Live with the School Board Meeting

The Cherokee County Board of Education is meeting at 7 p.m., and Woodstock-Towne Lake editor Lindsey Davidson is covering it live for the Cherokee Patches. Superintendent Frank Petruzielo will ask for the board's approval with the redrawn district posts as a result of the increased population. Also on tonight's agenda is Robert Leslie Morrow's resignation, the with a 16-year-old student. See the attached PDF for the full agenda.

8:28 p.m. The meeting is adjourned.

8:26 p.m. Read makes a move to approve the post reappointment resolution. The board unanimously approves it.

8:25 p.m. Usher said he appreciates the work; he isn't necessarily happy, but he is happy.

8:24 p.m. Petruzielo said everyone is equal in the county. Everyone's vote counts. He said if you take away the ability for individuals to vote for every member on the board, people would get upset.

8:21 p.m. Geist said he was intrigued by the idea of post representation and dividing the county into five posts and two at large. He agrees with the four-year terms. He said he has always been uncomfortable with redistricting to preserve incumbency rather than representation.

8:16 p.m. Board Member Kim Cochran said some people asked about representation for the entire county.

8:15 p.m. Board Member Janet Read said she appreciates the attendance at the four public input meetings and the work that went into the surveys.

8:13 p.m. The board is now discussing the potential new posts. Chapman said he feels comfortable approving them and he is happy with the feedback the public gave with the surveys and meetings.

8:11 p.m. The school district approved a policy that requires each school to get approval from the school board for school-sponsored, and/or student participation in, fund-raising activities.

8:10 p.m. The first reading is approved.

8:09 p.m. We are back online! Internet cut off for a bit. Petruzielo is discussing the first reading of Fund Balance Policy. We will have a summary of this later since we missed it.

7:48 p.m. We come back with board member Mike Chapman opening up with positive remarks about the first day and week of school. He then goes into some comments about the charter school after expressing how he has served on this board for 10 years and on the technical college board for nine years:

"We’ve addressed the idea of a technical school or magnet school, a partnership. Money always gets in the way. We’ve talked about doing different things."

Chapman said between the two boards, Petruzielo and himself have discussed different paths to address problems the public has presented them with.

"One of the things we do as a board, when people say, 'I want to go here because there is a problem with this,' we should be listening to those comments. We have an obligation to address those issues. On that same line, the questions come up why don’t we start a charter school within the system? We have extra inventory."

Chapman said the district is building new schools and some without extracurricular amenities parents have expressed they have wanted, such as machine shops.

"Really what I would like to do is challenge the superintendent to look at that. Perhaps we could start a charter school. Perhaps we could do something there."

7:39 p.m. Recognitions are over, and we are in a five minute break. That means the room will clear out now.

7:35 p.m. The Georgia Education Cooperative is a USDA Best Practices Award winner for the Large School Food Authority in Customer Service. By combining their efforts, they have been able to take advantage of volume discounts and share responsibilities and the workload associated with the bidding process. The partnership has resulted in much higher quality food and lower costs. The school district's food staff is recognized for their hard work.

7:31 p.m. Carmel Elementary School teacher Merry Willis was selected by The International Society for Technology in Education as a 2011 ISTE Emerging Leader. Willis was selected from nominees around the world for this international recognition. Congratulations!

7:28 p.m. The students that participated in the Cherokee County School District 2011 Sequoyah Regional Technology Fair are being recognized. Check the PDF for the full list of students.

7:26 p.m. A “concerned businessman” is speaking on behalf of the charter school decision. “We certainly don’t want to turn out like the Atlanta city schools...It is amazing that the Republican Party has asked the four members to renounce their decision.” He said he supports the board, but he doesn’t envy their task. He asks the board to work in a non-partisan way.

7:22 p.m. A Cherokee County Democratic Party representative is speaks saying he supports the Board of Education and their decision with the Cherokee Charter Academy. He presents a resolution which is a response to the Republican Party’s public request for board members to renounce themselves. They encourage the Republican Party to retract their remarks and join the Democratic Party in their support for the board.

7:19 p.m. Another teacher speaks is on behalf of the Cherokee Teacher Association saying she wants to lend her support. She thanks board members for their upright honest answers and support for the children. 

7:17 p.m. The floor has been opened for public comment. Amy Yarber, the Cherokee County Council President, is speaking on behalf of the Cherokee County PTAs. She is presenting a resolution of support for the Cherokee County Board of Education. She thanks the board for their service to the children.

7:14 p.m. Rebecca Hannigan from Etowah High School is recognized as the new student representative for the board. Her list of accomplishments is too long to list. Congratulations, Rebecca.

7:11 p.m. The consent agenda is pulled and approved. The item including recommendations, resignations and terminations was voted on by the board and approved. This included the two River Ridge educators that were arrested last week.

7:09 p.m. We have started the meeting with the pledge of allegiance and approval of July 27 meeting minutes.