March 2020 Report Card by ASBA

The Journal of The arkansas school Boards associaTion

Report Card Here comes the sun

The Batesville School District closed campuses, underwent a top to bottom energy audit, and installed solar energy panels. Thanks to the resulting energy savings, the superintendent, Dr. Michael Hester, and the school board were able to raise salaries between $2,000 and $9,000. Now the district is looking for a partner that will enable it to install more panels and save even more on its energy costs. Meanwhile, other school districts are finding that solar energy now makes sense – and cents.

College and/or career

Have you called a plumber lately?

Have you had your car repaired? Has someone fixed your computer?

These jobs have three things in common: They pay well; skilled people are needed to fill them; and they don’t require a college degree.

For far too long, schools took the approach that all students should go to college.

This approach hurt everyone. It treated non-college-bound students like second-class citizens and left them unprepared for good-paying jobs. It taught college-bound students that obtaining a degree – any degree, no matter how useful – was better than learning workforce skills that would get them an actual job. It left jobs unfilled and work undone. It sent a message that there was something demeaning about honest, hard work.

The result was a lot of wasted potential. Elsewhere in this magazine, Sherri Fite, ASBA’s new communications and technology director, said that when she was a teacher, businesses would call with open jobs looking for students who weren’t going to college. Unfortunately, students had been told for so long that they had to go to college that they wouldn’t admit they had other plans.

Don’t get me wrong: Every student who needs a college degree should get one. That’s why at Greenbrier, we’ve

by Randy Goodnight ASBA President

partnered with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock so high school students can earn college credit. In fact, they can earn a two-year associate’s degree while still in high school. It’s cheap, and they take classes under their hometown teachers. Then they can earn their four-year degree in two years if that’s what they want to do.

Greenbrier is also committed to helping students go straight from high school into the workforce. Approximately 26 students travel by bus after lunch to the Conway Area Career Center every day. Twelve students are obtaining certificates in welding, an always needed workforce skill. Other students have studied cosmetology, drafting and construction.

Greenbrier’s offerings can lead to careers in themselves, or they can be a stepping stone to jobs that might require

a college degree. Through the Teacher Cadet Program, students who pass the ParaPro Assessment are considered “highly qualified” and can serve a variety of roles in the Greenbrier School District after graduating. They can do child care, recess duty, and serve as special education assistants. Those jobs come with full benefits but don’t require a degree. They also can work in a private daycare with those skills.

You won’t get rich doing those jobs, but they could be the difference between a paycheck and a welfare check. They can help students earn money while attending college to become a teacher. Or, graduates can work in the district for a while and decide if they want to pursue their education further. You don’t HAVE to go to college immediately after graduating.

Students should be neither railroaded into going to college or roadblocked from achieving their best. Some students should go. Some should enter the workforce. And some should enter the workforce and then go to college later when they’re ready and know what they want to do.

Let’s never again think in terms of college vs. career. Instead, it should be college and/or career. After all, are you doing exactly what you thought you’d be doing back when you were 18?

Revitalizing A Campus

10 Dr. Michael Hester, Batesville’s superintendent, stands beneath a solar canopy in front of the high school. The canopy helps the district reduce its energy costs and also provides much-needed relief from the weather. The community thinks it’s cool, too.

The Batesville School District had too-high electricity bills and too-low teacher salaries. Both problems were addressed by conducting a full energy audit, reducing its footprint, and making energy-saving improvements, including installing solar energy panels. The result: lower bills along with staff salary raises of $2,000-$3,000 and even up to $9,000. Other districts are also installing solar panels now that the price tag has fallen. Neighboring districts Cedar Ridge and Midland are doing it together, further reducing their energy costs.

13 Panel: Study adequacy now

At ASBA’s Annual Conference, panelists voiced support for revisiting the funding matrix and warned of attacks on school advocacy groups, along with a lawsuit that threatens property tax revenues across Arkansas.

14 ‘A moment of enormous change’ in power

Renewable energy is creating “a moment of enormous change in the electric utility industry,” attorney Jason Carter with the Arkansas Municipal Power Association said in ASBA’s annual School Law Seminar Feb. 13.

19 Lee offers 10 school governance ‘laws’

Consultant Dr. David Lee, a former teacher, administrator and board member, presented 10 “laws” for board governance in a breakout session at the Annual Conference.

Let the experts at Entegrity show you how to first REDUCE your energy use and then PRODUCE clean renewable energy.

by Dr. Tony Prothro

Letter from the Executive Director

We should be able to agree: E-cigs hurt kids

America has always had its share of controversy and split opinions concerning certain types of consumable products such as alcohol, illegal and/or prescription drugs, tobacco and other types of recreational products. This controversy dates back to the Prohibition era and earlier. However, most everyone agrees that products that might be consumable and legal for adults may not be suitable for underage users. One such product is the e-cigarette. School officials and others have worked for years to curb school age students’ use of tobacco. Much progress has been made in recent decades to the point where cigarette smoking among students is at an all-time low. This decline can be attributed to a variety of interventions including accurate information concerning the ill effects of smoking.

However, the introduction of the e-cigarette has had an alarming impact on school-age students. Principals and other school officials will attest that the use of the e-cigarette has made a direct impact on today’s youth. More than one in four high school students currently uses e-cigarettes. A recent study showed that 70 percent of the students who use e-cigarettes do so because of the large variety of flavors from which to choose. It has become such an epidemic that Congress recently introduced HR 2339,

The Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2019, to prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products, including flavored e-cigarettes. At the state level, Arkansas Sen. Jim Hendren has also advocated for possible legislation to address this serious issue.

So, what has been the impact of e-cigarettes? Since more than 25 percent of the students use e-cigarettes, it has become a major issue in schools. Most principals can readily show you the confiscated e-cigarettes in a variety of forms. Some of the e-cigarettes are disguised to look like thumb drives, pens, or other common items. Schools are spending valuable funds for detection devices in bathrooms and common use areas. The e-cigarette epidemic is also taking a toll on administrative and teaching time used in detecting the product, conducting investigations and dispensing punishment. Some school districts have filed suit against e-cigarette companies. This information may be found at www.WAGSTAFFCARTMELL.COM/Juul/Schools.

I recently attended a conference session where it was shared that one e-cigarette has the potential to contain the nicotine equivalent of two packs of cigarettes. Unfortunately, one of the greatest impacts of e-cigarettes may be realized in health issues of the next generation.

The Journal of The arkansas school Boards associaTion

Vol. 13, Number 1 March 2020

P.O. Box 165460 / Little Rock, AR 72216

Telephone: 501-372-1415 / 800-482-1212

Fax: 501-375-2454

E-mail: arsba@arsba.org / www.arsba.org

Board of Directors

President: Randy Goodnight, Greenbrier

President-elect: Rosa Bowman, Ashdown

Vice President: Dr. Tad Margolis, Valley View

Sec.-Treasurer: William Campbell, McGehee

Past President: Neal Pendergrass, Mtn. Home

Region 1: Randy Hutchinson, Springdale

Region 2: Randy Rogers, Lead Hill

Region 3: Dr. Julea Garner, Highland

Region 4: Kyle Cannon, Mena

Region 5: Clint Hull, Pottsville

Region 6: Nikki King, Pangburn

Region 7: D’James Rogers, West Memphis

Region 8: André Acklin, Conway

Region 9: Joey Astin, Forrest City

Region 10: Mark Curry, Lake Hamilton

Region 11:Jeff Lisenbey, Sheridan

Region 12: Willie Buck, Hope

Region 13: Mike Waters, Magnolia

Region 14: Jerry Daniels, Warren

Staff

Executive Director: Dr. Tony Prothro

Board Development Director: Dr. Anne Butcher

Governmental Relations Director: Dan Jordan

Finance Director: Diana Woodward

Communications and Technology Director: Sherri Fite

Staff Attorney: Kristen Garner

Policy Director: Lucas Harder

Database Administrator: Kathy Ivy

Commercial Affiliates/Board Liaison Manager: Angela Ellis

Bookkeeper: Leigh Ann Fikes

TIPS-TAPS Project Manager: Mickey McFatridge

General Counsel: Jay Bequette

Administrative Assistant/Receptionist: Joyce Brown

Risk Management Program & Workers’ Comp. Program: Shannon Moore, Director

Krista Glover

Dwayne McAnally

Misty Thompson

Amanda Blair

Ashley Samuels Jackson

Melody Tipton

Tiffany Malone

LaVerne Witherspoon

Linda Collins

Lisa Wigginton

TO CONTACT THE MAGAZINE

Please contact Steve Brawner, Editor 501.847.7743; brawnersteve@mac.com

ASBA News and notes

Hernandez to lead administrators’ state association

Dr. Mike Hernandez has been hired as the executive director of the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators (AAEA).

The AAEA Board of Directors made the announcement Feb. 10 after a search and interviews.

Hernandez, the current Arkansas Department of Education state superintendent, will begin July 1 working with Dr. Richard Abernathy, current AAEA executive director, through the end of the year. He will officially take the reins of the AAEA Jan. 1, 2021.

“Dr. Hernandez is an outstanding educational leader in Arkansas,” Abernathy said. “He has a compassion for all the children in the state, is hardworking,

has high standards, and will take the association to the next level. I look forward to working with him as he moves us forward.”

Hernandez has served in his current position at the Department of Education since July 2017. Previously, he was the Hot Springs School District superintendent. He came to that position from the Department of Education, where he had been the deputy commissioner/assistant commissioner. He previously was superintendent of the Danville School District.

A Longtime Protector of Educators’ Professional Reputations

• School board legal liability insurance

• Employment practices liability insurance

• Outside of Arkansas General Liability coverage

• Distinctive and identifiable coverage grants

• Modified “defense outside of the limits” provision

• Separate crisis management fund

• Employment law resources through Enquiron

• Online resource website

• Panel defense counsel

• Dedicated claim representative

Hernandez

Agenda for New Board Member Institute ready

Newly elected board members will get a crash course in school board governance, while veterans will get a refresher at the New Board Member Institute April 20 at the Hot Springs Convention Center.

The annual event will occur after new board members are elected in the state’s March 3 primary elections. It is designed for recently elected school board members making the transition from private citizen to public official. Veteran board members and superintendents are encouraged to attend as well to refresh, recharge and work with new board colleagues.

The agenda includes a discussion of school board roles, responsibilities and best practices by Cindy Smith, StrongHuttig School Board president. Dr. Andrea Martin, Greenland superintendent, will next discuss school finance issues and provide audit training. After lunch, attendees will learn about legal issues concerning the Freedom of Information Act, executive sessions, and ethics.

The session will be presented by Jay Bequette, ASBA general counsel, and Cody Kees, a partner with Bequette, Billingley & Kees P.A. The day will conclude with a talk on student achievement by Marilyn Johnson, teacher center coordinator at the Arch Ford Education Service Cooperative.

School board members will earn six hours of boardsmanship training for attending the event. Check-in and a continental breakfast begin at 7:45 a.m., with sessions starting at 8:30 a.m. and adjourning at 3 p.m. Registration is $185 per person through April 6 and $205 afterwards.

ASBA’s Workshop for Administrative Professionals will occur concurrently at

ASBA calendar

April 4-6

NSBA Annual Conference 2020 Chicago

April 20

New Board Member Institute & Workshop for Administrative Professionals Hot Springs Convention Center

May 5

AAEA & ASBA Joint Leadership Conference Embassy Suites

July 19-21

Southern Region Leadership Conference Hot Springs Convention Center

Sept. 18

Fall Leadership Institute – NE Edition Embassy Suites –Red Wolf Convention Center Jonesboro

Oct. 30

Fall Leadership Institute – NE Edition Graduate Fayetteville Fayetteville

the Convention Center. The workshop is a day-long professional development opportunity for administrative assistants, school secretaries, bookkeepers and others whose job duties intersect with the work of their school board.

Topics include: school board election laws, school board training rules and regulations, Freedom of Information Act and legal questions and answers, and the role of administrative professionals in relation to school board members and superintendents.

Registration and continental breakfast begin at 7:30 a.m.. Sessions begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. Registration is $135 per person through April 10 and $150 afterwards. Registration is available on site.

Contact Dr. Anne Butcher at abutcher@arsba.org for questions about registration or the training.

AAEA-ASBA Conference is set

for May 5

ASBA and the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators are teaming up again to host the 25th annual Joint Leadership Conference May 5 at the Embassy Suites in Little Rock. Check-in and continental breakfast begin at 7:30 a.m. The conference begins at 8:30 a.m. and ends at 3 p.m. Lunch is included.

Conference attendees will earn six hours of boardsmanship training credit for all-day attendance.

Registration information will be posted at ASBA’s website.

Southern Region Conference set for July 19-21

Registration has opened for the 2020 Southern Region Leadership Conference, which will be hosted by ASBA at the Hot Springs Convention Center in Hot Springs.

The conference is often referred to as the Tri-State Conference since it is a collaboration between the states of Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The three state associations rotate hosting the conference over a three-year period.

Ex-biz teacher, school tech chief comes to ASBA

ASBA’s new communications and technology director comes to the association after 31 1/2 years in education.

Sherri Fite was technology director at the Benton School District for the past 13 1/2 years. In that position, she managed the technology department and made tech purchases, maintained the district’s website, and managed several databases. She estimates the number of computers owned by the district

Bequette

increased from less than 1,000 to close to 7,500 during that time. Over time, the job evolved from hands-on technical activities to administration.

Prior to that, Fite taught high school business classes for 13 years. Those classes ranged from keyboarding (first on typewriters, then on computers) to word processing, accounting and Cisco networking. Before becoming a fulltime employee, she was a substitute teacher for five years as she waited for a position to open.

She retired Dec. 31 and started working at ASBA Jan. 6.

Her job will entail communications with members and superintendents, and she’ll handle ASBA’s website and social media. She’ll make technology purchases and address computer and technology issues that arise. So far, she’s spent much of her time preparing for conferences.

Her original plan was to retire from education Dec. 31, but ASBA Executive

Director Dr. Tony Prothro, her former Benton superintendent, “just made me an offer I couldn’t refuse,” she said with a laugh.

“I had worked with Tony and Dan (Jordan, ASBA’s governmental relations

director) both at Benton and really think a lot of both of them and enjoyed working with them. I was afraid if I didn’t take a chance I would always regret it,” she said. “And I’m glad I did.”

Fite said she has a passion for vocational education, and she’s glad there is a renewed interest in it. When she was a teacher, businesses would call her with open jobs looking for a student who was not going to college. But so ingrained were college-going expectations that students would not admit they weren’t planning to go.

Fite and her husband, state Rep. Lanny Fite, R-Benton, have two children. Their daughter and her husband are missionaries with three children in the Philippines. Their son owns an e-commerce business in Fayetteville and has three children. Her youngest grandson was born Feb. 5.

Fite said she likes to shop, read, ride bicycles, study the Bible and travel, including to the Philippines.

SHERRI FITE is ASBA’s new communications and technology director. She comes to ASBA after working 31 1/2 years in the Benton School District.

Solar savings

The Batesville School District cut its energy costs with help from solar technology and used the savings to raise salaries. Other districts are taking advantages of laws that encourage solar energy.

By Steve Brawner Editor

Dr. Michael Hester and the Batesville School District had two big problems: The district was spending too much money on utility costs, and it needed to raise teacher salaries. It solved both by closing campuses, increasing efficiencies and installing solar energy. The result: It was able to increase salaries by $2,000-$3,000 and even as high as $9,000.

Now it’s looking to generate more solar savings by taking advantage of a state law allowing it to partner with another government agency or nonprofit. Meanwhile, other school districts including Cedar Ridge, Midland and Guy-Perkins are getting into the solar game.

At Batesville, the process started after Hester was hired three years ago. In the summer of 2017, he and his board crafted a strategic plan with four goals. Student achievement was first. Second was attracting and retaining staff. At the time, the district had the fourth highest teacher pay out of five county districts, and it has never equalled the state average. Third was increasing efficiencies. Fourth was networking with partners.

The four were interrelated. To increase student achievement, the district needed to attract and retain staff, which could be funded by increasing efficiencies, which was made easier through partnerships.

That fall, it underwent a full-scale energy audit with consultant and solar energy provider Entegrity that confirmed the district had to become more

efficient. The audit found the district was paying $607,203 annually in utilities, including $431,321 for electricity and $69,222 for natural gas. The HVAC maintenance budget was $136,419.

“Our footprint was taking us under,” Hester said. “Whether it was the inefficiency of our land and facilities, or whether it was our utilities, we were old and antiquated, and we were spread out far and wide. That’s how we slipped on our salaries.”

The district’s goal was 50% savings in its overall utility costs. Getting there would require sacrifices by the staff. In return, the district promised salary increases – a promise it kept. It went from

DR. MICHAEL HESTER, Batesville’s superintendent, stands beneath a solar panel canopy that helps the district reduce its energy costs while protecting students from the weather.

having the fourth highest teacher pay out of five schools in the county to the highest. Salaries typically increased $2,000 to $3,000, while long-time employees saw increases of $4,000 to $5,000. Some individuals saw raises of up to $9,000.

“I promised them that we would show them the money, and this last year we showed them $1.2 million. Biggest raise we’ve ever had in the history of this district,” Hester said.

Reducing the district’s sprawling footprint was the most important step it took to reducing its costs and freeing up money for salaries. Through the years, it had inherited several consolidated school districts, and the aging, indebted

properties were a huge drag. The district held 32 town hall meetings as part of its restructuring process. It gave its Cushman campus, with its 23 acres and 12 buildings, and its 10-acre Desha campus to those cities. It moved an alternative learning center to the district administrative center. One elementary school was closed, and its staff was pushed out to three other elementary schools. The closed elementary school then became home to a preschool whose facility was in a flood zone and needed millions of dollars in renovations. The district gave that facility to a local Head Start program. Shedding all those buildings created savings in maintenance and insurance. Its total number of kitchens was reduced from seven to five and eventually maybe four, and the district reduced its bus routes and bus mechanic staff.

Staff members were challenged to make sacrifices, including relocating. Secondary teachers gave up half of their planning time under block scheduling, going from 90 minutes a day to an aver-

age of 45 like their elementary counterparts. The move enabled the district to reduce 10-12 positions. Most of the changes occurred through attrition, but not all.

“There were other situations where we were able to give people choices, but they chose maybe not to take the choice we gave them,” Hester said.

Meanwhile, the district undertook a $5.4 million energy savings effort funded by a 20-year loan. It partnered with energy services company Entegrity using an energy savings performance contract, which allows public entities to procure efficiency measures with no upfront capital and then repay the project cost with the money they save. If the savings don’t materialize, the private entity pays the difference. It’s guaranteed, which gives the private company an incentive to ensure the public entity saves money.

Hester said that guarantee was the tipping point that led the district to agree to the effort.

“Schools don’t have to put up any upfront capital. Everything we do is paid from the savings on energy. We even make money on top of it, and all of it’s guaranteed,” Hester said. “In the end, they’ll make sure the numbers match or they pay the difference, so that takes the risk out for boards.”

As part of the agreement with Entegrity, Batesville installed 6,238 LED light fixtures, replaced 119 single pane windows with double-paned ones, replaced 80 HVAC units with high-efficiency ones, replaced 305 water fixtures and valves with high-efficiency low-flow ones, and sealed air leaks around doors and entries. It also installed 420 centrally controlled thermostats. One computer operator can program for school events, summers and off hours. Classroom users are allowed a variance of only 2-4 degrees. Hester said administrators expected teachers to complain, but the building is better sealed, so it remains more comfortable. The centralized

Continued on next page

Solar energy in schools

control promotes daily efficiency and also prevents waste. One custodian had cranked the air down to 63 degrees while he cleaned out a junior high locker for the summer, then forgot about it when he left. That’s where it stayed for three weeks.

“Stuff like that just doesn’t happen anymore because we have control of those thermostats,” Hester said.

Entegrity projected those changes would help the district save $2 million over 20 years. That was a conservative estimate, said Rick Vance, Entegrity business development officer, at a breakout session at the 2019 ASBA Annual Conference. Hester says preliminary numbers indicate the district actually will save $4 million. Vance said Entegrity deploys engineers and experts to monitor usage. After all, it has a financial incentive to do so.

“We’re looking at this all the time because the bills have to be what we said they would be,” he said. “Otherwise, we’re having to write a check for the difference. So you don’t get a project. You get a partner who’s going to be with you to make sure that that project performs and continues to find ways. If we can find ways to continue to help them save, it only helps us.”

As part of the project, Batesville became Arkansas’ first school district to build a solar farm. The 1,483 solar panels are arrayed across three acres and on a canopy in front of the high school and gym. They will generate 750 kilowatts of energy per year, half the 1,500 kilowatts the district uses. The electricity isn’t stored or used directly by the district. Instead, it’s fed into electric utility Entergy’s grid and credited to Batesville’s bill under an arrangement known as net metering. The ground panels track the sun, which increases their efficiency by 25%.

The district’s mascot is the “Pioneers,” and that’s what the district has become. Batesville was the first Arkansas school district to invest in solar, and it needed some help politically. It got that help with Act 464 of 2019 by Sen. David Wallace, R-Leachville. Among its provisions was that it allowed the school board to approve the energy savings project without the need for voter approval. That’s because the loan is paid off without millage funds.

“We’re able to get that $5.4 million with just a board vote, and we’re able to do it with guaranteed numbers and savings, so it’s really no risk,” Hester said.

The benefits were obvious almost immediately after the project was completed. In July 2019, the district was billed for 39,200 kilowatt-hours of electricity, compared to 184,800 kilowatt-hours for the same month the year before. The school is saving more than 1 million kilowatt-hours per year. The monthly electric bill fell from $17,850 to $4,771, a $13,079 savings.

The project cost $5,478,955 but resulted in total annual savings of $362,134. The savings included energy and water savings of $251,015, maintenance savings of $54,929, and capital

Entegrity ... Entergy?

SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP. Dr. Andy Ashley, left, Cedar Ridge superintendent, shows Dewayne Wammack, Midland superintendent, where their shared solar panel farm will be located behind Cedar Ridge’s administrative offices. The two Independence County districts will pay lower electricity rates because their partnership is creating a bigger farm.

avoidance savings of $56,190. The district knew it needed to replace 68 HVAC units. It just rolled those into this project. It hopes to reach net zero for utility costs in the next few years and then use the savings for attracting and retaining staff.

In addition to its main solar farm, the district installed 600 feet of panels in front of the high school and gym, creating a canopy where school buses were already loading and unloading without protection from the weather. The high school’s frontage wasn’t particularly attractive previously. Now, Hester said, it looks like an airport concourse with a unified appearance. The district purposely didn’t install a metal ceiling below the panels because it wanted the students to see the technology from below.

“That’s what we wanted our students to understand is that you can take innovation and technology, and not only make it a career but also apply it to functional uses that we have in our daily lives,” Hester said. “In this case, shelter from sun and rain when you’re loading and unloading at schools.”

The district has integrated the solar project into its student curriculum. Students can go into the field and see how science and math apply to solar energy. The district is working with honey bee farmers to plant wildflowers, reducing the need to mow under the panels and producing honey for an outdoor learning experience.

The project has been a good public relations tool for the community. Camera footage has found senior citizens carpooling and coming by van to tour the solar canopy. Batesville’s efforts communicated that the district is trying to make efficient use of its tax dollars.

‘A moment of enormous change’ in power

Carter said solar power offers several newfound advantages. It’s clean, which satisfies patrons for whom climate change is their top issue. It’s cheap. Prices have fallen significantly, from $7.24 a watt for a residential system in 2010 to $2.80 in 2017, although they probably have fallen about as low as they will go. And it’s easier to connect than it’s ever been.

“There’s enough opportunity out there right now that you should be thinking about solar power,” he said.

However, school districts have much to consider.

Now that the district has improved its efficiencies, it’s making a millage increase request in April: 8.4 mills to raise $49.15 million for safety and security improvements and a new auditorium. The district has grown by more than 245 students in the past few years and is projected to grow 600 students in 10 years without any school choice strategies.

The district’s former problem – too much land – is becoming an asset. The law allows nonprofits to have partnerships with one other government or nonprofit entity. Once that happens, more panels will be built on Batesville’s property but leased from Entegrity through a solar service agreement. Those agreements make the private entities eligible for investor tax credits that increase a project’s economic viability. The increased volume would enable the district to negotiate better electric rates with Entergy. The district has been talking to its county, city and two local colleges, but the best option is probably its local hospital, whose seven figure annual utility bill dwarfs that of the school district. The hospital is currently conducting an energy audit.

Two districts save money together

Two of Batesville’s neighboring Independence County school districts,

Carter said that while electric rates historically have increased 2% per year nationally, cheap renewables have never been this available, and natural gas is also affordable. Electricity costs are forecast to be stable, and no one knows what rates will be in 20 years.

Other concerns include the fact that solar farms require six acres per megawatt, so districts should be smart about where they plant them. They may want to install remotely where land is cheaper, but that will increase drive time for maintenance personnel and lessen the educational and community impact.

School districts also must consider how the facilities will be built. The law

Cedar Ridge and Midland, are taking advantage of that partnership provision to build a 7.5-acre solar farm on Cedar Ridge’s property that will reduce both of their energy costs from 9 cents per kilowatt hour to 4.55 cents. That’s more than what the districts would have saved had they built separate farms. Cedar Ridge originally considered its home city of Newark as its partner, but the savings derived from partnering with Midland were greater.

The two had no problem working together even though they compete in sports and for students. Partnering offered too many advantages to the districts and their students. The superintendents, Midland’s Dewayne Wammack and Cedar Ridge’s Dr. Andy Ashley, have known each other for years.

“School nowadays, it’s a business, and students are our clientele,” Wammack said. “We’ve got to perform to get our clientele to be happy with us and want to come to us, and I think every school does that. … The bottom line is, our kids deserve the best education we can give them, and this is helping each of our schools be able to have money to provide that.”

The field will have 4,116 solar panels that track the sun during the day and then flatten to collect the dew at night.

allows them to design-build, lease the facilities, or enter into solar service agreements with private entities that actually own the solar producing facilities. Those agreements make the private entities eligible for investor tax credits that increase the economic viability of those projects. However, those credits are falling from 26% this year to 22% in 2021 and then 10% the year after that, and that last amount is only for commercial and utility scale users.

Meanwhile, electric utility Entergy has petitioned the Public Service Commission to let it credit entities less for producing electricity, arguing that some compensation is needed to pay for upkeep of the grid. A hearing was held on that subject Feb. 19, and a decision was awaited at Report Card’s press time.

At dawn, they’ll tilt to the east so the dew will run down the panels and clean them.

Please see SOLAR on page 29

479.455.5577 modusstudio.com contact@modusstudio.com

Clark

WARREN SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER

JERRY DANIELS answers a question during a panel discussion on the last day of the ASBA Annual Conference while Springdale School Board member Randy Hutchinson looks on. Both are members of ASBA’s board of directors. Daniels said his district’s pre-K program needs to be funded with per pupil foundation funding, like K-12 is, in order to serve all its students. Hutchinson said the state’s A-F school grading system unfairly gives good schools a bad impression in their communities.

Panelists: Study adequacy now

At ASBA’s Annual Conference, panelists voiced support for revisiting the funding matrix and warned of threats to school groups, tax base

By Steve Brawner Editor

ASBA Annual Conference panelists said a school adequacy study is needed so the state can better address issues such as transportation funding and unfunded teacher salaries.

More than 700 school board members and superintendents attended the conference Dec. 11-13. The panel discussion occurred on the last day and covered public policy questions highlighted at ASBA’s fall regional meetings.

Among those topics was the need to revisit the state’s school funding matrix and to conduct a new adequacy study, which legislators in December voted to do after a back-and-forth process that lasted much of the year. The consulting firm Augenblick, Palaich and Associates will conduct the first study since those produced by Picus Oden & Associates in 2003 and 2006 helped create the current school funding formula.

Those studies came in response to the Lake View School District case where the state Supreme Court ruled the Arkansas Constitution makes the state responsible for providing all students an “adequate” and “equitable” education.

But much has changed since then. For example, school safety and mental health services aren’t in the matrix despite being obvious needs now. The state provides a flat $321 per student despite wide disparities in school district transportation costs. Panelist Dale Query, Arkansas Rural Education Association executive director, said the state should provide additional money to high-cost districts without reducing funding for others. The fund for excess transportation costs is inadequate, and the formula hasn’t been made public, he said.

Dr. Richard Abernathy, Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators executive director, said research is needed for issues such as coming teacher salary increases that will be unfunded after four years. An unbiased third party study isn’t a blank checkbook, but it does give policymakers political cover, he said. He warned that Enhanced Student Achievement funding rules based on the number of students in poverty will sunset in

2022, so the Legislature must address them in 2021. (ESA funding previously was known as National School Lunch Act funding.)

Another panelist, Springdale School Board member Randy Hutchinson, said ESA funds should be expanded as much as possible. In his school district, the state’s largest, 71% of students qualify for free and reduced price lunches, and many of them come from non-Englishspeaking families. The district has used ESA funding to hire instructional facilitators, employ 18 school resource officers, and provide a nurse in all 31 schools. The money also has funded one-to-one technology for every student, pre-K classes, and dyslexia services.

Warren School Board member Jerry Daniels said his district serves 120 students through the Arkansas Better Chance pre-K program. To serve all eligible students, the program needs foundation funding, like K-12’s, and the district also needs funding for facilities.

Abernathy warned attendees that bills have been filed the last two legislative sessions targeting education groups. In 2019, one would have prohibited school districts from using public funds for membership dues for school board mem-

bers, teachers and classified employees to belong to professional organizations that use public funds directly or indirectly for lobbying. That prohibition would include ASBA and AAEA. Abernathy pointed out that other publicly funded groups also lobby – including legislators’ associations – but the bill made no mention of them. He expects similar legislation to be filed in 2021.

Abernathy said most school boards’ and administrators’ groups nationwide do not have the kind of positive relationship that ASBA and AAEA do. In fact, they often butt heads, he said.

Threat to property taxes

Another topic covered by the panel was a Walmart lawsuit that could reduce property taxes by $95 million statewide.

As explained by panelist Lindsey French, general counsel for the Association of Arkansas Counties, a lawsuit based on the “dark store theory” could reduce property taxes in Pulaski County

by $900,000, three-fourths of which go to schools, and then spread to other communities and other retailers.

Under the theory, a big box retail store should be valued for property tax purposes as if it’s empty, instead of the current cost-plus-depreciation practice. Walmart challenged its Pulaski County assessment of $145 million for eight Walmarts and two Sam’s Clubs, arguing that the properties instead should be assessed at $74 million. County Judge Barry Hyde ruled in favor of the assessor, but Walmart has appealed in Pulaski County Circuit Court. French expects the case eventually to make its way to the Arkansas Supreme Court, meaning it will affect the entire state.

The Pulaski County case is the first time Walmart has tested the theory in Arkansas. If the company is successful, it will no doubt apply the theory in other communities where it has a taxpaying presence and be followed by other retailers making the same argument.

If retail property taxes were cut in half statewide, the impact would be $95 million. If the cut applied to all commercial properties, the impact would be more than half a billion dollars, three-fourths of which funds school districts. Companies making dark store arguments have avoided paying $75 million in taxes in Michigan between 2013 and 2015, while $2.6 billion annually is at stake in Texas in a case that is under appeal, she said.

Other topics covered by the panel included legislation that would divert money to private schools, unfunded mandates, and school letter grading. Query said money shouldn’t be taken from the state budget to allow some of the best students to attend private schools. Abernathy expressed concern about “school choice with no accountability” – an example being the Succeed Scholarship program, which he said started out as a special needs program and has since expanded to serve students

Please see CONFERENCE on page 18

knowledge is power

ARKANSAS SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION HONORS VAN BUREN

Stephens Congratulates ASBA 2019 School Board of Excellence in Leadership

The Van Buren School Board, boosted by community partnerships, shrewd planning, and constituent support, was honored as the Arkansas School Boards Association’s 2019 School Board of Excellence in Leadership. The ASBA presents the award, sponsored by Stephens Inc., annually to an Arkansas school board that showcases best practices in organizational leadership while making a positive impact on students in their district.

The ASBA recognized especially the Van Buren School Board’s cooperative work with the district’s administration to create and follow a carefully developed strategic plan with both short- and long-term objectives. Creating and articulating to the community a common vision and goals proved instrumental in winning local backing. As a result, the district was able to secure resources to move forward with new campus construction and improvements, expand the district’s school resource of cer program, signi cantly increase teacher pay, and launch the River Valley Virtual Academy.

At each step along the way, the board collaborated with district staff to communicate with key stakeholders about needed improvements and the challenges they faced. In doing so, the board fostered community support for these and other projects while earning their district a reputation for excellence across the state.

The Van Buren School Board’s most recent slate of successes traces back to the 2015-16 school year, when the district worked with Stephens Public Finance to develop plans for improving the district as well as the avenues for funding the improvements.

For more than 80 years, Stephens Public Finance has served Arkansas school districts with a client- rst approach and a focus on integrity, trust, and long-term relationships. Kevin Faught, a Senior Vice President at Stephens’ Northwest Arkansas of ce in Fayetteville, serves as municipal advisor for the nearly 6,000-student Van Buren School District, and the rm’s relationship with the district goes back decades.

District’s Superintendent Dr. Harold Jeffcoat said, “Stephens worked with us to develop a vision for improving the district for students while getting community support.” Those plans included a ballot measure to nance new projects and improvements. In September 2016, voters were asked to fund

these initiatives by allowing the district to restructure some bonds and also increase millage in the district by three mills for maintenance and operations funds. The voters approved the measure by nearly 70 percent. Restructuring four eligible bonds generated about $8 million in one-time funds, and the extra three mills generated about an extra $1 million annually.

One of the rst things the school board did with its muchneeded new resources was improve teacher compensation. “We have some truly phenomenal teachers in our school system,” Jeffcoat said, “but they had been getting paid less than many of their peers in the region.” Base pay for both incoming teachers and veterans was lower in Van Buren than most other districts in the area, so during the 2016-17 school year the district developed a plan to restructure its pay schedule. When the new compensation plan went into effect in 2017-18, some veteran teachers saw their salaries increase by as much as $6,000. Since then, the district has implemented additional raises, allowing Van Buren to attract and retain top-notch classroom talent.

Stephens worked with us to develop a vision for improving the district for students while getting community support.

Making the best use of its human resources is a hallmark of the district’s recent success. The restructured bonds and additional millage made funds available for construction projects, and the district has maximized these extra dollars by using in-house labor for many of the jobs. The Van Buren School District’s maintenance team includes licensed general contractors, electricians, HVAC technicians, and other professionals who have helped complete many of the district’s construction improvements. “It’s almost our own construction team,” Jeffcoat said. “We can accomplish a lot of work in-house, which results in savings and allows us to stretch taxpayers’ dollars.”

Replacing roofs and HVAC systems in several of the district’s 11 schools was foremost of the desperately needed improvements. And at the high school, the track eld had become so untenable that the district could not host track and eld meets there. So, the district invested $2.4 million to replace the track, soil, and drainage as well as build a new concession stand and ticket booth area. Now this year the school will host a state track and eld event. “We love hosting state competitions,” Jeffcoat said, “because it not only allows us to showcase our schools and the district, but these events are also great economic drivers for the area.”

Elsewhere in the district, construction is wrapping up at the new Oliver Springs Elementary, a 60,000-square-foot campus on 21 beautiful acres critically located on Van Buren’s fastgrowing north side. The new school opens in August.

The district has also been able to partner with city and county entities as well as local nonpro ts to receive joint use agreement grant money from the state, to date close to $300,000. Those funds have been used to add walking trails and exercise stations at schools, which are used by students as well as other members of the community. The district’s commitment to health and wellness reaps bene ts for the entire community.

Another telling example of the local cooperation bene ting the district is its school resource of cer program. With help from the city as well as the Crawford County Sherriff’s Of ce, starting this school year the district has been able to deploy a dedicated, full-time resource of cer at each of the district’s 11 campuses every day students are present. “We couldn’t have done it on our own,” Jeffcoat said. “Local law enforcement helped make it happen, and we share about equal cost.” The additional safety has proved a comfort to parents and students alike.

The Van Buren School District’s persistence engaging and serving its constituents also resulted in the 2017 opening of the River Valley Virtual Academy, an online version of a traditional K-12 school. Its exible online curriculum enables adaptive learning unmatched by other educational options. With so many successes, Van Buren can proudly and surely boast of the able service of a School Board of Excellence in

Leadership. A partner of the district for years on behalf of Stephens Public Finance, Faught praised Van Buren’s leadership. “Thanks to this school board’s dedication, planning, and innovation, Van Buren students’ futures are brighter,” he said.

School Board President Candice Settle in turn had praise for Superintendent Jeffcoat. “Our school district has been fortunate to have the leadership and direction of Dr. Jeffcoat, who has provided our board with opportunities to excel,” Settle said. “I am excited for the future of the Van Buren School District and thankful to have such a great team on our school board.”

The ASBA presents the School Board of Excellence in Leadership award each year at its annual conference, selecting districts demonstrating support for educational performance; support for educational improvement projects; commitment to a code of ethics; maintenance of harmonious and supportive relationships among board members; functioning as a policy-making body with adherence to adopted policies; provision of nancial support for the district; participation in training and other performance improvement programs; and support and practice of effective public relations and community awareness.

Kevin Faught Senior Vice President (479) 718-7444

kfaught@stephens.com

PREMIER PARTNERS.

ASBA’S Premier Partners chatted with school board members and superintendents at booths set up in the Marriott Hotel. Top photo, Melissa Walsh, associate banker with Stephens Public Finance, speaks with Melbourne Superintendent Dennis Sublett. Middle left, Tony Marquis, CEO of Homeland Safety Systems, left, talks with Bentonville School Board member Joe Quinn. Middle right, Kelly McGuire, Baldwin & Shell vice president of business development Memphis/Northeast Arkansas Division, speaks with Lake Village School Board member Glenn McJoy. Bottom left, Bill Birch with BXS Insurance visits with Greenwood School Board member Rozanne Sterling. Bottom right, Gene Hawk, right, with The Interlocal Purchasing System speaks with Homeland Security’s Patrick White.

Lee offers 10 school governance ‘laws’

Dr. David Lee, a former teacher, administrator and board member, offered 10 “laws” for board governance in a breakout session. Those were:

• Law of the shield. Boards should present a united front and support board decisions even when they don’t agree with the outcomes.

• Law of the ego. Lee said big egos hurt board performance.

• Law of false choices. Great boards find a way to do what needs to be done, overcoming the first tendencies of bureaucracies always to say no. “If you feel like something is important to you, push it,” he said. “Don’t let it go away. Just refuse to accept it. But we see boards back off when they’re told no.”

• Law of hand slapping. Good boards are not afraid of facing a minor punishment for trying to be innova-

Conference

Continued from page 15

attending private schools that aren’t even accredited yet. Dr. Tad Margolis, a Valley View School Board member, said school districts are often given a “honey do list” of unfunded mandates by policymakers. Hutchinson said the state’s A-F grading system presents a

tive. They don’t break the law but do push the envelope knowing the worst that can happen is a slap on the hand.

• Law of subtraction. Good boards remove barriers that limit progress.

• Law of inches. Making small progress helps boards overcome difficult times.

• Law of the system. Good boards have good systems for employing a superintendent, for academic improvement and for other priorities.

• Law of the shadow. Good boards bring issues out into the open. “You’ll be powerless to make real changes until you face the shadows,” he said.

wrong impression to the community by assigning some schools a “C.”

“I would put any of our 31 schools in Springdale against an ‘A’ restaurant or a 5-star hotel or a 4-diamond restaurant,” he said. “It’s difficult to go out to your community and to your parents and explain to them how their kid’s going to a ‘C’ school.”

Abernathy said legislators are noting that school districts have unrestricted

• Law of the mirror. Good board members look at themselves to see how they can be better.

• Law of one. “One board, many voices, but ultimately one voice,” Lee said.

Lee, now a consultant, said board members’ number one concern is hiring the right superintendent, adding that great superintendents ensure schools are led by great leaders. When a good principal goes to a lowperforming school, student achievement will begin climbing within three years, he said. Lee said good polices can’t overcome bad leadership, which means school districts must be willing to pay superintendents what is necessary in order to attract them and keep them.

“I’ve seen boards miss quality for $2,000,” he said.

building fund balances and are asking why they need more money. The AAEA is encouraging administrators to ensure fund balance dollars serve students.

Query encouraged board members to get involved in the political process. Legislators often hear from people like him, while many superintendents are also engaged, but when a school board member calls, they take note.

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Lee

SCHOOL BOARD SERVICE AWARD. Jesse Clark with the Malvern School Board, left, pictured with ASBA Executive Director Dr. Tony Prothro, was honored with the ASBA School Board Service Award for serving 30 years on the board. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

PRESIDENT’S AWARD. President’s Award recipient Jeannie Cole, Fort Smith, stands next to ASBA Executive Director Dr. Tony Prothro. The President’s Award is given to school board members who achieve 500 hours of professional development. Not pictured are Dorothy Henderson, Ashdown, and Dorothy Williams, North Little Rock. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS. Pictured above is ASBA’s board of directors. Front row, Dr. Tad Margolis, Valley View, vice president; Rosa Bowman, Ashdown, president-elect; Nikki King, Pangburn, Region 6 director; Dr. Julea Garner, Highland, Region 3; André Acklin, Conway, Region 8. Middle row, Jeff Lisenbey, Sheridan, Region 11; Joey Astin, Forrest City, Region 9; Neal Pendergrass, Mountain Home, past president; Mike Waters, Magnolia, Region 13; Randy Rogers, Lead Hill, Region 2. Back row, Kyle Cannon, Mena, Region 4; Randy Hutchinson, Springdale, Region 1; Randy Goodnight, Greenbrier, president; Jerry Daniels, Warren, Region 14; Clint Hull, Pottsville, Region 5. Not pictured are William Campbell, secretary-treasurer, McGehee; D’James Rogers, West Memphis, Region 7; Mark Curry, Lake Hamilton, Region 10; and Willie Buck, Hope, Region 12. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

“The influence that a school board member has from my experience as a superintendent is vastly more influential than mine was as a superintendent,” he said. “When my board members called legislators and said, ‘Look, I’m elected just like you are, and things are going on here that’s not good for our school district,’ or, ‘We need you to push this legislation to benefit us,’ you have a tremendous influence on those legislators.”

Governor: Literacy a focus

The panel discussion was followed by an address by Gov. Asa Hutchinson. He said literacy is a focus of his administration through the Arkansas Department of Education’s Reading Initiative for Student Excellence, which emphasizes the science of reading. Another emphasis is workforce education. Arkansas’ high school graduation rates have increased four straight years to the point that the state now ranks 16th best in the nation. Hutchinson credited the rise partly to the state’s emphasis on vocational education, which he said provides a path for students who want a workforce skill and don’t intend to go to college. He said when he became governor, 54 high schools did not have access to a career learning center. That number is now two.

Hutchinson also touted his initiative requiring all high schools to offer computer science courses. When he was elected governor, 1,104 students were taking a computer science class. That number has increased to 9,813 enrolled this

ASBA

PLATINUM AWARD WINNERS. School board members receive the Platinum Award for achieving 400 hours of professional development. Pictured are, front row, Barbara Wells, Blytheville; Ollie Collins, Osceola; and Rosa Bowman, Ashdown. Back row, Bill Clements, Conway; Randy Goodnight, Greenbrier; Jerry Daniels, Warren; and Billy Fair, Blytheville. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

PINNACLE AWARD. School board members who achieve at least 200 hours of professional development receive the Pinnacle Award. Pictured are, front row, Joannie Cayce, Bearden; Christy Mayo, Van Buren; Danny Robbins, Manila; and André Acklin, Conway. Back row, Lawrence Hudson, Dumas; Keith Wells, Monticello; Darrell Gist, Rivercrest; and Jesse Buchanan, Texarkana. Not pictured are Michael Ephlin, Osceola; Gary Payne, Gosnell; and Cindy Smith, Strong-Huttig. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

year, with a 1,179% increase in females taking coding. The governor has visited more than 80 schools on nine coding tours. One student said she wanted to be a hairdresser and wanted to build her own website. In Buffalo Island, students have developed software to detect carbon dioxide emissions from soil.

Breakout session: Dealing with adversity

As always, the conference gave attendees opportunities to attend numerous breakout sessions. In one, Rebecca Coda, Cabot School District K-6 director of curriculum and instruction, offered strategies for dealing with adversity.

One strategy is understanding the emotional driving forces that can lead to conflict, including ego, power, jealousy and revenge. The practice of “association” can lead a person to direct their hostility toward one person based on their experiences with another. Conflict can occur when someone doubts another’s validity – for example, because they lack a certain advanced degree. Discrimination, racism and nepotism also can lead to adversity. Adversarial tactics come in many forms, including creating rumors, slowing down the organization, bending the truth, fostering paranoia and creating silos.

Coda said people act the way they do because of their personal experiences. If they have a sense of entitlement, it’s

SCHOOL BOARD OF EXCELLENCE IN LEADERSHIP AWARD

ASBA recognizes school boards who excel in eight criteria: support for educational performance; support for educational improvement projects; commitment to a code of ethics; harmonious and supportive board member relationships; policymaking with adherence to adopted policies; financial support for the school system; participation in workshops and other performance improvement programs; and public relations and community awareness. This year’s winner was the Van Buren School Board. Pictured are, front, Theresa Bell, Candice SettleBeshears, president, and Harold Jeffcoat, superintendent. Back, Lance Lanier, Carman Young, Kevin Bell, and Bob Freeman. Not pictured is Christy Mayo. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

because they’ve been treated that way previously. She encouraged attendees to assume positive intent, but also to practice “proactive paranoia” – in other words, listen to the gut feeling that something is wrong. She encouraged attendees to stay out of Karpman’s triangle – the drama triangle described by

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Coda

ASBA Annual Conference

EXHIBIT HALL. ASBA’s Commercial Affiliates shared their offerings in the Exhibit Hall at the Statehouse Convention Center. Top left, Nabholz’s Joel Blansett visits with Susan Allen, Mt. VernonEnola School Board president. Top right, Crow Group’s Brian Rohlman, center, and David Watkins, right, visit with a conference attendee. Middle left, Jeremy Lemons with Musco Lighting visits with South Conway County Superintendent Shawn Halbrook. Middle right, Leigh Anne Showalter with C.R. Crawford visits with Dr. Greg Murry, Conway School District superintendent. Bottom left, Melissa Martin with All-Clean Restoration Services speaks with an attendee. Bottom right, Chris Lankford, left, with Modus Studio chats with a conference attendee.

Kristi

Deborah Mooney,

Springs; and Dena

Candace Spaulding,

Pulaski. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

Dr. Stephen Karpman in the late-1960s where one person plays the persecutor, another the victim and another the rescuer.

General session keynote speaker Dennis McIntee also presented a drama triangle, but his triangle included a victim, a blamer and a rescuer. The rescuer works harder on another person’s issue than the person does, McIntee encouraged attendees to avoid drama, adding that too many people play the victim.

“The reality is, you don’t have to do anything,” he said.

McIntee said he finally lost weight when he looked at himself in the mirror and realized he couldn’t blame anyone but himself.

“You’ll never fix what you’re unwilling to tell the truth about,” he said.

Don’t ask why

McIntee said the questions we ask ourselves drive our thoughts, answers and responses, and that we often ask ourselves the wrong questions. Meanwhile, asking questions can help others take more responsibility. One question to avoid – because it creates so much drama – is “Why?” It makes people defensive, so don’t ask it if the goal is behavior change. Instead, include an action verb, such as “How are you going to fix this?”

In one of the Thursday breakout sessions, ASBA attorneys Jay Bequette and Cody Kees said school boards can remove a board member for cause in only three circumstances: moving out of the district, missing three regular meetings in a row or six in a year’s time, and failing to fulfill training requirements. A school board member can finish their term if they move out of their zone but stay in the district. Missing a board meeting is excusable if done for medical reasons or because of military service, and board members can attend meetings remotely up to three times per year if the district has a policy. However, they must be able to hear and be heard, and they cannot participate in executive session.

When considering removing a board member, the board must vote on whether to appoint an independent investigator. Board members can be removed only after a hearing, which they can attend and for which they must be afforded due process. They can have an attorney present and can request an alternative date.

The vote on the removal must be public, and a written transcript of the hearing must be kept.

Board members are automatically removed when one of the following conditions are met: loss of voter eligibility, felony conviction, being called into active military duty, resignation or death. No board vote or hearing is necessary in those circumstances.

Kees and Bequette covered other legal issues. What if a school board member’s property is in two districts? A Supreme Court case found a farmer in that circumstance could serve on the board that served his domicile. Mayors can serve on the school board, but they must recuse when there’s a conflict of interest. Can a school board member also serve in the Legislature? Probably not.

Kees and Bequette warned school board members that they must take their oath within 10 days of their notice of appointment. Otherwise, their qualification to serve could be challenged, and all their votes when they were not qualified could be void. One superintendent contacted Bequette after a new county clerk was foot-dragging on administering the oath. The superintendent made a personal visit to the county clerk before the oath finally was administered on the 10th day.

MASTER BOARD WINNERS. School board members who complete 50 hours of school board training receive the Master Board Award. Pictured above are, front, Melissa Morrison, Bismarck;

Teeter, Pottsville; Susan Pack, Arkansas School for the Blind;

Sheridan;

Eureka

Toney, Jacksonville-North Pulaski. Back, John Roland, Perryville; Jonathan Woolbright, Benton; Jimmy Courtney, Hope; Christopher Brown, Dover; Amy Ferdowsian, Conway; Paulette Blacknall, Arkadelphia; and Daniel Gray, Jacksonville-North

MORE MASTER BOARD WINNERS. Pictured are, front, Cindy Temple, North Little Rock; Alfred Collins, Bald Knob; and Natalie Wankum, North Little Rock. Back, Travis Washington, Malvern; Steve Williams, Malvern; Nick Emerson, Springdale; and Todd Durning, Ozark. Photo courtesy of LifeTouch.

Kees

EXECUTIVE SESSION

with Randy Rogers

By Steve Brawner Editor

Randy Rogers, 51, graduated from Lead Hill High School in 1986 and has spent 13 years on the Lead Hill School Board. By day, he’s an information technology manager in charge of procuring all the desktop computers for FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight. Rogers’ experience in management and information technology is certainly an asset for the school board, but he says he tries to limit himself to an advisory role and let the district’s capable administrators do their jobs.

As a school board member, Rogers, who is also ASBA’s Region 2 director, has helped lead a district near the Missouri border where voters two years ago extended a millage to renovate facilities and enhance security. That community support is vital for a district that hovers around the 350-student threshold that can lead to forced consolidation.

Report Card traveled to Lead Hill and talked with Rogers about his day job, his school district, and his plans for the future.

What do you spend most of your time doing at FedEx?

“Most of my time I’m working with the procurement side of the house in regards to what’s the next model of devices we’re going to be bringing in for FedEx to use. When you look at something the size of FedEx, making sure that you have the right equipment on the desktop is very critical. We’re all the time looking at what’s the next model of

laptops that’s coming out, what’s the next model of desktops, printers, things of that nature so we’re addressing our business needs and allowing our folks to take care of our consumers in the field.”

And you serve how much of the country?

“The United States.”

Are you the manager for all the desktop computers for FedEx in the United States?

“Not for FedEx. Just for FedEx Freight and FedEx Ground. I work in a peer type group. There are five of us managers that support all those devices across the field. I’ve got the procurement piece and the deployment piece while other groups have issues with break-fix, things of that nature. … I have a team in Harrison of about nine people that helps take care of everything in regards to freight, and then I have a team in Pittsburgh of about 13 people.”

You bring management and IT skills to the school board. Did you think about that when you first ran for office?

“I felt when I was running for school board I probably brought more of an IT background with me. Technology was really starting to ramp up. As we know across the state, every school district is embracing technology to assist their students, and I felt like I could definitely bring something to the district whether it was hardware vendors, whether it was the type of technology you put into place, whether it was helping review equipment, at least we could provide some direction on that. I will say since I’ve been on here, we’ve had great technology coordinators at our district. Any time they bring technology to us, you can tell that they’ve done their homework and reached out and looked at the vendors that were out there. So for me, it was just the ability to make sure that that direction was headed the right way.”

Well, you would know exactly the right questions to ask, right?

“Yes. I would hope I would just because I see it on a day-to-day basis. A lot of districts are adopting Google Classroom. I did have a lot of questions about Google Classroom as we were first implementing it – which by the way, we do have Google Classroom here at the Lead Hill District. My question

was, how user-friendly is it in regards to parents helping out their students? What I’m seeing from the district and overall is a lot of parents want to help their children, but they’re not as familiar with the technology. I wanted to make sure that we had a platform where the parents could help their kids as well as participate in their child’s learning environment, and Google Classroom has offered that. I did ask a lot of questions because it wasn’t in the mainstream business at the time in regards to what I was seeing. I wanted more information about it, and so far it’s been a very good selection. It’s done what they needed it to do. …

“We didn’t adopt it just across the board to begin with. We brought in Google. This would have been two years ago when we started to bring in Google Classroom. We initially went in with the teachers and gave them what they could utilize before we started moving students over to use it. You don’t want to just make a big change and it not be productive, so we went into it in a phased approach.”

Were you a guiding force in making sure you did that?

“Actually, I let the administration do their job. That’s one thing as a school board member I’ve always tried to keep in mind. I’m not running this school, but I’m here if they want to ask questions or to make recommendations. I let our superintendent and our principals take

care of what was going on and work with their staff, and they gave us reports on a monthly basis on how it was going and any concerns that came up, at which point I would talk with the administration on it. ... I should be something that they could utilize as knowledge, but I shouldn’t be making decisions.”

Did you ever guide them on what to purchase?

“No. I can’t think back to any time that I said, ‘You should purchase this.’ One time the recommendation did come before the board when we were building our new building, and it was a question of the cabling for the network. You could go in with a Cat 5, or you could go in with a newer model of cables. At the time I believe there was going to be a slight price increase on it. Research that I’d seen in just looking at different technologies, this school was better off in my opinion to go with the newer version of the cable, not the Cat 5. They asked me what my thought would be on it if I were going to move forward. I just said, from my perspective, I would go with the newer technology just because it will save us from refreshing or having to upgrade somewhere in the next three to five years, but it’s the board’s decision. ... I said if the board wants to save some money and go with the lower technology, I understand that, but the newer model cabling would help the

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school district out in the long run, in my opinion. ... The board decided to go with the newer cable. Now, I didn’t tell them to buy that, but I did recommend what I thought would be best for the school district in regards to the future.”

If the guy that does the procurement for FedEx Freight told me that this is what we should do on that kind of question, I would probably go with that.

“(Laughs.) Well, I wasn’t telling them what to do. It was just what my opinion would be on it, which I think that’s what the board is about is each person has their opinion. There was a person on the board that felt saving the money might be the way to go. My thought on it was you want to make sure as a board member you’re looking out years into the future, so if you can benefit by looking three more years out in the future, you should try to do that. That was the direction I was leading them.”

You have a remodeled school building. Tell me about that.

“Of course, right off the bat you always want your district to have the best facilities it can. … A board prior to (mine) had put a new gymnasium in with six classrooms. ... It was getting close to a point that it was going to be paid off. Looking at what our district has in regards to facilities, we were looking at adding additional classrooms for our upper elementary and middle school. We started working with an architect to put a plan together and found that we would have the opportunity if we extended our millage, not introduced a new millage, but just extended that millage, we could accomplish what we wanted to do.

“In doing that, we wanted security to be a big part of it. In the past, we’ve had a lot of buildings that had doorways coming from the outside into classrooms that weren’t coming off a hallway. It was an open breezeway. We took that opportunity to address some of those things and take care of the security aspects. When you got here, you noticed you came through the office, you had to be buzzed in. You pretty much came into the office that opened into a corridor where you could go through the elemen-

tary or the upper elementary. Should there be a lockdown, we’re able to lock the building down. No classrooms are on the outside in regards to elementary or upper elementary. They would all be locked down. That was Phase 1. ...

“Phase 2 is something that we’ll be addressing I hope over the next several years. It is moving our playground from where it’s currently located below the school to behind this building up here. That way the playground is actually sheltered from the road in regards to students being outside or our lower elementary being on the playground. Every step we were doing in putting this building together, we were looking at it from providing a better facility, providing more security for our students, and hopefully giving the parents some peace of mind knowing that we’re going in a direction that would secure their kids.”

“

Rather than have our staff worried about the number, we tell them to worry about the students, worry about their achievement, worry about what they need. ... We’re focusing on what the school needs to be successful, and we’ll work on the number as we need to.

And you renovated the building, too, right?

“Yeah. We had one section of building that was an older building, and it was time for some renovation. We in essence mirrored that building and put a 10-foot-wide hallway down the middle of it so that we would have doorways coming off that hallway instead of going outside, put it all underneath one roofline, and then tied it to our lower elementary.”

How tough a fight was the millage election?

“It was not a tough fight at all. We had several community meetings where we invited the community to come down and ask questions. We had copies of the blueprints so the community members could look at it.

“I will say we got a lot of questions from our community in regards to security. I think for a lot of community members security is becoming a bigger topic than it used to be in years past. We had a few questions on, are you going to pave parking lots? Are we looking at extending our millage just so that we can do nice things in regards to paving parking lots and not having gravel parking lots? That was not in our initial plan going forward.

“We mainly wanted to provide the building so we didn’t want to oversell what we were doing. We wanted to get the facility portion taken care of. I’ll be the first to say we want to come back at some point in time and do some parking lot paving and things of that nature, but that’ll come as the school grows.”

So you didn’t really have a lot of negative feedback on that?

“Very minimal negative feedback in regards to that. The main thing the

community wanted to know was, are we going to get what you’re promising us?

That’s why the board was very specific in promising we’re going to get you the classrooms, the six additional classrooms, renovate the other six classrooms and put everything under one roofline with secure entrances and accesses. Once again, the community needs to feel that they’re getting what they’re paying for, and that was our ultimate goal.”

We’re looking at a block that came off the wall listing the district’s board of directors from 1952 when the building was built. Does that block give you a sense of the history of what you do?

“I’ll be honest with you. I look at the people that are on that block, and you have to look up to them. You know back in 1952 that there were obstacles and hurdles that they were going through in regards to a small school district and maintaining the district at that time. Their efforts that they put in during that time are probably what’s led the way for me being on the board at this time, and their hard work made the school what it is today, kept the school going in the right direction. I would hope that my hard work has done the same thing for people in the future who are going to be on our school board.”

Lead Hill’s school enrollment is …

“It is below 350 at the present time. It’s at 348. That’s something that fluctuates pretty much on a weekly, monthly basis because we have a lot of people that are transient, that come in and out of our district. You’d like to make sure everybody has a stable place and you could keep them here, but families move. We all know that. We just do our best to make sure we provide them what they need while they’re here. Two years ago, we were below 350. Last year we were at 3-, I want to say 54, and this year, we’re just slightly below 350. Depending on people moving in and out, we may be above 350 before the end of the year. It just depends on what the trend is.”

So what’s it like to live on the knife edge?

“You know, the first time we fell below 350, it really concerned me in regards to districts have consolidated, districts have closed, things of that nature. So I was concerned about it. That was actually before the waiver became available, and we actually got our numbers back up at that point in time. Two years ago when we fell below it, I didn’t get as concerned.

“While the number is something that I worry about, we worry more about the students’ achievement and providing them what they need. With the new legislation that was passed that you can request the waiver (in that) if your finances are in good shape, if your academic scores are in good shape and your facilities are in good shape, the State Board looks at granting you a waiver based on those items.

“So as a board member, I kind of step back and say we can’t worry about a number. We’ve got to worry about students, and I think that’s what the district’s kind of done in the last couple of years is we focus on our children. Last year our number came back up as we were hoping it would, and we’re hoping it does the same thing this year. Rather than have our staff worried about the number, we tell them to worry about the students, worry about their achieve-

ment, worry about what they need. Based on the waiver that’s out there, student achievement, your test scores, that’s something that you need to be taking care of. Your facilities, you need to be taking care of, and your finances. We’re focusing on what the school needs to be successful, and we’ll work on the number as needed.”

This is your last term as a school board member. Is it just somebody else’s turn?

“It’s just somebody else’s turn. I think in order for a school district to grow, you need new ideas to come in. And you don’t do this for 15 years and just step away. I’ll still be around to help out with the school, and I probably will be for the rest of my life. It’s just, I think it’s time for somebody to step into the leadership role and understand what needs to happen in regards to education. You know, you can’t keep the same people doing it forever. You’ve got to pass the baton at some point in time, and I think we have people in our community that are ready to step up and lead the school and keep things moving in the right direction.”

Note: Executive Session is edited for length, style and clarity.

Homeland has facial detection school software

Homeland Safety Systems, Inc. has developed a new facial detection recognition software enabling customers to identify sexual predators, suspended or expelled students, or other intruders that may be present on school grounds.

Facial detection recognition software has become a major topic of interest among school administrators regarding school safety. This software application has the ability to uniquely identify or verify a person when compared against a company database of other faceprints.

School administrators will be able to build an in-house database and utilize the facial detection recognition software as an early warning system to identify threats that could negatively affect the school environment. School administrators have shared that they feel this technology provides an added layer of sophistication to security processes already in place.

For more information about Homeland Safety Systems, go to www. homelandsafetysystems.com, or call 888.909.2261.

Stephens provides board professional development hours

As a reminder, Stephens is available to assist board members with obtaining their required professional development hours. Arkansas law generally requires that school board members obtain up to six hours of certified professional development on topics related to school operations.

to debt financing of capital projects. Stephens believes this type of workshop can be particularly useful if boards are considering how to finance future capital projects.

To learn more about how Stephens can assist your district, contact Melissa Walsh of Stephens Public Finance at 501.377.2428.

Hight Jackson is

architect for

Bentonville school

The Bentonville School Board recently approved the latest version of the district’s facility plan and unanimously voted to approve Hight Jackson Associates as the design team for its 13th elementary school, which is tentatively scheduled to open in August 2022.

It is the third of four schools to be paid for with proceeds from a 1.9-mill tax increase that district voters approved in 2017. The others are Evening Star Elementary School, Grimsley Junior High (opening this fall), and a sixth middle school projected to open in 2025.

For more information about Hight Jackson, go to www.hjarch.com or call 479.464.4965. Revitalizing

A Campus

The Arkansas School Boards Association has deemed Stephens’ financial advisors as certified ASBA trainers who are able to provide up to three hours of school finance training annually toward ASBA’s Boardsmanship Awards Program. Normally held in the evening or on a weekend, this free training workshop will address topics ranging from state and local funding revenue sources

design for Sylvan Hills High School

WER Architects/Planners recently completed designing the first of four phases at the Pulaski County Special School District’s Sylvan Hills High School. The first phase is a state-ofthe-art classroom addition that reorients the face of campus and includes a full kitchen and large dining space. It also

expands the science department from one to seven fully outfitted science labs with prep rooms, along with a new media center, career education area, collaboration spaces, administrative offices, and core classrooms. The remaining phases are all underway and will come online in the next 10 months.

For more information about WER, go to wearch.com.

Modus Studio projects underway at Valley Springs

Valley Springs School District, along with Nabholz Construction and the architects at Modus Studio, are working on multiple facility improvements and new construction projects across the campus. The elementary school recently received a new roof, and renovation work will begin on the administration building this summer to be completed before the start of fall classes. Construction on a new two-story, 26,810-squarefoot high school building is currently underway, and construction on a new greenhouse recently began.

For more information, go to modusstudio.com or call 479.455.5577.

Musco installs LED lights at Morrilton’s new baseball stadium

Morrilton High School’s newly built baseball stadium includes a Musco Lighting LED system to achieve superior light levels and glare reduction. It is backed by a 25-year warranty covering every part and all labor.

Since the emergence of LED sports lighting, some high schools have had to replace newly installed LED lights

from inexperienced manufacturers due to problems with reliability and glare. Musco Lighting has specialized in the design and manufacture of sports and transportation/infrastructure lighting since 1976.

To learn about how Musco’s TLC for LED® could transform one of your fields, contact Jeremy Lemons at 501.249.8056 or jeremy.lemons@ musco.com.

Crow Group partners with Chamber’s Be Pro, Be Proud

Crow Group partnered with the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce Be Pro Be Proud program, University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton, and several local employers to host more than 150 central Arkansas students for local industry tours during National Engineering Week in February.

Students visited four major employers to learn about STEM and skilled trade career opportunities available close to home. Students got a tour of Crow Group’s construction and engineering headquarters and participated in a handson activity where they were able to

operate a mini excavator to knock over a safety cone in a controlled environment.

For more information about Crow Group’s construction and engineering services, call 501.354.6511 or go to www.crowgrp.com.

Nabholz turns construction project into classroom

While a construction project on an active school campus can be daunting, it also presents countless opportunities for first-hand learning. Nabholz often works with school administrators to facilitate such activities throughout construction projects.

One recent example was an event Nabholz hosted for 100 kindergartners from the School of the Osage Early

Childhood Center. Students and chaperones were guided on a tour through their future school. Students put their handprints in a concrete slab that will be placed on the school grounds, signed a flag to be flown on special occasions, and learned about construction basics.

Nabholz has also partnered with architects to mentor junior high students on designing buildings; facilitated hands-on involvement in trades such as drywalling, masonry, and carpentry; mentored vocational students; and participated in classroom discussions.

Nabholz urges educators to work with construction managers to take advantage of the construction site as a learning environment.

For more information about Nabholz, call 1.877.NABHOLZ or go to nabholz. com.

Continued from page 13

Neither district will derive the equivalent of 100% of its power through solar energy. Ashley said Entegrity recommended building below that amount because it was more cost-effective.

The two both said the savings will help pay for teacher pay raises that have been mandated but not fully funded by the state, along with the minimum wage increase passed by the voters.

“Minimum wage went up, and I’m not opposed to people making more money, but McDonald’s can charge an extra nickel for their hamburger,” Ashley said. “I can’t charge an extra nickel for my kids coming to school to make the difference up. It comes from somewhere, and so hopefully this solar initiative will help offset some of the cost that we see.”

Meanwhile, Guy-Perkins is aiming to become the first Arkansas district to be 100% solar-powered. The savings will allow the district to upgrade to stained concrete floors, redesign the home economics space, and fund teacher pay raises.

The project is just one way GuyPerkins is going greener, said Joe Fisher,

superintendent. Refuse from lunch will be composted. The district is building a greenhouse using donations from its private sector solar energy partner, Scenic Hill Solar. It would like to serve its own produce in the cafeteria.

The district made the move after former superintendent Shade Gilbert approached the school board about the idea. (He has since installed solar panels on his house.) James Rooney, Guy-Perkins School Board president, said summertime electric bills range from $10,000 to $12,000 per month. The array will generate 900,000 kilowatthours annually and will be in operation for more than three decades. The school owned the land where the farm now sits, and it wasn’t being used.

“There is a cool factor to it and a wow factor to it, yeah, but saving money, that was the thing,” Rooney said. “That was the sale. You’ve got to save money to do something like this.”

GOING FOR 100 PERCENT. Dr. Joe Fisher, Guy-Perkins superintendent, says his district will be the first to pay for 100% of its electrical usage through solar energy.

Commercial Affiliates

American Fidelity

Baldwin & Shell Construction Company

BXS Insurance

Tom Sledge 800.688.4421 tom.sledge@americanfidelity.com americanfidelity.com

Katie Cooper 501.374.8677 kcooper@baldwinshell.com www.baldwinshell.com

Bill Birch 501.614.1170 bill.birch@bxsi.com www.bxsi.com

First Security Beardsley Public Finance Scott Beardsley 501.978.6392 scott@fsbeardsley.com fsbeardsley.com

Homeland Safety Systems, Inc.

Lifetouch National School Studios, Inc.

Pro Benefits Group, Inc.

Stephens Inc.

Mike Elliott 318.221.8062 mike@hssems.com www.homelandsafetysystems.com

Patrick Hand 479.631.8951 phand@lifetouch.com schools.lifetouch.com

Gary Kandlbinder 501.321.0457 pbfsi@sbcglobal.net www.pbfsi.com

Jason Holsclaw 501.377.2474 jason.holsclaw@stephens.com www.stephens.com

The Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS) Mickey McFatridge 870.926.9250 mickey.mcfatridge@tips-usa.com www.tips-usa.com

TRANE

Beau Reynolds

501.478.2938 beau.reynolds@trane.com www.trane.com Exhibiting

A.D.E.M. / Federal Surplus Property

ACE Sports

A-Lert Roof Systems

All-Clean USA

Architecture Plus, Inc.

Brian Jones

501.835.3111

brian.jones@adem.arkansas.gov www.adem.arkansas.gov

Mark Bridges 501.909.9173 mark.bridges@acesports.com www.acesports.com

Vic Runer 803.626.7755 vruner@centurionind.com www.alertroofsystems.com

Lisa Graham 870.972.7729 lgraham@allcleanusa.com www.allcleanusa.com

Craig Boone 479.783.8395 craig@archplusinc.net archplusinc.net

Ark. Single Parent Scholarship Fund of Pulaski Co. Keisha Smith 501.301.7773 ksmith@aspsf.org www.aspsf.org

C.R. Crawford Construction, LLC Phil Jones 479.251.1161 pjones@crcrawford.com www.crcrawford.com

Caddell Construction Co. (DE), LLC

Capital Business Machines, Inc.

Chartwells

Crow Group

Ricky Byrd 479.319.3387 ricky.byrd@caddell.com www.caddell.com

Ben Higgs 501.375.1111 bhiggs@capbiz.com www.capbiz.com

Kellye Neal 501.615.3660 kellye.neal@compass-usa.com www.chartwellsschools.com

Morgan Zimmerman 479.264.4332 mzimmerman@crowgrp.com crowgrp.com

Curtis Stout Justin Kellar 501.372.2555 jfkellar@chstout.com www.chstout.com

David H. Frieze and Associates, Inc. Paul Frieze 501.922.9704 paulfrieze7@gmail.com

Davis Rubber Company

EAST Initiative

Edgenuity

Phillip Davis 501.374.1473 davisrubber@icloud.com davisrubbercoinc.com

Lani Jennings-Hall 501.371.5016 lani@EASTstaff.org www.eastinitiative.org

Harry Dickens 501.615.4748 harry.dickens@edgenuity.com www.edgenuity.com

Educational Technology Learning/Edbrix Ed Tweedle 817.310.3900 ed@edtechlearn.com edtechlearn.com

Entegrity Energy Partners

Rick Vance 501.414.0058 rick.vance@entegritypartners.com www.entegritypartners.com

ESS Tammy Winn 870.236.2350 twinn@ess.com ess.com

Excel Energy Group, Inc.

French Architects

Jackson Brown Palculict Architects

Kinco Constructors

KLC Video Security

Lakeshore Learning Materials

LeafFilter North, LLC

Lexia Learning

McPherson & Jacobson, LLC

Midwest Bus Sales, Inc.

Modus Studio

Moser Construction, LLC

Musco Sports Lighting, LLC

Nabholz Construction Company

National Safety Shelters

Palomar Modular Buildings

Performance Surfaces

PI Roofing

Pop Pop Shoppe

R.J. Love Enterprises, Inc.

Reading, Writing, and ... All That Jazz

Shields Security Solutions

Southern Bleacher Company

Strategos International

Tri-State Floors, Inc.

Van Horn Construction, Inc.

Virco, Inc.

WER

Colton Churchill 479.280.1928 cchurchill@excelenergygroup.com excelenergygroup.com

David French 501.622.0958 david@frencharchitects.net Frencharchitects.net

Randall Palculict 501.664.8700 randy@jbparchitects.com www.jbparchitects.com

Clay Gordon 501.255.7606 cgordon@kinco.net KincoConstructors.com

Bill King 903.792.7262 Billking.klc@gmail.com www.klcvideosecurity.net

Blake Stansbery 310.537.8600 bstansbery@lakeshorelearning.com www.lakeshorelearning.com

Tonia Rollins 800.726.7703 trollins@leaffilter.com www.leaffilter.com

Sarah Colman 978.402.3506 scolman@lexialearning.com www.lexialearning.com/ar

Thomas Jacobson 888.375.4814 mail@macnjake.com www.macnjake.com

Tim Toolen 479.474.2433 ttoolen@midwestbussales.com www.midwestbussales.com

Josh Siebert 479.455.5577 josh@modusstudio.com www.modusstudio.com

Robert Moser 501.847.4777 rmoser@moserconstruction.net www.moserconstruction.net

Jeremy Lemons 501.249.8056 jeremy.lemons@musco.com www.musco.com

Jake Nabholz 501.505.5126 jake.nabholz@nabholz.com www.nabholz.com

Sarah-Jane Corrado 772.248.0236 sarah@nationalsafetyshelters.com www.nationalsafetyshelters.com

Jade Pulfer 469.727.0727 jpulfer@palomarmodular.com palomarmodular.com

Ryan McCaslin 405.570.0386 rmccaslin@performancesurfaces.com www.performancesurfaces.com

Joel T. Johnson 501.400.6121 joel.johnson@piroofing.com piroofing.com

April Pierce 903.276.5580 april@poppopshoppe.com www.popopfundraising.com

Rick Love 501.988.5474 rlove@rjlove.com www.rjlove.com

Debbie Hardwick-Smith 479.263.0815 Readindeb@cox.net www.heinemann.com

Brent Amaden 501.255.0352 b.amaden@ShieldsSecuritySolutions.com

ShieldsSecuritySolutions.com

Carla Herndon 940.549.0733 herndon@southernbleacher.com www.southernbleacher.com

Regina Ferguson 816.204.1243 Regina@strategosintl.com Strategosintl.com

Dean Smith 918.343.2553 dean@tri-statefloors.com www.tri-statefloors.com

Chad Weisler 479.968.2514 cweisler@vanhornconstruction.com www.vanhornconstruction.com

Bruce Joyner

www.virco.com

www.werarch.com

When hiring, ask this, not that

Get the right superintendent and avoid a discrimination lawsuit against the district

When hiring a superintendent, avoiding the wrong questions is as important as asking the right ones.

The right questions will help you hire the best candidate. The wrong questions can lead to a costly, lengthy and divisive discrimination lawsuit.

The right questions will reveal a candidate’s vision, leadership style, education philosophy, and experience with curriculum, construction and finance.

These questions don’t just happen. Before the interview process begins, determine what is important to your district. Decide what questions to ask, and don’t veer off course once the interview session begins.

However, don’t ask questions that could be discriminatory – even ones that might seem obvious and harmless.

• Don’t ask questions about children because these could discriminate against women. Those include questions about children under age 18, child care arrangements, or pregnancy. Also, don’t ask about the lowest salary the applicant would accept, because women often have been paid less than men in the past.

by Jay Bequette ASBA General Counsel

• Avoid questions that could discriminate against minority groups. Don’t ask about a bottom-line salary for the same reason you don’t ask a woman that question. Don’t ask about credit ratings and home ownership because racial minorities have a history of facing discrimination in those areas. Don’t ask about past arrests or criminal convictions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has said members of some minority groups are arrested disproportionately more often. Instead, rely on the state’s screening process for certification, which will probably address that issue.

• Don’t ask questions about age, including date of birth or when they graduated from college.

• Don’t ask about religion. Don’t ask about a candidate’s faith or where they go to church. Don’t ask if they are available to work on weekends, because

some applicants’ religions might forbid them to work on a particular day. Ask instead if they are available 24/7 in case of deadlines or emergencies.

• Don’t ask questions that might relate to a disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits prospective employers from directly inquiring about a disability before a job offer. Also, avoid asking if an applicant has ever filed a workers’ compensation claim because that question could reveal a disability.

• Don’t ask if a candidate is a union member.

• Finally, don’t ask if they have relatives working for the district because it could be interpreted that preference will be given to those who do. Instead, ask about potential conflicts of interest.

Hiring a superintendent is the most important decision a school board makes, and you’ll want to know as much as possible about the candidates’ abilities and values.

But a school board has two goals during the interviewing process: Finding the best person, and avoiding a costly lawsuit. For most of these questions I’ve listed, you don’t really need to know the answer to accomplish the first goal. And for those where you might – particularly the one about the criminal background – there are other ways to find out.

Control from foundation to poletop. . . from the light source to the field, preserving the night sky. . . assuring the results you expect, day 1.

. year 1

. and for 25 years.

WE BUILD

SPACES TO PLAY BALL

Since 2007, Nabholz has been a part of helping the Benton School District create a top-notch athletic complex that holds all outdoor sports in one spot, creating an easy gathering point for students and fans.

The final piece of the puzzle was recently put into place, with the brand-new baseball arena touted among the best in the state.