Taller safety fence, 8 new school buses, higher summer school wages pass School Board

The Warren County School Board unanimously approved several action items during its Wednesday, March 17 meeting designed to bolster safety at a local elementary school, ramp up transportation, and bring in more summer school staff for Warren County Public Schools (WCPS).

Due to safety concerns at E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School regarding public access and use of the school grounds after normal school hours, WCPS Maintenance Director Greg Livesay told School Board members that division staff has implemented several measures to improve the overall safety and security of the site, including fencing, increased video surveillance, additional site lighting, and signage.

But more is needed, specifically fencing, Livesay said. The existing 4-feet-high chain link fencing at the school does not provide adequate safety of the hard surface play area directly behind the building and between the vehicle travel lane, which separates the hard surface play area from the playground and the modular classrooms, he said.

“We have plans to replace approximately 540 linear feet of 4-feet-high chain link fence with new 6-feet-high metal fencing with vehicles gates at each end of the travel lane that will be used to prevent traffic flow behind the school during and after school hours,” said Livesay, noting that WCPS staff solicited three proposals for the work with two bids received.

Winchester, Va.-based McGrane Fence Co. Inc. was the lowest responsive bidder with a $34,725 bid to install the new 6-feet-high metal fencing with driveway gates at the elementary school, he said.

A motion to accept the contract with McGrane Fence Co. was made by School Board member Kristen Pence with a second by School Board member James Wells, who along with Board Chairman Arnold Williams, Jr., Board Vice Chairwoman Catherine Bower, and member Ralph Rinaldi voted yes.

“This would just give us more flexibility in being able to control some of the issues that we have been experiencing at E. Wilson Morrison,” said WCPS Superintendent Christopher Ballenger.

When asked to detail what kind of issues there have been at the school, Ballenger wrote Royal Examiner in an email on Thursday, March 18: “We have had some issues with some vandalism and trash being left on the school grounds after hours and over the weekends. There is also a safety concern because the road is open to traffic and students cross the road to access the playground. The fencing will help us to mitigate these issues.”

Also, during the meeting, School Board members voted unanimously to approve a contract price not to exceed $935,000 in current appropriated funds for WCPS to purchase eight new school buses to be delivered in June, according to WCPS Transportation Director Aaron Mitchell.

Specifically, the new buses are needed “to update and maintain our school bus fleet,” Mitchell said. He also noted that the diesel, 77-passenger-seat school buses will be purchased from Thomas Bus Company.

One of the eight buses will be outfitted with a wheelchair lift, as well as fully removable seats. Mitchell explained that such a bus will support students with special needs, who will not have a barrier to going on field trips, for instance. “We are reaching that ultimate level of inclusion to even include transportation now,” he added.

In another unanimous vote, School Board members approved increased hourly rates for WCPS staff for summer school, which this year will run from June 23 through July 8.

“In recent years, it has been increasingly difficult to attract the amount of staff needed with the current hourly rate,” WCPS Personnel Director George Smith told board members. “This summer will provide an additional challenge to secure staff due to a short summer break” as the WCPS summer school program is scheduled for 10 days.

On behalf of WCPS, Smith recommended increasing the hourly rate for the summer school administrator from $35 to $45 per hour; raising pay from $25 to $35 per hour for summer school teachers, and bumping up hourly pay for summer school instructional assistants from $10 to $15 per hour. The cost is covered in the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 school budgets.

Ballenger said that the school division will send out a flyer shortly regarding summer school once details are solidified.

Other approved items
The Warren County School Board also unanimously approved several other action agenda items.

Among them, Superintendent Ballenger is authorized to request that the Warren County Board of Supervisors appropriate the fiscal year (FY) 2020 School Operating Surplus in the amount of $2,380,365 as follows: $1 million to the Schools Capital Improvement Fund; $1 million to the School Transportation Fund; and $380,365 to the School Textbook Fund.

“The transportation fund will be a new fund that will be used to purchase buses,” Ballenger wrote in his email earlier today. “The buses approved last night [March 17] were requested in this year’s budget.”

The board also authorized the Transportation Department to replace its current Ricoh printer/copier, which Mitchell said is nearly 10 years old, for a monthly lease cost of $217.84.
WCPS also received approval to spend $17,355.82 for a one-year renewal of Frontline PD, a professional development management system that WCPS Director of Elementary Instruction Lisa Rudacille said houses staff professional development offerings, keeps track of professional staff’s license renewal points and provides a mechanism through which professional development can be approved toward re-licensure efforts.

And the School Board approved a request from WCPS Director of Special Services Michael Hirsch, who asked that WCPS enter a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with The Warren Coalition to provide a variety of evidence-based programs to WCPS students that address bullying, making healthy choices, and developing emotional intelligence.

“This helps students to be aware of, control, express emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and with empathy,” Hirsch said.

The evidence-based programs are “LifeSkills Curriculum” for grades 6-8 and students attending Brighter Futures; the “HALO” program for preschool students with disabilities; and the “Too Good for Drugs” program for 9th graders and students attending Diversified Minds, according to Hirsch.

Another program targeting bullying prevention that is coupled with the middle school program and is not a part of the MOU also will be delivered to middle school students, he added.

Superintendent Ballenger clarified with Royal Examiner that these programs are “a continuation of the programs that we already have in place within our schools.”

The School Board also unanimously adopted a resolution requesting that the Warren County Board of Supervisors (BOS) issue general obligation bonds to refund an existing bond. The BOS requested that the School Board adopts the resolution so that it may proceed with an application to refund the bonds and realize associated savings totaling an estimated $1.17 million over the remaining life of the bond, Ballenger explained.

Upcoming items presented
A representative from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) updated the School Board on the length of an upcoming Happy Creek Road improvement project this summer and its possible impact on school transportation for the start of the 2021-2022 school year.

No action was required during the board’s Wednesday night meeting as VDOT right now is waiting on project start-date news from the utility companies, which are working with the railroad companies on related proposals and permits, the VDOT rep said.

The potential start date for the project is June 10 with a completion date set for August 10, but the VDOT rep said those dates could change. Ballenger would prefer not to change the current school calendar for the fall start date of school if VDOT can meet its project deadlines.

The VDOT rep said the department will know by July 1 whether it can meet the August completion date. School Board member Wells suggested waiting until July 1 to decide whether WCPS should adjust the school schedule, saying it’s better to “deal with the issue once rather than twice.”

WCPS Assistant Superintendent for Administration Melody Sheppard also presented an item not requiring School Board action last night regarding an MOU to be entered into between the School Board and the Warren County Sheriff’s Office that sets forth the powers and duties of the school resource officer (SRO). No motion was necessary because the MOU will be presented at the April 7 School Board meeting for consideration, said Sheppard.

SROs assist with safety and security matters at schools and help school administrators develop school crisis and response plans. They also work with administrators on crime prevention measures and to promote school safety, said Sheppard, who added that SROs serve multiple, interrelated roles that help support positive school climate.

“This MOU is reviewed and affirmed or amended at least once every two years,” Sheppard said, adding that the revised MOU is modeled after the Virginia School-Law Enforcement Partnership Model MOU developed by the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. “WCPS and the Sheriff’s Office have worked collaboratively to ensure the MOU aligns with our policies and practices,” she said.

The Sheriff’s Office will provide 10 law enforcement officers that it employs to serve as SROs for WCPS, said Sheppard.

Watch the entire School Board’s March 17 meeting in the exclusive Royal Examiner video below.