NSB hears report to public
ROSSTON – It was a busy night for the Nevada School Board Thursday as the panel dealt with budgets and the annual report to the public.
The meeting began with Jason Arrington, principal, telling the board he’s pleased with the direction the district is heading educationally from an instructional standpoint. He said the district has dedicated teachers who are willing to stay after school to tutor students needing help.
Nevada High School, he added, has reinstituted the National Honor Society, with results already being seen from the students. He added the school has active leadership teams in place.
Arrington gave some important dates for district patrons. On Oct. 2 there will be a school flu clinic held during the morning with a mini-mass clinic in the afternoon. Oct. 12 is the end of the first nine weeks and parent-teacher conferences will be Oct. 18.
Superintendent Rick McAfee said the school will try to have a fundraiser on Oct. 11 to help raise money for a batting cage for the baseball team, along with covers for the warm-up mound. Plans, he said, are to have a hamburger supper prior to the annual Blue-Gray basketball game. So far, he added, 24 have signed up to play baseball for the Blue Jays.
Turning to the annual report to the public, McAfee addressed the different budgets for the district, federal programs, special education, the school improvement plan and the school lunch program.
On the federal level, he said, the US Department of Education is requiring all districts to use the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Schools are given an index score using five data points (weighted achievement, growth scores, school quality, four year graduation rate and five year graduation rate) and is then assigned a letter grade. Both NES and NHS received “C”s. Both schools are fully accredited and meet all required standards of the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE). He added, this information can be found on the district’s website at: www.nevadaschooldistrict.net.
The district, he said, is committed to teach, evaluate and disseminate programs and strategies to help grow students’ abilities to think skillfully and critically. It’s providing additional support and taking the following steps to address goals set by the district’s school improvement teams. First, the district is working to upgrade the Acellus computer lab dealing with math and literacy and includes the latest information on science requirements. This program is used in the classroom along with home tutoring for grade recovery. Grade recovery allows students to get back on track to graduate on time by taking courses they may not have passed during the regular school session.
NSL, state professional development and Title I funds, he said, will be used to provide quality professional development to help make sure the students are being taught using the most up-to-date and best practices available.
Arrington invited parents to become more active and involved with the district, suggesting they attend parent-teacher conferences; volunteer to mentor students at school; meet with teachers, counselors and administrators; make sure their child(ren) are ready for school daily; monitor their child(rens) homework; and call the district if there are any problems. The number is 870-871-2418.
Board member Todd Brown asked about the lunch program and whether the district will be able to continue offering free meals to all students. McAfee said this is still up in the air. He told the board 87 percent of the district’s families qualify for the free and reduced lunch program, but the ADE is claiming the figure is 43 percent. The district, he continued, has to prove at least 75 percent of the district qualifies to stay funded. Otherwise, he added, the district could have to cut back in other areas to provide free lunches for students.
Jokingly, McAfee said Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson did approve spending district funds to purchase weapons for schools.
The board approved all budgets along with the district’s minority recruitment program. McAfee said 13 new teachers were hired for this year, with four being minority applicants.
In talking about the 2017 audit, McAfee said there were a few findings, but nothing major and all have been corrected.
The board agreed to move next month’s meeting to Oct. 22.