Board hears first readings on Somos Spanish program and stricter tardy and vaping rules

At the meeting Dr. Hollingsworth presented a set of curriculum and handbook readings for the upcoming school year, including a personnel-driven change in the Spanish curriculum and updated student-discipline rules.

Because of a change in Spanish teaching personnel and teaching style, staff requested that the district pull the previously scheduled second reading of the Auténtico Spanish curriculum and instead proceed with a first reading for the Somos program. Dr. Hollingsworth described Somos as a lower-cost, teacher-centered ‘comprehensible input’ program that relies heavily on spoken Spanish in the classroom; she said the license is a one-time purchase and that classroom Spanish novels would be purchased as five proposed add-ons.

Dr. Hollingsworth also reviewed first readings of updated middle- and high-school handbooks. Proposed changes include middle-school bell-time adjustments to hold breakfast students until 7:20 a.m. to ensure supervision and PBIS behavioral-flow updates; at the high school, the board reviewed a new tardy policy (three tardies now trigger a disciplinary consequence and progressive discipline thereafter), a $50 technology fee, a $25 parking permit fee and clarified honors-diploma language. The high-school handbook also tightens consequences for vaping: the first offense now results in a disciplinary consequence rather than a warning and may escalate if an illicit substance such as THC is involved.

Board members asked for data on past vaping incidents; Dr. Hollingsworth said she would provide numbers on the record after the meeting.

These readings were presented for first or second reading as appropriate; adoption steps will follow the district’s normal multi-reading process.