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Graduate asks board to revisit valedictorian selection; ex-teacher urges sick‑leave donation fix
Summary
Two public commenters urged policy fixes: a recent graduate said Great Crossing High School did not follow the district’s valedictorian selection policy and asked to be named valedictorian; a resigned teacher asked the board to allow a one-time administrative override so earned sick days could be donated retroactively.
At the Scott County Board of Education meeting, two public speakers urged the board to review and correct procedures they said harmed students and staff.
Evan Patrick, who said he recently graduated from Great Crossing High School, told the board that the district’s written 2019 valedictorian-selection policy was not followed at his school and that, by the policy criteria he cited, he met the standards that should have made him valedictorian. He said he submitted a certified transcript and copies of the policy for the board’s review and asked the board to name him valedictorian in accordance with the policy.
"...I earned A in every single class...this was a monumental undertaking...the Scott County Board of Education established a written policy in 2019 that governs the selection of the valedictorian. That policy was not followed at Great Crossing High School this year," Patrick told the board, urging correction and review of the documents he provided.
Later in public comment, Ryan Blood — who identified himself as a teacher who resigned effective May 12 — described a payroll and HR processing problem that prevented a timely donation of 14.5 sick days to a colleague. Blood said his donation request was processed after his separation date, and HR declined the transfer because the system had changed his status to inactive. He asked the board for a one-time administrative exemption to retroactively process the donation and requested the board reexamine board policy 03.1232 (sick-leave donation program) to prevent similar outcomes for future resigning teachers.
"Because my formal donation request was processed a few days after my official May 12th separation date...the transfers were flatly denied by HR...I ask that you grant a one-time administrative exemption to retroactively process my donation card and more importantly that you reexamine policy 03.1232," Blood said.
Board members accepted the public comments; no immediate corrective action or vote on either issue occurred during the meeting. Both speakers said they had provided documentation to the board for further review.
The valedictorian complaint references board policy (2019) and the sick-leave request cites specific board policy language (03.1232) that Blood asked the board to revisit; the meeting transcript does not record a board decision on either request.
