GULF COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD - Gulf District Schools



|GULF COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD |

|Thursday, July 13, 2017 |

|The Gulf County School Board met in special session Thursday, July 13, 2017, at 7:45 (Agenda Workshop) and 8:00 (School Board Meeting) at their |

|Administrative Office in Port St. Joe. Superintendent Norton, and the following board members were present: Chairman Billy C. Quinn, Jr., Cindy Belin,|

|Danny Little, Brooke Wooten, and John Wright. Attorney Costin was unable to attend due to a scheduling conflict. |

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|Agenda Workshop: Reviewed Agenda Packet |

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| BOARD MEETING AGENDA: |

|I. |CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Quinn called the meeting to order at 8:05. |

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|II. |ADOPTION OF AGENDA: On motion by Mr. Wright and seconded by Mrs. Belin the Board unanimously approved the agenda. |

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|III. |HEAR FROM THE PUBLIC: Krissy Gentry approached the Board to express her concern over the District’s inability to employ more minorities. Mrs. |

| |Gentry stated that she was not addressing the Board as GCEA President, but rather as a concerned citizen. Superintendent Norton stated that he |

| |took exception to her comments, stating that the district continually seeks to employ the best people for advertised positions, and reminded her|

| |that the district currently has minorities in key positions. Mrs. Gentry’s referenced an un-named minority who had tried repeatedly to secure a|

| |position within the district but was not employed. Again, Superintendent Norton and the staff informed Mrs. Gentry that she had been given |

| |false or misleading information in the situation. |

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|IV. |CONSENT ITEMS: On motion by Mr. Wright and seconded by Mr. Little the Board voted unanimously to take the following action: |

| |Approved the June 30 Minutes, and (SM: 17/18 – 001) |

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| |PERSONNEL: (SM: 17/18 – 002) |

| |Approved Duane McFarland’s DROP letter effective August 1, 2017, with an anticipated retirement date of July 31, 2022. He has selected Option 1|

| |for terminal pay for all accrued leave. |

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| |Approved Joy Booth’s transfer from Port St. Joe Elementary to Port St. Joe High effective August 7, 2017, and |

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| |Approved Tina Hicks for the 2-hour bus aide position for the Port St. Joe Elementary special needs bus, and |

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| |Approved Keith Chiles as a substitute bus driver, and |

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| |Approved a July 2, 2017 starting date for Scott Hall. |

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| |PROGRAM MATTERS: (SM: 17/18 – 003) |

| |Approved payment of the FSBA Annual Dues for 2017-2018, and |

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| |BID MATTERS: (SM: 17/18 – 004) |

| |Awarded Bid #18-012 to enclose the Wewahitchka Elementary School covered play area to Fisher Construction Co., Inc. |

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| |Notes: Mr. Little confirmed with Mr. Borders that this bid was a lock-and-key bid price. Mr. Borders stated further that once the project is |

| |complete the maintenance department would install carbon monoxide detectors in the area. |

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|V. |SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT: |

| |Mr. Little asked if a workshop would be scheduled to discuss the proposed tentative budget. Mr. Norton stated that discussions had taken place |

| |in the meetings and information had been provided to board members so that any questions or concerns could be addressed; Mr. Norton added that |

| |he saw no need to have a special budget workshop, but would leave that up to the pleasure of the Board. Mr. Quinn asked if a workshop needed to|

| |be scheduled to discuss the audit findings in reference to the Best and Brightest. Mr. Norton stated that the Board had already addressed the |

| |Best and Brightest issue and had satisfied the state’s requirements to correct the mistake. Mrs. Worley advised that the District is clear and |

| |in good standing with the State. She noted that each employee who received the funds in error were mailed two (2) letters asking them to |

| |contact the finance department to make arrangements to pay back the money to the District. She emphasized that the only other recourse would be|

| |for the school board members to vote to sue the employees for the money they received in error. Whether or not to pursue legal action against |

| |these employees is the sole discretion of the Gulf County School Board; it is not Superintendent Norton’s decision. Mr. Quinn asked the Board |

| |if any of them wanted to take further action, and added that he personally did not want to pursue legal action. Mr. Little urged board members |

| |to seek counsel from Attorney Costin before making a decision. Mr. Wright also stated that it was an unfortunate situation and acknowledged |

| |that mistakes were made, but he went on to say that he was through with it as well and would not be in favor of pursuing legal action against |

| |the employees in question. After much discussion, Union President Krissy Gentry approached the podium and summed up her remarks by stating that|

| |she agreed with the opinion of the board members, which is not to pursue a lawsuit against the employees who have not made arrangements to pay |

| |the funds back to the district. |

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|VI. |BOARD MEMBER CONCERNS: |

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|VII. |ADJOURNMENT: Chairman Quinn adjourned the meeting at 11:10. |

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