Eureka Springs School Board heard the district’s three principals on Monday night describe a campus gradually returning to normal after a challenging year.
Principal Clare Lesieur listed the enrollment at the elementary school at 182, and only 14 of those are virtual students at this point. “They’ve been trickling back,” she said. Students will begin ACT Aspire testing next week, and those distance-learning students will have to test on campus. Even in a difficult year, Lesieur found bright spots, including overall reading proficiency. “It’s been a very successful year in spite of so many things,” she said.
In attendance were members of the elementary school’s Guiding Coalition, whom Lesieur presented to the board. The team includes Tilenna Hill, Danielle Purvis, Alyissa Horton, Carrie Gay, Carrie Freeman, Karen Colby, Jerry Wells, Patty Brill, Mandy Elsey, Gail Hunter, Jenn Robison, and Chrys McClung. Lesieur thanked them “for the extra time and effort you contribute toward continuous improvements at the elementary school.”
Middle School Principal Cindy Holt emphasized the contributions of the test coordinators in the three schools. This testing season always presents difficulties for them, but especially this year. Testing distance-learning students on campus will present new logistical problems.
At the high school, overall enrollment has declined slightly, to 187, with 35 of them learning from home. Principal David Gilmore said ACT Aspire testing began Monday for grades 9-10, and explained some of the ways the school encourages optimal performance. “We let them know how important it is to get a good night’s sleep,” he said. The school provides breakfast to help keep the students at their best. Gilmore noted that all the virtual students who had appointments for testing had showed up as scheduled.
Extra-curricular pursuits are popular
Parent-teacher conferences were scheduled for Wednesday after school, Gilmore said. He mentioned the number of students involved in track, soccer, and shooting sports. The shooting sports team will include some middle schoolers, and all students complete safety training and a Hunter’s Ed course. The chess club competed well last week at the state level. Gilmore also mentioned that a trainer came to school for two cultural sensitivity training sessions for students.
The district plans to teach all students in person in the 2021-22 school year, although those long-range plans will include contingency planning for distance learning. Parents can review and comment on the district’s Ready for Learning plan on the school website.
Pay hike for teachers
The state has increased the minimum pay for teachers to $36,000. Eureka Springs currently has a base pay of $37,000, and the board voted to increase that to $37,500. They also voted a percentage raise for classified personnel. Supt. Bryan Pruitt noted that some schools will receive grant funds to help pay for teacher raises, but this district will not, because the pay rate was already above the new minimum level.
The Arkansas School Boards Association sends out annual recommendations on policy changes, and the board voted to adopt those changes. The new policies include two hours of bullying prevention for teachers.
This meeting was held in the Middle School Library, which has been equipped as a Zoom room. The video quality for the Zoom connection was good, but board member Jason Morris, attending by Zoom, continued to have a loud recurring electronic squawk on his outgoing signal. Within the library, Board President Chris McClung did not have any amplification, and with masks and social distancing, he became difficult to hear. When the air handler came on, that challenge increased greatly.