Eureka Springs schools have had some absences among students and staff recently, but Covid has not been to blame. Flu symptoms have cropped up throughout the schools, and one board member missed Monday night’s board meeting because of symptoms. Supt. Bryan Pruitt said at the outset of that meeting that no staff or students have tested positive for Covid.
Later in the meeting, the board approved additional stipends for the school nurses who were Covid points of contact. Pruitt described the additional hours the nurses have spent in tackling Covid-related issues. “They’ve kept us safe and in school,” Pruitt said. “They’ve been real troupers.”
The Arkansas Department of Health gave the school $60,000, and the stipends can come from those funds. Nurse Meghan Wolfinbarger will receive $5,000, and Nurse Kevin Vaverka will receive $2,500. Those stipends will not recur unless Covid continues to be a problem for the school. The funds from ADH were also used to purchase a vision scanner for $8,000.
In the absence of Elementary Principal Clare Houser, Middle School Principal Cindy Holt gave the board an update on the two schools. Miss Arkansas, Whitney Williams, visited the elementary school earlier this month. The elementary sent a team to the statewide EAST Lab competitions for the first time. Students in grades K-2 will have a writing assessment next week. Elementary students will take the ACT Aspire test on April 26-29. Some of the recent parent-teacher conferences were led by students.
Holt said good numbers of parents attended conferences, and she was pleased to see so many parents back on campus. Field trips are coming, with grades 7-8 scheduled for visits to the Ozark Natural Science Center. The middle school testing dates are almost the same as the elementary. May 5 is family movie and dinner night, and How to Train Your Dragon will be screened in the gym.
High School Principal David Gilmore said 44 seniors are all on track to graduate. The last day of school for seniors is May 13, and graduation is planned for 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 21. The prom was held April 8.
Joe McClung shared financial knowledge with juniors and seniors, and a self-defense course is planned for April 18-19 for students and teachers. Students have been taking home electronic babies, to give them a taste of the real thing.
The high school is always well represented in state-level skills testing, and this year 11 students went to Hot Springs to compete in areas including electrical, carpentry, and other trades. Students will take state tests April 25-27. A tour of the Connect-4 facilities is planned for May 16, to give students an opportunity to consider if they want to take part in the program as juniors and seniors.
In other business
- In executive session, the board hired Caen Dowell as middle school principal, after Cindy Holt announced last month that she would retire at the end of the school year. Todd Block was hired to teach eighth grade math, and Kelly Swofford will teach fifth grade math and science. Melissa Campbell was hired as a kindergarten teacher, and Whitney McCrary will teach fourth grade. Agri teacher Jason McAfee resigned.
- Pruitt said the three county schools will share a therapist, and they will hire an additional Special Ed teacher to work with the therapist. In response to a question, Pruitt explained that the demand has already caught up with the potential caregivers, and the program is expected to grow.
- The board continued its financial advisory agreement with First Security Beardsley for another three years. Pruitt noted that the company helped the school restructure bonds and save money last year.
- The audit for 2020-21 came back with no adverse findings. Pruitt said the auditors spent two days here, and he gave credit to Treasurer Pam McGarrah for navigating the financial rules and regulations.
- Covid booster shots will be available for anyone over 12 in May.
- The board has tentatively scheduled a walk-through of the facilities at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, May 6.
- The base salary for the coming year will increase from $38,500 to $39,500. Pruitt explained that this is higher than the state minimum, although much less than teachers in Fayetteville, where the starting pay has increased to $50,000. Pruitt noted the downsides that come with teaching in Fayetteville, including larger class sizes. Classified employees will also see raises of almost three percent.
- The school will receive $100,000 as an 80/20 grant from the E-Rate program. The website of the Federal Communications Commission explains that the E-Rate program makes telecommunications and information services more affordable for schools and libraries