The New Hanover County Schools Policy Committee debated proposed edits to Policy 2230 on committee structure and employee supports Thursday, ultimately voting to leave a sustainability-related provision unchanged for now and to table a separate proposal to add an employee retention/support committee.

Policy Committee Chair opened the meeting and asked members to review materials that board member David Perry had circulated. "I'd like to make a motion that we adopt the language that's in my proposal as part of, it recommended to the board for 2230," Perry said, outlining ideas such as identifying nonmonetary benefits, partnering with local businesses for employee discounts and exploring housing assistance or other cost-of-living supports for staff.

Members raised several questions about scope and authority. One member urged caution about duplicating county work: the Chair asked whether the sustainability committee would overlap with the county Soil and Water Committee; members said county staff and some county committee members already sit on the district's sustainability group. The Chair moved to "leave Section 9 as is, until we hear from Doctor Morgan," and that motion passed by voice vote.

Discussion of Perry's proposal focused on naming, membership and legal limits. Judy Justice said the district already has systems to support employees but that the proposal as drafted was "nebulous" and needed tightening before making a permanent commitment. A staff speaker noted that state law constrains the district's salary schedule, making salary increases a state-level issue: "Saying that our... they aren't getting paid enough is a difficult conversation to have because we are 6 in the state in compensation," one staff member said, arguing that non-salary options could still help retention.

Board members disagreed on process. Some urged moving quickly to support employees; others recommended forming an ad hoc committee to refine structure, membership and legal/funding questions. A motion was made to create an ad hoc committee to study the suggestions and produce a more concrete plan; the Chair and others discussed whether that or the full policy committee should complete the work. Rather than adopt Perry's language at this meeting, the committee voted to table the matter to the next policy meeting so members could get Doctor Morgan's input and staff could circulate Perry's document more broadly.

Votes at a glance

- Approve agenda: motion made and seconded; approved by voice vote (recorded as 3–0).
- Approve minutes: motion made and seconded; approved by voice vote (recorded as 3–0).
- Leave Section 9 (sustainability committee) unchanged pending input from Doctor Morgan: motion made by the Chair; seconded and approved by voice vote.
- Proposal to adopt David Perry's language for Policy 2230: motion introduced by David Perry and seconded for discussion; after debate the committee voted to table the item for the next meeting.

What's next

The Chair asked David Perry to scan and distribute his proposal to the full board and indicated the item will be revisited after staff receive input from Doctor Morgan. Members also discussed inviting a behavior specialist, Amanda Rismeyer, as a future presenter after staff meet with her to align any policy-related recommendations.

The committee adjourned after completing the agenda.