The Mitchell County Schools Board of Education passed a budget resolution but without a full budget at their September meeting — the school district is still waiting on funding decisions from the state government before putting together a budget.
“We don’t have a budget,” Finance Director Beth Edwards said. “We’re just going by what we did last year.”
The board also approved a series of changes to school policies recommended by attorney Chad Donnahoo. Donnahoo was filling in for the district’s usual attorney, John Henning.
Donnahoo noted that the policy changes are designed to keep local schools in line with recent changes in state law.
Bullying concerns
Superintendent Chad Calhoun said that the district is considering having a presentation for students on the legal implications of bullying and threats.
“So we are looking at bringing in our District Attorney, Seth Banks, just to talk to parents and the kids that want to attend maybe a meeting at the middle school or high school just about the dangers of social media, the dangers of bullying, the dangers of making statements off the cuff that could be serious legal conflicts,” Calhoun said.
Calhoun noted that reactions to careless remarks have changed over the years.
“I know as a boy that attended school … 20 years ago, phrases that I would have said or other kids would have said then have a lot of different meaning today,” he said. “It was nothing when we were outside playing cowboys and Indians to say, ‘I’m going to kill you.’”
Calhoun said that he would like to have the district attorney help keep parents informed of the kind of situations that obligate the school system to start an investigation.
Harris building plans
Calhoun said that the district has become aware of a grant program that could help turn the old Harris school building into a vocational training center as long as it includes shelter space that could be used in the event of future disasters similar to Hurricane Helene (downgraded to a tropical storm after slowing down over land), and that district staff is looking into applying for the funding.
“They wanted a location that could be a shelter, that would have emergency backup, that could have a commercial kitchen, that could also offer training on the trades that were missing when Hurricane Helene hit,” he said.