01. Approval of Agenda

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

A motion is in order to approve or revise the meeting agenda for October 21, 2019.

Groups audience:

School Board

02. Public Comment

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

The board of education, as an elected representative body of the school system, wishes to provide a forum for citizens to express interests and concerns related to the school system. In order that the board may conduct an order meeting while providing an opportunity for input, individuals or groups may be heard by the board in accordance with policy 2310, Public Participation at Board Meetings, or policy 2300, Board Meetings (subsection D.2).

Each month, the first part of at least one regularly scheduled board meeting will be set aside for citizens to address the board through public comment.

A sign-up sheet will be available 30 minutes before the meeting begins for any individual or group to indicate their desire to address the board.

Each speaker will receive 3 minutes to present comments. The public comment session will not exceed 30 minutes total except by majority vote of the board.

The board chair will recognize speakers in the order in which they signed in. Substitute speakers will not be permitted and speakers may not donate any portion of their time to another speaker. If a speaker is unable to present all of his or her information within the specified time limit, the speaker may provide the board with additional information in written form. If an unusually large number of people requests to speak, a majority of the board may decide to reduce the time for each individual or to require the designation of a spokesperson for each group of persons supporting or opposing the same positions. At any time, the board may establish additional procedures to ensure that public comment sessions proceed in an efficient and order manner.

Board members will not respond to individuals who address the board except to request clarification of points made by the presenter.

Except in cases of emergency, information received during presentations will not be acted upon at the time it is received. It will take unanimous vote of the board members present to take action on a presentation considered to be of an unusual or emergency nature at the time it is presented.

Disruptions by any person or persons of a public meeting will be subject to action in accordance with G.S. 143-318.17.

Complaints about the performance of school personnel, implementation of board policy, the quality of the educational program, or school facilities should be submitted initially for a response to the school system official responsible for the program or facility or to the superintendent. The superintendent or designee shall make available policy 2310, Public Participation at Board Meetings, and other relevant grievance procedures to any individual or group submitting a complaint.

The board may choose to offer a second opportunity for public comment at the end of the meeting. Sign-ups will not be required for the second public comment opportunity.

No solicitations will be allowed during public comment.

Groups audience:

School Board

03. Good News Report

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship	X	Action	X
Excellent Educators	X	Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students	X	Discussion
Operations and Support	X

25-Year Recognitions

Each year the board recognizes the employees who have achieved 25 years of service with the Transylvania County Schools. The board would like to congratulate and present 25-year pins to the individuals listed below for their commitment to public education:

Cindy Ayers, Office Support, Rosman Elementary School

Brenda Byrd, Technology Support, Morris Education Center

Michelle Cabe, Teacher, Rosman Elementary School

Kelly Clark, Office Support, Morris Education Center

Stacie Dotson, Teacher, Rosman High School

Missy Ellenberger, Director, Morris Education Center

Mellissa Howell, Teacher, Brevard Middle School

Debbie Keever, Office Support, Brevard Middle School

Leasa Stanley, Assistant Manager, Brevard High School Cafeteria

Community Donations Provide New Washer/Dryer for RMS/RHS

Lake Toxaway Charities and the Rosman Mentors partnered together to find a way to solve a need for Rosman Middle and Rosman High students who do not have access to laundry equipment in their own homes. With a recent donation of nearly $13,000, a new industrial washer and dryer are being purchased that will be used to launder clothing for students in need, and also athletic gear for Rosman athletes year-round. Both RMS and RHS are continually grateful for the partnerships with both of these organizations and the assistance they provide to our students and community.

Winners at the WNC Mountain State Fair

Students from Brevard and Rosman Agricultural Sciences/FFA, and Food Sciences/FCCLA competed in livestock, prepared foods, and other areas of the WNC Mountain State Fair in September. Winners went on to the NC State Fair in Raleigh this past weekend. Congratulations to all these students and their teachers, from elementary to high school.

National Custodial Worker Day

October 2, 2019 was National Custodian Day. We love our school custodians who work so diligently to keep our schools clean and looking good. They always have a smile for students, staff, and visitors; they lend a hand whenever needed; and they are the first line of defense in the war on germs. Please take a moment to say “thank you” the hardest working people in our buildings for all they do to make Transylvania County Schools a great place to work and learn.

National Principals’ Month

Principals are among the hardest working unsung heroes in education. They set the academic tone for their schools, and it is their vision, dedication and determination that drive the efforts toward achieving student success. Each October, the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NCASSP) and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) recognizes principals for their tireless efforts in pursuit of educational excellence. We join that effort and honor our own outstanding school leaders:

Carrie Norris, Brevard Elementary School

Dr. Bryan Abernethy, Brevard High School

Jeff Bailey, Brevard Middle School

Barbara Grimm, Davidson River School

Tonya Treadway, Pisgah Forest Elementary School

Bob Dinsdale, Rosman Elementary School

Jason Ormsby, Rosman High School

Scott Strickler, Rosman Middle School

Audrey Reneau, T. C. Henderson School of Science & Technology

National School Lunch Week

National School Lunch Week 2019 is celebrated October 14-18. This year’s theme, “School Lunch: What’s on Your Playlist,” was designed to spotlight how school cafeterias are serving up menu items that kids want to eat, with increased choice and customization. Be sure to share in the celebration with your school’s nutrition staff and show your appreciation for all they do every day.

National School Bus Safety Week

The week of October 21-25, 2019 is National School Bus Safety Week, with the theme “My School Bus, The Safest Form of Student Transportation.” Each year’s theme is derived from the winning entry in the NAPT’s (National Association for Pupil Transportation) student poster contest held the year before. We are very proud of the excellent safety record of our county’s school bus drivers and the members of our transportation team for all they do to support and keep our students safe.

National Bullying Prevention Month & National Unity Day

October is National Bullying Prevention Month and Wednesday, October 23 is National Unity Day. The goal of Unity Day is to bring together students, parents, educators, businesses, and others to emphasize that bullying is not acceptable and that all students deserve to be safe in school, online, and in the community. Because Unity Day is held in October, and orange is a color commonly identified with that month and also associated with safety and visibility, supporters across the nation will wear orange on October 23 to spread awareness at school, in the community, and on social media.

National Red Ribbon Week

The week of October 23-31 is Red Ribbon Week in schools and communities across the nation. The 2019 National Red Ribbon Week theme is “Send a Message. Stay Drug Free.” It is a reminder to students that by staying drug free, you are sending a message about how much you value yourself, your health, your community, and your future. Red Ribbon Week reaches over 80 million people each year throughout the United States. Schools will have activities all week long to reinforce healthy, drug-free choices.

American Education Week

American Education Week is November 18-22, 2019. With the theme, “Great Public Schools: A Basic Right and Our Responsibility,” American Education Week is a time to celebrate public education and honor the individuals who are ensuring that every child receives a quality education. Each year the board recognizes the observance by adopting a proclamation designating American Education Week in Transylvania County (see attached). In addition, all current and retired school system employees are invited to a free Thanksgiving lunch as guests of the board on a designated day in November. This year’s Thanksgiving lunch will be held on Thursday, November 14 in all school cafeterias. The Transylvania County Retired School Personnel will meet on Thursday, November 21 at Pisgah Forest Elementary School.

A motion is in order to approve the American Education Week 2019 proclamation.

For more good news from Transylvania County Schools, please visit us at:

Home Page: www.tcsnc.org ǀ Facebook: facebook.com/transylvaniaschools

Twitter: twitter.com/transylvaniasch ǀ Flickr: flickr.com/tcsnc

Instagram: Instagram.com/transylvaniaschools ǀ YouTube: youtube.com/tcsnc

Smartphone App: Transylvania County Schools on Play Store and iTunes

SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/transylvaniacountyschools

Public Attachments:

American Education Week Proclamation 2019.pdf

Good News Report 10-21-19.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

04. Former Students in the Military

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

The board wishes to thank the former students from Brevard High School, Rosman High School, and Davidson River School who are currently serving or have previously served in the U.S. Military. The attached list of names is recognized at every meeting and read aloud twice a year in recognition of Veterans Day and Memorial Day. Additional names will be included as they are received.

Public Attachments:

Military List 10-21-19.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

05. Consent Agenda

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators	X	Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

The following items are submitted for consent approval (see attachments):

Minutes of the September 16, 2019 meeting
Personnel report for October 21, 2019
Change the November 18, 2019 board meeting to November 21, 2019 due to a conflict with the NCSBA Annual Conference for Board Member Development on November 18‑20, 2019

A motion is in order to approve the consent agenda items.

Public Attachments:

Minutes 9-16-19.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

06. Request for Authorization of School Trip

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship	X	Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

For the past seven years, Brevard High School has participated in an international exchange with the Mariagerfjord Gymnasium high school in Hobro, Denmark. The exchange participants spend a week with host families, attend school, and explore local areas and historical sites. In 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2019, students from Hobro came to visit Brevard High School. In 2014, 2016, and 2018, students from BHS traveled to Denmark. Members of the Denmark Exchange Committee (Sara Plum, Laura Patch, Candice Burchill, David Cornett, and Leslie Taylor) will present a request to approve a student exchange trip to Denmark in the spring of 2020. Details about the trip are included in the attached summary.

School trips that require travel outside of the continental United States must be approved by the board upon recommendation by the superintendent or designee. Policy 3320 (School Trips), and regulations 3320-R are attached.

The board may approve the superintendent’s recommendation for the Brevard High School educational exchange trip to Denmark in April 2020.

Public Attachments:

Denmark Educational Exchange_Spring 2020.pdf

3320__School Trips.pdf

3320-R__School Trips.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

07. Calendar Waiver Request 2020-2021

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

State calendar law requires that schools begin no earlier than the Monday closest to August 26 and close no later than the Friday closest to June 11. If approved for a weather-related waiver, the opening date may be no earlier than the Monday closest to August 19. Transylvania County Schools qualifies for a weather-related calendar waiver for 2020-2021 (see attached). The waiver would allow Transylvania to continue having a mid-week start, a practice that has received much positive feedback from stakeholders.

A motion is in order to approve the calendar waiver request for the 2020-2021 school year.

Public Attachments:

Calendar Waiver 2020-2021.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

08. Policy 3460, Graduation Requirements

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship	X	Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

At the September meeting, Dr. McDaris informed the board of recent legislative action that would eliminate senior projects as a requirement for high school graduation. As a result of the new law, Dr. Brian Weaver will present a revision to policy 3460, Graduation Requirements, for board approval. The revised policy is attached.

A motion is in order to approve policy 3460 as presented.

Missy Ellenberger and Vera Cubero will give a presentation on the Transylvania County Schools Career and College Readiness portfolio https://sites.google.com/tcsnc.org/tcs-ccr-portfolio/home.

Public Attachments:

Policy 3460_revised.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

09. FY19 Budget Amendments

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

Norris Barger will present two budget amendments for the 2018-2019 fiscal year (see attached):

Budget Amendment – Federal Grants Fund

Budget Amendment – Capital Outlay Fund

A motion is in order to approve the FY19 budget amendments.

Public Attachments:

FY19 Budget Amendments #5 thru June 30 adjusted.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

10. FY20 Budget

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

Dr. McDaris and Mr. Barger will give an update on the 2019-2020 budget, including state budget activity.

Groups audience:

School Board

11. Appointments to Community Relations Board

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

Earlier this year, the Community Relations Board (CRB) of Transylvania County invited the Board of Education to appoint three members to the CRB. They requested that two of the members be high school students and the third to be anyone of the board’s choosing. At the last meeting, the board appointed Alice Wellborn as one of the members. Dr. McDaris will recommend Rebecca Milligan (BHS) and Carla Bolanos (BHS) as the student representatives.

The board may approve the superintendent’s recommendation(s) to the Community Relations Board at this time.

Groups audience:

School Board

12. Superintendent's Update

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

Dr. McDaris will give an update on current and emerging educational issues.

Groups audience:

School Board

13. Important Dates

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

Oct. 24-25	Teacher workdays
Oct. 26	Public School Forum of NC: “Color of Education” Summit	8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.	Raleigh
Nov. 8	Early dismissal – students	12:00 p.m.
Nov. 11	Veterans’ Day holiday
Nov. 14	Annual Thanksgiving lunch for TCS staff and retirees		All school cafeterias
Nov. 21	REGULAR MEETING	6:30 p.m.	MEC
Nov. 18-20	NCSBA 50^th Annual Conference for Board Member Development		Greensboro
Nov. 27	Annual leave (no students)
Nov. 28-29	Thanksgiving holidays

Groups audience:

School Board

14. Reports from Training Events

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

North Carolina statute requires board of education members to receive a minimum of 12 hours of professional development training every two years. Local board policy states that members who attend a professional development activity will provide a report of the event to other board members. On September 26, all five board members and the superintendent attended the NCSBA District 8 meeting in Franklin. On October 3, Mrs. Domokur and Mrs. Wellborn attended the UNC School of Government Conference, “Working Together: Counties, School Boards, and Local Funding,” in Chapel Hill. On October 17-18, Mrs. Domokur attended the NCSBA 2019 Fall Law Conference in Asheville. Members will have an opportunity to give reports from the training events.

Groups audience:

School Board

15. NCSBA Voting Delegates 2019

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action	X
Excellent Educators		Information
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

The North Carolina School Boards Association 50^th Annual Conference for Board Member Development will be held on November 16-18, 2019 in Greensboro. Each local board is asked to certify the members that will serve as voting delegates at the conference and send the names to NCSBA (see attached memo). Mrs. Domokur and Mr. Griffin are registered to attend the conference.

A motion is in order to appoint the member(s) that will represent the Transylvania County Board of Education on all voting matters at the NCSBA 2019 Annual Conference.

Public Attachments:

voting delegates 2019 form.pdf

Groups audience:

School Board

16. Public Comment

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

The board will provide a second opportunity for public comment.

Groups audience:

School Board

17. Other Items

Strategic Priority		Reason for Consideration
Graduates Prepared for Work, Higher Education and Citizenship		Action
Excellent Educators		Information	X
Healthy, Safe and Responsible Students		Discussion
Operations and Support	X

An opportunity will be provided for comments and/or other items from board members.

Groups audience:

School Board

IV. Business Items

01. Approval of Agenda

02. Public Comment

03. Good News Report

04. Former Students in the Military

05. Consent Agenda

06. Request for Authorization of School Trip

07. Calendar Waiver Request 2020-2021

08. Policy 3460, Graduation Requirements

09. FY19 Budget Amendments

10. FY20 Budget

11. Appointments to Community Relations Board

12. Superintendent's Update

13. Important Dates

14. Reports from Training Events

15. NCSBA Voting Delegates 2019

16. Public Comment

17. Other Items