JESSIEVILLE -- A member of the Jessieville School Board resigned prior to the April 21 meeting due to the district's consideration to hire his spouse.
Nicholas Sarver's resignation was the first item approved by the board on April 21, according to the unofficial minutes from the meeting. He was one of two members elected to the board in 2014.
Sam Ault was also elected in 2014 to serve the final four years of the Position 5 seat vacated by former board president Joey Herrington. Sarver won election in Position 3 to serve the final two years of the term, which will expire in September.
Sarver had served as secretary of the board. Members approved Ault as the new board secretary at the meeting.
Sarver's wife, Amanda Sarver, was one of two assistant principals hired during the meeting. She was hired for grades K-5, while James Saveall was hired for grades 6-12.
According to state law, a "board member's family member may not be initially employed by the public educational entity the member serves during the member's tenure of service on the local board for compensation in excess of five thousand dollars ($5,000) unless the Commissioner of Education issues a letter of exemption and approves the employment contract based on unusual and limited circumstances."
A family member of a board member already employed by a district in the year prior to a board member's election can continue employment under the same terms and conditions of their previous contract or any renewal.
The board spent more than an hour in executive session, according to the unofficial minutes. The first decision after the executive session was to approve Ault as secretary.
Board members approved a motion to adopt a stipend list addition of district parental involvement coordinator, hired Shanda Powell as a high school education teacher and hired Jed Johnson as elementary school principal on the new 210-day administrator salary schedule.
Johnson was among administrators previously rehired by the district during the regular monthly meeting April 11. He is currently the alternative learning environment director.
Jessieville High School Principal Toby Packard and Melissa Speers, director of special programs, were rehired on 240-day contracts. Johnson and Bob Pymn, middle school principal, were rehired on 210-day contracts.
Kendal Glomski, the current elementary school principal, was hired on a 220-day contract to become the district's K-12 curriculum coordinator/specialist. She will receive a stipend as the district's 504 coordinator.
The new administrator salary schedule will likely be approved in May.
"We don't have that finished yet," said Superintendent Ralph Carter. "Moving people around is what is going to end up happening."
The district vowed to advertise for the administrative positions internally. Saveall is a high school science teacher, assistant football coach and baseball coach. Amanda Sarver works with the Dawson Education Cooperative in Jessieville's preschool program.
"They are replacing dean of students positions," Carter said. "They are not technically brand-new, but we had two deans of students and now we are going to have two assistant principals that are fully certified."
The current deans of students are Don Phillips and Marty Castleberry, who is in his second year with the district. Phillips recently announced his retirement after 29 years as head coach of the football team.
Members also approved a motion to transfer Amanda Bean from elementary teacher to reading interventionist for grades K-5.
The board is next scheduled to meet for its regular monthly meeting on May 9.
Local on 04/29/2016