The Warren Co. Board of Education met Monday night at the Bobby Ray Elementary School and voted 4-2 to recommend and not require students to mask up at school if the positivity rate is at 25 percent or more. As of Tuesday the rate was at 21.3 percent. The board also passed unanimously that if students or teachers are in quarantine they can stay as long as they wear a mask. Director of Schools Grant Swallows that there are 120 students out of just over 6,000 that has tested positive, which is 0.2 percent. 895 students are quarantined. He added that the focus should be educating kids in addition to keeping them safe. If the rate goes above 25 percent positive rate masks will be recommended but parents can opt their kids out per Governor Lee’s Executive Order 84 passed earlier this month. While most school board members want kids to mask up school board member Tommy Culwell said it should also all on the parents to be responsible and not send their kids to school sick. Voting in favor of recommending masks and not requiring were CHairperson Tanya Bess, Helen Martin, Tommy Culwell and Sue Anderson. Voting against were James Bennett and Bill Zechman.
In other business, Classified Employee of the Year went to Special Education Teacher Angela Bond. Certified Employee of the Year went to Chad Young, a Special Education Teacher at Irving College Elementary.
Director Swallows said they have a list of projects for the ESSER 3.0. The 18.9 million dollars in federal money must be spent by September 2024.
Also the district school bookkeepers were recognzed for a completely clean audit, which is the first in history. Swallows praised the bookkeepers for their hard work.