BOE OKs 2022-2023 academic calendar

While the current academic year is quickly coming to a close, the Franklin County Board of Education gave preliminary approval on Tuesday, March 22 to a calender for the upcoming 2022-2023 school term set to begin this August.

Superintendent of Education Chris Kent said the proposed calendar will be predominately the same as it has been in years past, but with some extra time built in to give personnel and students at least two additional days away from classes in October and February.

“There are a lot of districts looking at and lots of conversations among school superintendents about school calendars, especially involving the extended year or year-round scheduling — whatever you want to call it,” Kent said. “I can tell you now, as your superintendent, I don’t believe that is effective until I see that it is effective and I am not ready to go there yet.

“There are a lot of people I know that have (adjusted their calendars), but one thing that another superintendent said and that I agreed with is teachers need a little breather. And we get holidays, but when we come to say Columbus Day on Oct. 10 that guy said it’s nice to have a little time for a teacher or students with their parents to get away if they want to.”

To this end, Kent said he was proposing adding an additional day off in conjunction with Columbus Day during the upcoming term.

“Instead of only taking Oct. 10 as the holiday as we have done in the past, we would also be off on Tuesday, Oct. 11,” he continued. “We’re doing that because we have a football game on Friday night (Oct. 7) and we’ll go to school that day, but this would still give us a four-day weekend and some good travel or down time for everyone involved.

“Then, looking ahead to Presidents Day (slated for Monday, Feb. 20, 2023), our proposed school calendar would include having Friday (Feb. 17) off along with the traditional Monday observance — giving a second four-day weekend. And, in doing this, all we did was add two days off and we will add two days to the end of the school year.”

Kent said under the plan, students and teachers will still be going to school the required number of days, but will have the chance to enjoy a pair of four-day weekends spread throughout the academic cycle.

“In talking to our administrators, they favored the proposal and I feel like our teachers and families are going to be great with it, too,” he went on to say.

District 4 board member Joyce Calcote also questioned Kent about the start of the upcoming school year.

The superintendent responded by saying his plan would be for classes to begin on Aug. 5 with dismissal taking place as always in May, and added that outside of the two closures he was recommending there would be no other changes other than holidays falling on different days as dictated by the calendar.

“I’m of the mindset that we should at least try this,” Kent said. “If it works and people like it, we might stick with it in the future. If not, we can always go back to the way it has been done in the past. Still, I think this is going to be good for all our people and will not impact us academically.”

District 2 representative Vanessa Walker motioned to approve the calendar proposal and District 5 member Michael Coleman offered the second with the entire panel giving its unanimous consent.

In other business last week, the Franklin County Board of Education took the following actions:

• Entered a lengthy executive session to conduct a disciplinary hearing involving an unidentified Franklin County School District student.

While particular details of the hearing could not be discussed publicly, the panel voted unanimously to keep the student home-bound for the remainder of the 2021-2022 school year while the individual is also required to maintain a C grade or better in academic classes. Additionally, the student will be required to appear before the school board in June for a review of the individual’s grades and actions.

The board also noted the student must not be on any Franklin County Schools campus for the remainder of the current academic year.

• FCSD Business Manager Tremel Young reported on the system’s finances as of the end of February, noting the district maintenance fund balance stood at $2,128,728.83. In addition, the district maintenance cash balance, as of Feb. 28, was reported as $3,725,907.18.

She went on to note the district had completed 66 percent of the current school year as of Feb. 28, and FCSD had received 68 percent of its projected revenues while it had already expended 66 percent of its projected expenses to date.

• Adopted an independent audit of the district for fiscal year 2021, which Young characterized as clean with no findings of any material weaknesses in the examination of the school system’s financial practices and its record keeping.

The 104-page document was shared with board members prior to last week’s meeting with the panel praising Young and the district’s financial staff for their work.

Board attorney Lane B. Reed noted copies of the FCSD audit will be provided to the Mississippi State Auditor.

• Approved a three-year lease agreement with Franklin Telephone Co., for the district’s “lit fiber” fiber optic telecommunications network with the costs of the service picked up through the Mississippi E-Rate program, which assists schools and libraries with affordable telephone and internet services.

• Authorized an application for Mississippi Community Oriented Policing Services — better known as MCOPS — grant funding in the amount of $20,000 to help cover the costs of the district’s school resource officers.

Other grants the board gave permission to seek during the session included Kindergarten through Fourth Grade Literacy Support: Summer Reading Camps; Elementary and Secondary Education Act Section 1003(g) funding for professional development; and a Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation program for playground equipment at Franklin County Upper Elementary.

• Approved a service agreement with the Leader In Me program in the amount of $23,017.71.

The district is funding the program over the next two years using federal ESSER dollars, with the amount recommended by Kent through this agreement being used to purchase program materials.

Support for the Leader In Me initiative — instrumental in character building among students along with addressing social and emotional learning standards requirements — had previously been provided through funds from the Franklin County Education Corp.

• Adopted a memorandum of understanding between the district and the Smiles to Go program to provide a dental education and screening program for elementary-age students.

The initiative is offered at no cost to the school system.

• Approved a trip by the Franklin County High School Cheerleaders to attend UCA Cheer Camp July 10-15 at Panama City Beach, Fla., with the squad covering the cost of the annual event.

• Authorized three fund-raisers by student organizations, including the FCHS Cheerleaders’ “Little Girls Cheer Camp” during the summer; the Technology Students Association’s “Mother-Son” Dance planned for Saturday, April 9 and the FCHS Soccer program hosting an Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 16.

• Accepted a school bus turnaround request from a location on Choctaw Road and forwarded the matter to the Franklin County Board of Supervisors for consideration.

• Approved the purchase of a new International school bus — the second such purchase this year — in the amount of $89,500.

• Authorized the hiring of an appraiser for an upcoming 16th Section lease renewal involving five acres.

The lease holder will pay the cost of the appraisal of the land in Township 6 North-Range 4 East.

The next meeting for the Franklin County Board of Education is slated for 4:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 19 in the office of the Superintendent of Education on First Street in Meadville.