Tag: school board

GCCS Board Approves Revised Spring Semester Calendar

During last night’s meeting of the Greater Clark County School Corporation Board of School Trustees, school board members approved a revised calendar for the second semester of the 2020-2021 school year. The approved calendar is similar to what had been previously approved by the board — with the same dates for semester start, semester end, graduation, and spring break — but with the addition of seven additional e-learning days. 

The e-learning days will be asynchronous and will take place every other Friday. According to a message sent to parents and staff, these built-in days will “allow GCCS staff the ability to increase parent communication, hold in-person assessment opportunities for online students, and receive ongoing professional development.” 

In presenting the calendar to the board, Superintendent Mark Laughner called the plan a “very good compromise” and noted that the district is “trying to balance the needs of all stakeholders, which in this situation is very difficult.” He also noted that the Clark county health department or the state could require the district to switch to e-learning at any time.

The approved calendar preserves a two-week spring break starting March 22. The calendar does not call for e-learning over spring break. 

The majority of the discussion prior to voting was not about the dates on the calendar, but rather about how much notice and involvement parents should have in the calendar approval process. Board members commented that they had received two kinds of input leading up to the meeting: some parents and businesses asked for a quick decision on the calendar so they could make plans, while others pushed for more time to review the proposal before a vote. Laughner noted that with the exception of COVID-19 and moving to a balanced schedule, “we typically do not survey parents.” In the end, the board was split on their vote but did approve the calendar as submitted.

As for Jeff High students, they see good and bad sides of the plan. Junior Abby Napper said, “I wish they would’ve kept the 2 weeks on, and 1 week off, but I like it the way it is now.” Junior Benjamin Broady says the smaller number of e-learning days would be okay “if they weren’t so scattered in nature.” However, Broady noted, “I guess it makes more room for more instructional time.”

Written by The Hyphen News staff

by jhshyphen

More to the Story: Q&A With GCCS Board Members

What is your goal for the upcoming year?
Janelle Fitzpatrick: A place for students to learn in and have no limits on their future … a place where educators want to work … [to] move forward with the Academy and Pathway system, as well as listen to the concerns of the people (teachers, students, parents) and address them. Also, look at each school individually. They aren’t all the same, and deal with issues at each individual one. I want more people to feel as though they can share their concerns and be listened to – students, teachers, anyone wanting to be heard on a certain subject.

John Buckwalter: I am honored to be a board member and to move in a forward motion. I’m excited to collaborate with the community and it is very critical to move forward to do the best for GCCS.

Milton Clayton: For 2019, we will be monitoring the downtown school building and securing a temporary interim superintendent until we get one in place for the long run.

Which is better for our new superintendent: someone from our area or an outsider?

John Buckwalter: We need fresh eyes to address these topics and issues and someone who is ready to move forward and not focus on the past.

Milton Clayton: You’re not going to make everyone happy, but we’ll make the best educated decision to benefit GCCS. I’m happy to work with the new members and to welcome them, as well as new faces and perspectives, to the board. We cannot limit our options when it comes to getting a new superintendent.

Katie Hutchison: Someone from this area would be someone from inside the community and knows the little sub-communities as well as the history behind the area, and would probably be here to stay. Someone that isn’t from around here might not have the roots or the means to stay … but they’d bring fresh thoughts to the operation.

Written by Haylee Hedrick

by jhshyphen

GCCS Board Swears in New Members

john-buckwalter-swearing-injanelle-fitzpatrick-swearing-in.jpg

Finding a new superintendent is a pressing issue for the new school district leaders.

Later this year, Greater Clark County Schools is expected to name a new superintendent. However, change has already started to take place, as three new school board members were sworn in on Jan. 8: Janelle Fitzpatrick, John Buckwalter and Bill Hawkins.

On Dec. 24, 2018, Dr. Andrew Melin resigned as the superintendent of GCCS. Now the school board – which consists of the three new members as well as Milton Clayton, Teresa Perkins, Christina Gilkey and Katie Hutchison – is facing the immediate challenge of filling the top position in the district.

At the Jan. 8 school board meeting, Hutchinson was named president of the board and proceeded to run the meeting. Other newly filled positions included Fitzpatrick as vice president and Clayton as secretary. “It’s kind of scary to be the new vice president of the board, but also exciting to make some positive changes and to work with Katie and the whole board,” Fitzpatrick said.

“The number one goal is to find a superintendent and fill that empty chair at the table,” Hutchinson said.

The new superintendent must be ready for change in any direction. There are different ideas of which direction that should be. For instance, the school board isn’t sure if they will limit their search to people from within the community or expand it beyond the Greater Clark County school district.

“You’re not going to make everyone happy, but we’ll make the best educated decision to benefit GCCS,” Clayton said.

Buckwalter said the new superintendent must be “a good listener, equitable, and ready to take on the task of increasing our climate and culture.”

Until the new superintendent is selected, Charlestown High School principal Mark Laughner is serving as interim superintendent. Laughner was named to the interim superintendent position effective Jan. 23. The contract approved by the board will expire on June 30, 2019.

Written by Haylee Hedrick and Emma Ellis

Photos by Haylee Hedrick

by jhshyphen

Meet the Candidates: Greater Clark County School Board

Education is powerful, and when accompanied by new perspectives it can lead to great transformations within our school system. Change is coming to the Greater Clark County Schools board, as potential new members representing districts one, three and four will be voted on during the Nov. 6 election.

On Oct. 3 a meeting was held at Jeffersonville High School at which school board candidates answered questions from the public (including residents, teachers, parents of students and even some students) at a “meet the candidates” forum. Tara Cofie, a member of the JHS debate team, was the facilitator of the event.

Few of the school board candidates were present at this event. Bill Hawkins (District 1), John Stagner (District 3 ), Nick Duran (District 4 ) and Kevin Anderson (District 3) couldn’t make it due other commitments. The three that were able to make it were Janelle Fitzpatrick (District 4), John Buckwalter (District 3) and Lucas Hostetler (District 1).

Before the audience started asking questions, the candidates each introduced themselves to let the public know their background what they can bring to the table. Fitzpatrick discussed her teaching career and her job as a stand-up comedian.

Buckwalter referred to himself as a lifelong educator and explained his time within the Woodrow Wilson program. Hostetler, who is from the New Washington area, shared how supportive he is of that community and his background in management.

Why are you running for school board?

Cofie started off the questioning with, “Why are you running for school board?” The candidates responded with the following.

Janelle Fitzpatrick: Being a teacher in GCCS for past 20 years, I saw lots of good
programs and lots of changes in what was expected of teachers, the time constraint, larger class sizes and not a whole lot of pay raise, especially when benefits cost more. Change is needed. I want to do some rebuilding (in trust with the community) and make Greater Clark a place where teachers are happy to work.

John Buckwalter: There have been surveys conducted but not acted upon… the purpose of the board is to address that. Every teacher sacrifices being a spouse, a parent, and doing whatever they do in their spare time, but they do so because we are all student-centered. Someone has to do something about this, and I’m crazy enough to do it and I feel like I can make a difference [and what I’m trying to say is] if not now, then when?

Lucas Hostetler: I’ve had teacher’s husband showing up to things but the teachers themselves didn’t, they didn’t want to be associated due to fear… I knew then I am running for a very good reason. That was what kind of solidified me to want to run even more than I already did. I want you guys to hold me accountable because I will hold you accountable if you’re working your tails off in the classroom and you’re not getting what you want, you have to hold me accountable to speak for you.

How will you handle people who disagree?

Next, an audience member asked, “What happens when the people speak up and you (school board member) don’t agree with what they have to say, how will you respond?” The candidates responses are as follows.

Janelle Fitzpatrick: Any time you have more than one person in the room, you can have a difference of opinion. I’d like to see more balance. There needs to be more balance and then the more you all can bring up, it will be listened to because it needs to be listened to. We need to get more ideas and poll our people; I believe we will really go along way.

John Buckwalter: You’re the voice and when you work for the people that’s what it’s about: take what is said by the majority and then make educated best decisions with it. I would like to hope that there’s a symbiotic relationship between you and your board members so that we’re helping each other here and I’m making the best decision. You know sometimes you might not make best decisions, but you made it with the facts you had in front of you.

Lucas Hostetler: When you create an atmosphere and an energy that people want in a school, business, or corporation, it’s a positive. I hope and I pray that [the atmosphere] changes with this next election and you can go to school board meetings and actually say “I don’t want this.” And myself, hopefully, can say, “I really don’t think they want this, but what’s best in five years?” I think with better communication, we can get to that point and stronger leadership is needed for improvement.

All the candidates claim they can make needed changes to the system. We’ll see who has the chance after the election on Nov. 6.

By Haylee Hedrick

by jhshyphen