Gilmer County Schools board approves student handbooks, personnel slate and contract renewal; superintendent outlines facility projects

The Gilmer County Schools Board of Education voted to approve updated student handbooks for Gilmer County High School and Gilmer County Elementary School and to renew a contract for the district's school improvement specialist, district officials said.

In a single consent-based motion, the board approved minutes, bills for payment and a slate of personnel actions, including professional and service resignations, extracurricular resignations and extensive lists of substitute teachers, administrators, nurses, cooks, secretaries, bus operators, aides and custodians.

Superintendent said the high-school handbook adds a discipline matrix, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports language, a tiered system of support flowchart and a proposed academic letter. "Students that had over 3.5 GPA, they could earn an academic letter," the Superintendent said, noting the policy would require the GPA to be held for a consecutive year.

The board also renewed the contract for the district's school improvement specialist, Naysha Butcher, with the superintendent noting the position is a contracted role reimbursed "at a rate of $50 per hour"; board members approved the renewal by motion and voice vote.

On personnel, the board accepted resignations and approved the superintendent's recommendations for substitutes and extracurricular staffing. The board approved the substitute teacher slate for the 2024–25 school year and moved to accept substitute administrators, nurses, cooks, secretaries, bus operators, aides and custodians as presented. One board member excused themself from a specific vote and stated they would not vote on that item.

The superintendent gave a broad facilities and operations update: staff reported a positive opening professional development, the district is working to livestream football games with volunteer broadcasters, and cameras are being installed at the Brooklyn Field house. The superintendent said crews had cleaned out the field house and "they have been running the wire and installing the cameras," adding the district had cleaned out old and flooded materials from the building.

Regarding kitchen infrastructure, the superintendent said the district held a pre-bid meeting for a cooler/freezer project and expects a competitive bid opening on August 22. "We had a good turnout," the superintendent said, adding, "We had 7" parties attending the pre-bid meeting. The superintendent also reported an ad hoc group is developing plans and cost estimates for a new Gilmer County High School and a community fitness/wellness center (working name discussed as "Bolt Fitness"); he noted the current high-school building is "almost 70 years old, hasn't been remodeled for 30 years." The board heard the update and no formal action on those projects was taken at the meeting.

Board members used the comment period to thank staff and principals for work on discipline plans and the opening-day events, to welcome students back, and to promote upcoming community events such as the Gilmer County Farm Show and library programs. The meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn that carried on a voice vote.

The board approved the agenda items by voice vote; specific vote tallies by member were not recorded in the transcript. Where names of substitutes and personnel were read into the record, the board accepted the superintendent's recommendations as presented.

What's next: the board will proceed with bid review for the freezer/cooler project after the August 22 opening and continue work on CEFP planning and the fitness center design; no formal timeline for construction of a new high school was announced.