ASHEBORO —
Accreditation and bullying were the primary topics covered at the Randolph County Board of Education’s fall work session last week at Pinewood Country Club.
Pat Foust, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, led an overview of the district-wide accreditation process. The county school system will be evaluated during the 2010-2011 school year by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS).
A SACS team will visit Randolph County from March 13 through March 16, 2011.
“We know we have a good school system,” Foust told the board, “but we also know we have things to work on.”
Accreditation is a voluntary means for a school system to receive an evaluation of its methods by an outside group.
SACS accreditation is recognized for five years.
Sherri Trotter, director of student services, presented the board an outline of the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program that she and three others in the school system were trained in.
Then she assigned roles to board and staff members for a bullying role-playing session.
Trotter explained that the Olweus program focuses on the power of peer pressure to stop the pattern of bullying.
Keys to success include posting and enforcing rules, holding regular class meetings on bullying, talking to parents, helping teachers learn on-the-spot intervention tactics and recognizing bullying hot spots.
Also on the agenda for the work session was Superintendent Donald Andrew’s annual report.
A primary topic in the report was finances. According to Finance Officer Todd Lowe, federal stimulus funding is expected to bring an estimated $3.7 million to Randolph County Schools for salaries.
Lowe said the money can only be used to hire, rehire or retain employees and only for the current school year.
With budgetary problems from the down economy expected to continue next year, Lowe said the county schools are faced with the prospect of hiring new employees for this year with the possibility of having to let them go next year.
However, he said there might be ways of shifting funds around so new employees could be retained for the succeeding year.
Larry Penkava can be reached at (336) 625-5576 or by e-mail at lpenkava@randolphguide.com
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