in the clinic and talk to them about transportation for their upcoming dentist appointment. And then the rest of the days were just more consults and more emails. So in conclusion, I think that social work is a great field and I would personally love to go into social work. Maybe not as a medical social worker because I did not enjoy sitting and waiting for emails to come in and phone calls to come in, but I do enjoy working with people. And I liked the working with long-term care residents so much so that I decided right after my internship to go and uh volunteer at the Salt Lake Care Center, which is a nursing home in Cherokee. That's great. >> Great. Thank you. >> Oh, perfect. Good evening everybody. My name is Finley Stonehouse and
014I did my job shadowing with Trifecta Mechanical and Electrical, which is a local HVAC company based out of Silva. So, on our first day here, we did a general overview and talked a lot about how you plan a heating and cooling job for a house. So, this is a book that uh the guy I was shadowing, John, showed me, and it contains a lot of useful information like how to size an HVAC unit to a home, how to determine how well insulated a home is, and how to quote a price for a customer. Uh we did a lot of talking about how you would plan a job, whether it's an installation or a repair, but we did that was about all we did that day. On the second day, we actually got to go to
015a job site. Um we got some real work experience. This was actually out in Franklin. I don't have a laser, but the uh the HVAC unit on the left is the one we put in. I didn't show up for the first part, but I helped uh do a lot of the electrical work, and I was able to help put some of the uh the lines you might see up to the second floor of that building, which is where we were doing our work. Uh there's a lot of stuff that we learned about anticipating challenges, especially when you're managing folks in this kind of industry. uh we ran into a lot of unforeseen hardships with like not having some of the right equipment and it just teaches you a lot about how to manage a business
016when you actually get to be on a job site like this. So I don't think I myself would consider an HVAC job. Although I do really like working with my hands. I think I might consider something more closely related to electrical or computer work because that just suits my skills better. But I did really enjoy the shadowing and I learned a ton. On the third day, we talked more about equipment, which was the kind of tools we would use when we work HVAC. Uh the kind of maintenance you might do on your tools to keep them running in good condition, and how you would organize your shop. So, we spent a lot of time at the company shop talking about the parts we stock and the tools that they keep there. And we also talked
017about how to pack a vehicle, which when you're going out to jobs is the way you stay organized, which inspires confidence in the customer and also saves you time as the person doing the work. So, we also did at the end of that day a little bit of an overview. We talked about the whole process and kind of reached a conclusion that I do like it, but I might go towards the electrical side a bit more. Anyway, here's some extra pictures. Uh, I guess on your right you can see a set of digital gauges we used in that installation in Franklin. You can see my cat exploring the tool bag I was gifted by my mentor, which is very nice of him. And then on the left is my own home unit. Thank you all
018very much. This has been my presentation on my HVAC job shadowing. >> Thank you. >> I just want to say thank you to Miss Sutton. I know she is the organizer of such things and I have been privy to see students over the last several years to present. So I really like that you pointed out Miss Granning the point about sometimes this gives students an opportunity to decide what they don't want to do and that's okay to learn it early in high school. So very well done. Thank you. >> Very good. >> Perfect. And at this time special recognitions by Dr. careers and we have several. So, this is exciting. I'm going to go ahead and ask Michael and Maddie to join me up front. I kind of have a table now. I don't normally
019have a table. So, if you two would just stand right here and face the crowd so they can see your faces. At the seventh annual JNCG career development, the teams from Jackson Community School and Blue Ridge Early College did a great job. Students competed in nine categories and two Jackson Community School students walked away with some big awards. Michael Quantero, a senior, placed first in the financial literacy category. Michael will be invited to Raleigh in late April to participate in additional leadership opportunities, meet with business leaders, and get to visit some sites in the Raleigh Durham area. Michael is enlisted and is going to work full-time in the United States Army after graduation. >> That deserves a hurrah. Michael loves spending time with his family, exploring business connections, and continues working hard to improve himself
020and the community. Matteline or Maddie Bostik, a sophomore placed third in the state under the career preparation category. Upon graduation, Maddie is interested in pursuing a career in health sciences as a nurse. Maddie is also passionate about music, photography, and the arts. She sets a high standard for sportsmanship and kindness each day and represented our district well at the event. Maddie also enjoys spending time with her family as they all worked together and supported her as she prepared for her first uh first time taking part in this competition. We are proud of these students who both represent Jackson Community School and their commitment to academic excellence and career preparation. Thank you both. Congratulations. I'm going to ask them to stay up here and I would lo love to uh invite Jill and Virginia and Lana
021if you want to come up here. Is Miss Wisman here too? Come on up and let's get a group photo if you don't mind. So many of you will remember that Jill and Virginia have been with us before because they are part of the communities and schools organization that puts this together. So u we appreciate their work. Round of applause. All right. Next, we have some certificates to present to a couple of schools and unfortunately some of those principles cannot be here because of various other activities that have been scheduled in this busy week before spring break. Um, so each year the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction provides certificates to schools for their performance. This letter comes from the state superintendent. Says, "We are pleased to offer our congratulations to you and your entire
022district for your school's performance in the last academic year. We are presenting awards for achieving and exceeding academic growth under North Carolina's accountability system. Whether for academic growth or graduation rate, these certificates showcase the dedication to academic achievement in your school system for both students and educators. The letter goes on to say, "Please share the appreciation and congratulations from the entire North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education for all that you do." So, our first certificate is for Blue Ridge School and Miss Crisp is up having a um curriculum fair this evening. So this is her certificate for Blue Ridge School and that is for academic growth. The next one is for Scots Creek where there is a health fair and a math curriculum night occurring. So we'll make sure
023that they get that as well. The next award for academic growth goes to Smoky Mountain High School. So Mr. Robinson, if you will come on up. So this is again for academic growth met in the previous school year. So, congratulations. I'm going to have you stand right there. Everybody give Smoky Mountain High School a round of applause. The next one is for Jackson County Early College. So, Miss Grammy, if you will come forward. Stay up here, Mr. Robinson, so we can get a group picture. He was trying to slip out. Um, this is for exceeding academic growth for the 2425 school year. That's a shout out. Woohoo. Exceeding growth. And finally also for Jackson County Early College and this is certificate of achievement for graduation rate. So congratulations, you get two. I hope next year
024we're holding nine certificates is my expectation. So Chenica. Y'all can stand a little closer. I don't think either one of you will bite. Excellent job. Thank you very much. ALL RIGHT, COME ON UP, MR. Jake Buchanan. So, this is the hardest part of working in the central office that when we ask you to come stand before everybody and get presented award an award in the central office. So here's a special and I am not presenting it because I am just sharing on behalf of West Bridge. So let me read you a little bit about this. West Brbridge Vocational located in Silva is a social enterprise connecting people to opportunity through qualitydriven manufacturing. They are dedicated to empowering all people with barriers to employment by providing training opportunities that inspire them to learn, earn, and thrive
025in a world that may not understand their needs. Recently at West Bridg's vocational all handson meeting, board member Jake Buchanan was awarded a certificate of appreciation from North Carolina Governor Josh Stein for his service to the Jackson County community and West Brbridge. Jake has served on the board of directors for six years and continues to be an avid supporter of this agency. His commitment to West Bridge Vocational exhibits his commitment to our community, families, JCPS, and beyond. We're extraordinarily proud of you, Jake, and grateful for your service. And he made the newspaper last week, so that was even better. So, congratulations. The governor's award. So, if you want to blame anybody for telling us about the is it's Janet right there who snuck and sent a text to everybody like, "Jake won the governor's award."
026So, very proud of you. Congratulations. Thank you. And now for the person who is taking the photos, you need to put your camera down for a moment. >> While she's coming forward, I just wanted to say something about Mr. I have known him since he was very small um a friend of our sons uh growing up playing ball together and he has always been such a servant, such a leader and has contributed so many ways in this community and um he doesn't get a lot of recognition because he's very humble in what he does. But I just want you to know I appreciate so much what you mean to us. >> And you're still on the board, right? >> NOPE. MY ROTATION. >> OH, NO. >> That's why Jen is on there. >> Okay. Thank
027you. All right. The North Carolina School Public Relations Association or NCESPAR, that's a lot to say, has honored Jackson County Public Schools for Excellence in Communications. NCSPER presented the awards during a special ceremony held at the Guilford County Schools Community Education Center in Greensboro on March the 6th. JCPS public information officer Shenikica Allen received two gold level awards for outstanding photography. Her submission included photos from the 2025 graduation ceremonies and the 2025 Special Olympics. NCSPER recognizes outstanding communications through its Blue Ribbon Awards program each year. JCPS was one of only 35 school districts statewide to receive a Blue Ribbon Award. This is an extraordinary honor for a district of our size because our PIO, Shenica, is solely responsible for all district communications, social media post, press releases, and other necessary public-f facing tasks. Thank you,
028Chenica, for your dedication to our district and for ensuring that JCPS has a positive public presence. Congratulations. >> Oh, wait a minute. You have to come back and get your photo taken. >> Very nice, Shenica. Thank you. Awesome. Thank you, Dr. >> Yes. >> Do I have a motion to approve open from our regularly scheduled meeting in February? >> Yes. I make a motion that we approve the open session meetings of our regular meeting in February. >> Second. >> And I need to defer to >> Yeah, I'm apparently we inadvertently left person that we recognized last month. So, I will make that correction. Yes, ma'am. >> Anita Anita, >> what is it? >> Angie Pitts. >> Angie Pits. Angie Pits, I'm sorry. Yes. So, I will make that correction to the minutes. >> Awesome. All
029in favor. Um, at this time, we have the superintendence report. >> Good evening, vice chair and board members. It's been a fantastic past few weeks and this is our final week before the break. Our students and staff are working hard to maximize every moment of instruction. We're eagerly looking forward to our Easter break that is March 30th through April 6th. Students resume class on Tuesday, April 7th. This Thursday, JCPS will host the annual K8 Healthy Snack Masters competition at Koi Valley School. This is always a fun event as students prepare their most creative and healthy snacks. Judges will score each snack on a rubric and awards will be offered. This year, our judges, what I call celebrity judges, include WCU head men's basketball coach Tim Craft, Jackson County Environmental Health Program Coordinator Travis Mont, and
030incoming Silva Police Chief Amy Sumner along with other school officials. I hope you'll attend. >> After our break, we'll be approaching the busiest times of the school year. Special Olympics will take place on April 15th for the young child event at the Kulloy Rec Center and April 17th for the traditional event at Smoky Mountain High School. As many of you already know, I often say this is my favorite day of the year and I really hope and pray for good weather. Also that week is our annual eighth grade field day that brings together students from across our district. I'm appreciative of the work that our school athletic directors and assistant principles are doing to make this day a success. I'm going to pause and say to organize five five schools to bring together 200 and
031something students um is a task in itself. And I I really do need to shout out right now Megan Davis from Scots Creek because she has taken on the task of organizing students and bands and activities. So, um she couldn't be here either because she's at Scots Creek at the health fair. Um but Megan has taken the lead. That is Thursday, April 16th. >> Okay. Thanks. >> And it is on the events calendar as well. >> Oh, good. Thanks. On Tuesday, April 14th, Senator Kevin Corbin will be visiting some of our school campuses during this week that is designated as bring a legislator to school week. We're excited to highlight the strong efforts and needs at our campuses. Also, in April, I have coordinated with principles to offer current county commissioners and board of commissioner
032candidates the opportunity to tour each school campus. Principles will have the chance to share highlights, show off their campus, and advocate for a prioritized needs. I intend to follow this same practice in the fall with the board of education candidates. I have found over the last several years that this is hugely beneficial to have elected officials truly see what's happening in our schools. Finally, we continue our progress on the many capital building projects that are happening. During the month of April, the track construction will begin. I'm going to say that again. During the month of April, the track construction will begin. You will see some movement there. Fairview's cafeteria and kitchen project will soon follow. Our team has also narrowed down the footprint for Smoky Mountain Middle School while updated drawings are being created for
033Blue Ridge. We are all very excited and proud of these projects. I continue to offer my sincere gratitude to those who consistently support our schools, our staff, and our students with respect. >> Thank you, Dr. S. Lots of exciting stuff. >> Busy. >> Yes. >> Busy April. >> Yes. >> Um at this time, do we have Christy Walker for the second quarter Bank of America audits? Good evening, Dr. I have placed in your packets the write up of the second quarter internal school audits and the Bank of America audits. Both of those audits uh take samples from October through December and had no findings of misuse, fraud, or negligence. Is there any questions about those audits? >> But thank you. No findings is excellent. >> Thank you. And up next is also Christie was our
034unodudited financial statements for March. >> Yes, that is also in your packet and continues to show that we are within our budget resolution for 2026. And if you have any questions about that report, I'm happy to answer those. >> Any questions? >> No one for public comment. >> We have no one signed up for comment. >> Awesome. So, next on our action agenda is Christy Walker with our budget amendments. >> Okay. So, I'm asking tonight for your approval for budget amendment number five to our 2026 budget resolution. It covers the funds of state public school fund, your federal funds, capital outlay, and other specific revenue fund. Are there any questions about that amendment in your packets? Do I have a motion to approve budget amendment number five? >> Um, I make a motion that we
035approve budget amendment number five. >> Second. All in favor? >> Sorry, >> I was reading the next. >> Um, and again, next is Christy Walker as well with our 2026 2027 audit engagement letter and audit contract. >> Yes, ma'am. Uh, this is for our 2026 2027 year, which will be next fiscal year. And they have provided the audit engagement letter and audit contract. This is with Anderson Smith and Wack. It is our external firm. Uh we would like to continue using them. We have a very good working relationship. We're very satisfied with the service that they provide and the support that they provide to my staff and the school staffs. Um there is only a slight increase of $1,000 due to the cost increasing cost everywhere and because we will be um changing some of
036our financial reporting requirements due to a Gazsby 103 release. And so they have adjusted their contract to reflect those changes. >> Chrissy, I have a question. Does that contract um cover their travel or are we separately build for their travel? Just because I don't know >> it covers their travel. Yes, >> it's all inclusive. Thank you. >> Any questions? Okay. Do I have a motion to approve the audit engagement letter and the audit contract for school year 2026 2027? >> Yes. I make a motion that we approve the audit engagement letter and audit contract for 2026 and 2027. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I think next is Greg. Jake can see Greg's. Okay. Sorry. You'll have to you'll have to settle for me. >> Lots of questions. >> So, in your packet, Greg
037has provided some information to you regarding an -ate um network infrastructure purchase. Um just to hit the highlights of the information that uh Greg has shared with you. This is finishing up the last phase of a multi-year district-wide network refresh. Um, this will be primarily targeting an area at Smoky Mountain High School and the board of education and with all the other schools already have been completed. Um, this is with -ate. It is ultimately a net zero cost to the district. -ate of course is funds that are gathered when we pay our cell phone bill. There's a little uh amount of money that's attached to that that goes back to education. So basically 80% of the overall purchase is discounted. Um the remaining 20% uh we pay and then we get fully reimbursed. So the
038total quote for this project is a little over $170,000. The -ate discount is $136,000 and change. The initial cost to us is $34,000 and we will be reimbursed that entire amount of $34,000. But we do have to budget for it. We do have to put that money out and then recoup those funds. So, with that being said, I can attempt to try and answer any questions that you have. Um, or you can just approve Greg's -ate purchase. >> I got a whole list of stuff. >> Will you be personally responsible for making sure we get our money back? >> No, but I will guarantee that Christie will get our money back. >> Yes. >> Perfect. Do I hear a motion to approve the request for the -ate network infrastructure upgrade? >> I make a motion
039that we approve the request for network instru infrastructure upgrade. >> Second. >> Okay. All in favor? >> Thank you very much. >> Awesome. Thank you. And Dr. Ays with the resolution urging the budget passage. So, a little context in um this resolution so the general public understands what it what this is. Um if you're not aware, if you've been living under a rock and you do not realize that we have been operating in Jackson County Public Schools and in all schools across the state of North Carolina um nine months into this fiscal year without a budget. And so we uh collectively along with our peers across the state um have been encouraged to create this resolution. It came from the North Carolina School Boards Association um with a draft template of what we are um
040going to hopefully approve tonight as a resolution. And though I'm not going to read every word of it, I want to I want to hit a few highlights um that I think you all should hear and understand. Um we have been operating nine months into this fiscal fiscal year. Um whereas we are supposed to by North Carolina general statute have a budget by July 1 of every year. And obviously we have long surpassed the July one deadline. Um Jackson County Public Schools receives about 48% of its funding from the state. So that's about half of all of our funding comes from the state. that is um outside of what federal monies we get or local money. So 48% comes directly from the state. The legislators are returning on April 21st, so about four weeks from
041now. And it is um beyond hope. It is more of a prayer or an absolute dire need that we need them to approve a budget at this time, nine months overdue. A couple of other facts that I think were will be important for the general public to hear is one of the lines. Despite provisions for step increases, without passage of an appropriation act, salaries of nearly 600 employees in Jackson County Public Schools have been frozen. So, no raises have been given for any employee uh full-time or part-time that works in Jackson County Public Schools. and we are continuing to await that magical number that they're going to give us along with the funds that come along with that. Whereas the lack of a budget and frozen pay scales coupled with a rise in premiums for
042district district employees health plan has resulted in a net pay decrease for teachers and school employees. So stagnant amount of salary that you're getting, rising cost of health uh insurance, and so it looks like a decrease in our pay. Jackson County Public School strives to meet all nationally recommended staffing ratios for school health personnel requiring additional uh support from the state appropriations. And finally, Jackson County Public Schools has a uh a number a percent of students in our district, the entire district. About 18% of students in Jackson County Public Schools qualify under the exceptional children's program. The state caps our funding at 13%. So beyond the fact that we don't have a budget, we are uh missing out on 5% of the funding for students that we serve, which just from our Medicaid funds equates
043to almost half a million dollars that we're missing out on. So that is one of the things that has been pushed with our legislators lately to actually fund at the amount of exceptional children percentage that we have in the state of North Carolina. That's been on and on for many years. That's not a new request. Yes, ma'am. >> Are all the Medicaid dollars going back to the exceptional children's program? >> No, ma'am. >> That all Medicaid dollars do not belong in the exceptional children's program. There's different avenues. They may come through the mental health program, but they just because they're Medicaid, they don't just go back into exceptional children's. >> Okay. But most of them do go back to exceptional children. >> I would say 70ish% of that about 70%. We have the ability now
044through our with our mental health program to bill that way as well and everybody that served in our mental health program is not an exceptional child. >> Okay. The only reason I question it is there's so much paperwork that goes along with that. >> That is correct. people who always are who already are working so hard to get those children served. And I think that most of the Medicaid dollars that are generated by people employed with the exceptional children's program, the speech pathologists, the uh school psychologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists. I hate to see those funds go elsewhere when they could be so used by the exceptional children's program. >> And they are needed by that program by all means, but they're also needed with the mental health program. and those therapists and clinicians also
045bill but the bulk 70% of it is EC and it goes back to EC. >> Yes ma'am. Um the final piece on here I just just wanted you to hear out loud um is that right now there is a proposal for all school employee salaries in the second year of this budget um to receive and there's there's no number so it's been thrown out between two and a half and 11 and a half%. So we it is the unknown >> and that's what we are we are urging everyone um to bring this to our attention. So this resolution has a lot of wherees and it will be available for public viewing. There is no secret in here. Um but I would ask for action for our board to adopt this resolution urging the board um
046excuse me urging legislators to pass a budget as they come together again on April 21. Any questions? >> No, but I I would like to make a comment. I think this is very important and and I think it's very important for us as a board to do this because it says you we've been elected to serve the students and staff of Jackson County Public Schools. But our hands are tied just as our central office staff's hands are tied. And I think as individual citizens of North Carolina, we need to contact our legislators as well >> that they were elected to do their job and they're not doing it. The bud passing a budget is a huge part of their job. So I just want to make that statement. Agree. >> I agree. At this time,
047do I have a motion to approve the resolution urging Um the passing of the budget. >> Yes. I make a motion that we approve the resolution urging budget pass. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> And field trips. I hope that everybody invited Kim to go on the field trip. So >> all right. I am seeking your approval of the following field trips. The first one is Blue Ridge Early College, um, Colonial Williamsburg. And that is a field trip that they just wrapped up. You guys gave conditional approval for that before because it was a change from another field trip. Um, number two is a Blige Early College grades seven and eight visiting the legislative building on April 30th through May 1st. So that is an overnight requiring your approval. Blige Early College grades 9
048through 12, uh, Washington DC. So, if you'll take special note of this, this trip is not for this year. It is for next year of 2027. And we're asking for approval early so that they can fund raise throughout the coming year. >> I did have a question about that because, you know, it says 9 through 12 and it and then it said on the form that it was open to all students, but then it says that they're going to take 15 males and 15 females. So, what is and I know they're not here to answer. Do you know >> it is all students? Because in grades 9 through 12 at Blige Early College, I'm going to estimate a number and I'm going to look toward Angie to affirm that around 85 students in grades 9
049through 12 total. Um, but the reason it's delineated between male and females, they have to have a certain number of chaperons since it's overnight male chaperons and female chefons, >> right? But it's only that's only 60 kids, >> right? It's available to everyone. So they have to give you a number initially um for what we what we think it >> are they just estimating or there's are there certain criteria to earn the privilege to go? >> Typically it is a whole school trip barring a very serious behavior >> issue or something like that. All students would be eligible to go. I know the Blue Ridge School Ed Foundation has also been very generous in providing some funds for these trips in past years. So, I do not know why they only selected 60. I think
050there's around 80s something students, but there are are probably some that just choose not to go. >> Okay. Well, then the other question I have is if you if you take 9 through 12th graders, do they do they go multiple years? Because >> not typically. They only go do this trip every four years. >> So very similar to what's happening at at Fair View and now Koi Valley, they are choosing a seventh and eighth grade trip to Washington DC or Raleigh or wherever as an overnight on alternating years. So you're not duplicating the students. So I would without Dr. Friselle being here to ask, I would assume they wouldn't in the following year of 2028, they probably would not choose Washington DC. they would go somewhere else because it would be a duplicate trip for
051those >> under four years. Ninth grade. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Okay. And >> I think a lot of smaller schools, not just within Jackson County public schools are doing this because it helps bring down the cost. So, >> it does. A charter bus is not at all cheap. Of >> course not. Yeah. >> Um number four is the Fairview Elementary School uh grades seven and eight uh music students to Cara Winds. I think this is their MPA event. Um, number five, JCEC grade 12 care wins on April 17th. Number six, Scots Creek grades uh kindergarten to Greenville Zoo that is in out of state in just a single day. And finally, Scots Creek grade four to the Titanic Museum in Pigeon Forge. So, I'm happy to answer questions if you have any. Otherwise, I request
052your approval for all seven field trips. just ask. >> Yes, ma'am. >> Okay. Um, with the blue school grades 9 through 12, um, I don't speak on behalf of the foundation, but they will never see a child left out. >> Oh, I'm sure that they're very generous. >> Oh, no. I'm not worried about that. I just wondered, you know, why it was it said, you know, 60 kids. >> I mean, 30. I'm sorry. It said 15 males, >> females. And the problem was with with chaperrons, is that it? >> Well, there's a certain number of chaperons that are required for an overnight trip where it can quote the right and they kind of have to put a placeholder in there so that they can raise the funds. So, we have to get you all to
053approve it before they can start fundraising. Well, that makes sense. >> So, the numbers may change and I'm happy to present it as we get closer to that date >> what what the actual numbers would be. >> Well, it's fine. I mean, I'm not worried about the number. I just was questioning sure everybody had the opportunity. >> Yes. Exactly. >> Okay. And I would like to make one change and this is a kind of a bugaboo with me. You know, in in raising money, when you ask somebody for money for a field trip, they they they usually have a a child going on the field trip to say, "Sure, I'd be glad to do that." But for donors outside of the school system, we had one donor who say, "I'm not going to fund a
054field trip." So, could we change that to expeditionary learning? I think that would be up to the foundation how they want to >> No, I'm talking about for us. I mean, >> there's some there's some people in the world who are very much against >> you want to call field trips expeditionary learning >> or something excursionary learning. >> I'm open to any of that. Whatever you you all choose. >> Come on, Abby. >> I'm not opposed to it. I I mean >> I >> at the end of the day is that person going to change their mind because we changed the the language, >> right? And I do believe field trips are educational experiences. Now, some of these are rewards. I mean, going to carows, >> let's be honest, that's a reward and that's fine.
055But we're not raising money for that to further their education, are we? Don't they have to pay? I mean, each child pays for that, don't they? >> Yes, there's always >> when they go for >> unless a PTO sponsors it or something like that. Yes, ma'am. >> And uh anyway, but I I I don't know, Dr. Dillard to me that's semantics and and I feel we we can validate the importance the when you go on say the eighth grade trip and go to Raleigh and see the whole state some children never have that chance that is amazing and that that's a lifelong learning experience >> I know I agree with that totally but I'd rather call it expedition learning >> because field trip is like something you earn. It's fun. You go to a zoo,
056you go, you know, carows or whatever, but I don't know if you saw the pictures from Blige, but Nathan really gives these kids a run for their money uh about the places he visits and his knowledge of the historical world and >> Oh, yeah. >> And so to me, that's not really >> It's a great opportunity. Yeah. Extend even extended learning would be good. >> I would ask for your approval for those seven field trips, expeditionary learning >> opportunities. Do I have a motion to approve field trips or expeditionary learning experiences opport? I make a motion that we approve exended learning >> right now. >> Field trips for now. >> Field trips. All of that stuff >> for one through seven. >> Do I have a second? >> Second. >> All in favor? >> At
057this time, we will move to close session. >> I'm sorry. >> Oh. At this time, we will move to close session pursuant to GS1 143 31811 for the following purposes under subsection A1 to prevent the disclosure of privileged or confidential personnel information pursuant pursuant to D GS115C 319 321 and A3 to discuss the matters protected by the attorney client privilege. Do I have a motion to move to close session? Ashley, I'm supposed to repeat all that. >> I make a motion. >> I'll make a motion. >> Make a motion. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> Thank you. on air. >> Okay. No action was taken during close session. Dr. Ayes with the personnel action agenda. >> Absolutely. >> Actually, I'll be doing our personnel. >> Yes. Oh, that's right. >> Yes, Jake. So I
058do ask your approval for employee recommendations 1 through 16, employee resignations 1 through eight, employee retirement number one, and staff and non staff attorney coach recommendations one through. >> I'll make a motion that we approve personal action agenda one >> as as presented. >> I hear a second. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> Okay. Thank you. All righty then. >> The next regularly scheduled business meeting of the board of education is April 28th at 6 PM at the Board of Education Administrative Office. Do I have a motion to adjourn tonight's meeting? >> I make a motion that we adjourn tonight's meeting. >> Second. >> All in favor?