The Clinton County Board of Education, meeting in regular session Monday evening, had a full agenda, including three presentations and a closed session on litigation, to name a few. Four of five members were present for the almost two-hour meeting.

The board first heard an end of the year report from Jeff Pharis with Clear Creek Academy.

Some highlights of that report are that 50 students were in the academy this past school year, up 15 students from the previous year; grades four and seven had one student each; grade eight had five students; grade 9 had 12; grade 10 had eight; grade 11 had five and there were 15 seniors, with three fifth year seniors.

Thirteen of the 15 seniors met graduation requirements and graduated, with all fifth year students graduating as well. The academy also had a 72.63 percent average in passed classes.

As a class: enrolled students in 461 courses; transferred 64 courses (i.e. home hospital, home school, and withdrawal); passed 301 of the remaining courses; failed 96 in the remaining courses; 397 total courses–75.8 percent passing rate.

Representatives of the Family Resource and Youth Services Centers also gave end-of-year reports and power point presentations. (A separate article featuring those school support centers will be published in an upcoming issue.)

Dr. Eric Loy with Lake Cumberland Family Medical also discussed the new School Nurse Program that will be implemented into the schools this coming school year, and a separate article featuring that new program will be published in next week’s Clinton County News.

Finance Director Mike Reeves then gave a brief report, noting the district had met its budget goals for the past fiscal year.

Chairperson Paula Key then read a lengthy monthly personnel report, as follows:

Certified continuing contracts: Shannon Shearer, teacher at AES; Amanda Dalton, Ashley Ipock, Ashley Braswell-Shelton, teachers at CCMS; Lucas Dalton and John Thomure, teachers at CCHS.

Certified resignations: Tina Langford, Principal, CCECC; Jennifer Martin, teacher, AES; Ashley Braswell-Shelton, Cheer Coach and Sheldon Harlan, principal, CCHS; Yvonne Morgan, teacher, AES.

Certified hired: Danielle Hicks, Migrant Summer School Teacher, district-wide; Tina Langford, Director of District Wide Programs, acting appointment; Sheldon Harlan, principal, CCECC; Joan DeForest, interim principal, CCHS; Chasity Stearns, teacher, AES.

* Certified transfers: Allison Bilbrey from AES teacher to .9 AES teacher/.1 Media Librarian; Renee Parrigin from CCECC teacher to CCECC/AES teacher.

* Certified retired: Connie Armstrong, School Media Librarian, AES.

* Classified continuing contract: Greg Cummings and Keith Dalton, bus drivers, district-wide; Shirley Hickman, Peggy Stinson, Sandra York, bus monitors, district-wide; Donna Huckelby, aide, CCECC; Shannon Dishman, aide, CCHS; Jeffrey Lee, cook, CCMS.

* Classified transfers: Angela Renee Polston and Shannon Dishman from CCMS aide to CCHS aides; Katrina Smith from CCECC aide to AES aide; Chris Smith, Dana Shelley, Willette Shelton from AES aides to CCMS aides; Tyler Shearer from AES Paraprofessional/.5 district-wide Paraprofessional.

* Classified resignations: Donna Cross, Paraprofessional at AES; Helen Hunter, aide, AES; Sandra Gibson, Clerical Assistant/Paraprofessional II, CCHS; Teresa Tarter, bus monitor, district-wide.

* Classified hired: Sandra Gibson, Transportation Department Clerical Assistant.

* Substitute teacher: Amanda Reneau, district-wide.

The board also approved second and final reading of policy updates recommended by the Kentucky School Boards Association; voted to release Penny Dalton, who has retired, as Co-Treasurer; approved the annual contract with Adanta for the 2015-16 school year and approved renewed membership for 2015-16 with the Green River Regional Educational Cooperative.

The board then approved the lone bid from Pepsi to provide drink products and services (scoreboards, machines, etc.) for the coming year; approved an agreement with Hands on Therapy, PSC for the coming year; approved an overnight trip for the CCHS football team to attend camp in Cookeville July 29 through August 1, and approved the annual KDE (Kentucky Department of Education) District Funding Assurances for the 2015-16 school year.

Board members then opted to make Clinton County Schools tobacco free beginning next year and collaborate with the area district health department for a tobacco free campus grant. (Details on that issue can be found in a separate article beginning on page 1.)

Julie York, Director of Pupil Personnel, then gave a year-end update on attendance for the past 2014-15 term.

Overall attendance was down just .04 tenths of a percent, to 93.93 compared to 93.97 at the end of the previous year, with overall student enrollment being up by 77 students, to 1,835 last year in comparison to 1,758 at the end of the 2013-14 term.

Each school had set an attendance goal for the year, with Albany Elementary and Clinton County Middle School meeting their goals, but CCHS lost almost a percentage point going from 92.78 to 91.98 percent average daily attendance.

York noted there was still work to be done to reach the district goal of 94.5 percent but pointed out that there were some positives and a lot of work, including incentives that were put in place to help raise the overall attendance rate in the district.

Under the public comment period, a parent of a middle school student who had apparently been expelled, addressed the board briefly about the process and procedure used in making the decision. However, due to the situation being of a possible legal and juvenile (student) related nature, the board referred the parent to talk with its legal advisor Lindsey Bell about the issue.

The board then entered into closed session to discuss pending litigation in “James C. Thaxton and Michael P. Sinclair v. Clinton County Board of Education, et al., Civil Action 1:14-CV-100-R,” presently pending in U.S. District Court in Bowling Green.

No action was taken upon returning to open session.

In open session, the board conducted its annual evaluation of Superintendent Charlotte Bernard and approved the meeting agenda and amended agenda which included the tobacco free schools and tobacco free school grant items.

The school board is scheduled to have a non-action work session on Thursday, August 13 at 4:30 p.m. with the next regular business meeting scheduled for Monday, August 17 at 5 p.m. at the Central Office board room. Both meetings are open to the general public.