BOE honors track teams; Kerby named chair; audit for upgrade okayed
Westside Elementary School served as the site Thursday for the final meeting during the academic year of the Demopolis City Schools Board of Education. Principal Tisha Lewis welcomed the board members and introduced the second graders who gave a musical presentation.
The end-of-term agenda included a lengthy personnel report, purchases and updates, but Supt. Tony Willis took time to recognize the athletes who performed well at the State Track Meet.
Leading the students was Shonedra Richardson. She took first place in all four of the events she entered in the girls’ competition and set state records in two of them, the 100-meter and the long jump. She led her team to place fourth overall.
Teammate Heavenly Bing took fifth in the 300-yard hurdles and seventh in the 100-yard hurdles. Bing joined with Miriam Dominquez, Hattie Hurst and Sarah Beth Smith to place sixth in the 4×800 relay.
The boys’ team took third place overall in state competition with 12 students competing. Trenton Braxton won first place in the 110 and 300 hurdles and fifth in the long jump. Cam’ron Wright placed third in the long jump, and the team of Braxton, Kelin Rowser, Kenon Rowser and Ty Davis placed seventh in the 4×400 relay.
When the business section of the meeting began, board members elected Olen Kerby as chairman for the next year and Harris Hurst, the vice-chair.
For the past few meetings, board members have considered hiring Schneider Electric to upgrade the lighting and thermostats in the school system buildings. They approved the company’s Investment Grade Audit Agreement Thursday.
The cost of the audit will be rolled into the total cost of the project. If the board declines to do the upgrades after the audit is completed, it would have to pay the fee for the work. The company estimates the school system can save $2.6 million in utility costs over 10 years.
The board also approved hiring Mid-Western Commercial Roofers to re-roof the DHS gymnasium and LOCKSTEP for the second phase of cable installation.
In other action, the board approved:
- The Advancement and Technology Fund Budget for 2022-2023.
- Contract with chief school financial officer Morgan Nelson.
- Travel for the DHS FBLA team members to National Competition in Chicago, Ill., June 27-July 3.
- Use of the DHS and USJ gyms by the Theo Ratliff Center June 2-3 from 9 a.m. to noon.
- Inventory dispositions.
The board held the first reading of out-of-district fee changes for Board Policy. The proposed alteration of the policy includes an annual fee of $100 to be paid at registration each year.
Supt. Willis reported on the WES multi-purpose building and said that after meeting with the architects, contractors and site foreman, the priority in August will be to have the road for drop-off and pick-up in working order. Completion date for the building now is closer to late September.
Willis said the DHS Class of 2022 earned more than $5.398 million in scholarship money, double any of the past six years. He said 55 percent of the seniors received scholarships, with the average award of $61,340, the highest ever recorded.
The board accepted the resignations of Ola Agee, fourth grade teacher; Mary Glenn Agee, six grade math teacher, and Brandon Allen, band instructor.
Non-renewals include Ashley Boykins, pre-K teacher; Zhana Todd, pre-K auxiliary teacher; Joann Smoot Bryant, math coach; Marquita Ezell, reading coach, and Skyler Browder, 7th grade social studies teacher.
Tanya Patterson is transferred from 3rd grade elementary to EMS 6th grade teacher, and Brittany Donald was reassigned from 2nd grade teacher to reading coach.
Other new hires are Columbus Wilkins, nine-month rotating custodian; Meredith Jacobs, WES physical education teacher; Lisa Willis, second grade; Amanda Cook, pre-K teacher, and Madison Campbell, pre-K auxiliary teacher.
The following stipends were approved:
- Special education lead teachers to received a $500 supplement each to be paid May 31 for the 2021-2022 school year. They include Juleigh Stevens, Tammy Knott, Shameka Gray and Melissa Latham.
- Nicole Larkin to receive $3,500 as Elementary Summer Program Coordinator.,
- Allene Jones to receive $3500 as 2022 Secondary Summer Program Coordinator.