THNS auditorium project advances; school board reviews Orr’s performance
Superintendent Anthony Orr and the Nelson County Board of Education presented “Expect the Best” awards, from left, to student Camron Robbins; Thomas Nelson High School parent Suzanne Hite, and OKHMS special education teacher Angie White and OKHMS instructional assistant Kristie Gilliland.
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2015, 11:15 p.m. — The much-awaited auditorium at Thomas Nelson High School took an important step forward at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Nelson County Board of Education.
Kimberly Brown Director of Secondary Schools Central Office 288 Wildcat Lane Bardstown, KY 40004 (502) 349-7000 ext. 2324 Anne Marie Williams, the district’s director of elementary schools and Kim Brown, director of secondary schools, review the district’s comprehensive district improvement plan (CDIP) at Tuesday regular board of education meeting.
The board approved Tuesday the construction documents for the project, which now will go to the Kentucky Department of Education for their review.
Following KDE approval, the district will next advertise for construction bids. Tim Hockensmith, the district’s chief operating officer, said he anticipates bringing those bids to the board for approval at its February meeting.
Hockensmith said the new auditorium at Thomas Nelson should be ready for use by Fall 2017.
The bids for the Early Learning Center (ELC) expansion project will be brought to the board at the January board meeting for action. The ELC expansion will also anticipated to be ready to open by Fall 2017, he said.
SUPERINTENDENT EVALUATION. The board met in a lengthy closed executive session to evaluate the effectiveness of Superintendent Anthony Orr.
When the board emerged, chairman Damon Jackey announced that Orr received an “accomplished” rating in six of seven categories, including strategic leadership; instructional leadership; cultural leadership; human resource leadership; managerial leadership, and collaborative leadership.
The board gave Orr its highest “exemplary” rating for the “influential leadership” category.
DISTRICT ENERGY RANKING. Nelson County Schools were recently among the top-ranked districts evaluated by the Kentucky School Board Association for energy efficiency.
Board members Diane Breeding and David Norman listen to a discussion of the Thomas Nelson auditorium construction project at Tuesday’s board meeting.
The county school district was ranked No. 3 among the state’s 173 school districts for energy efficiency when comparing energy use from 2010 to 2015.
“That’s something to be proud,” Hockensmith said, and is proof the board’s decisions on energy efficiency projects is paying dividends.
Additionally, all but one of the district’s school buildings will soon be eligible to receive an Energy Star rating. The rating certifies that the buildings have met certain energy efficiency criteria verified by an independent third-party evaluator.
OUT OF DISTRICT CONTRACTS. The board approved out-of-district agreements with neighboring school districts with students that seek to attend a Nelson County district school.
Some of the requests are due to parents working in Nelson County who wish to have their children attend a county school.
The list of districts include Anderson, Boyle, Fayette, Jefferson, Spencer, Barren, Bullitt, Hardin, LaRue, Taylor, Hart, Marion and Washington counties, and the Elizabethtown Independent School district.
DISTRICT IMPROVEMENT PLAN. The board reviewed the Comprehensive District Improvement Plan, which sets several goals that included:
– improving math and reading proficiency;
– reduce the number of novice-ranked students in math;
– ensure equitable distribution of effective teachers for all students;
– increase the level of college and career ready graduates;
– increase kindergarten readiness; and,
– improve the high school graduation rate.
In other business, the board:
— reviewed the participation rates in the free breakfast and lunch programs that began this year at Bloomfield Elementary School, Boston School, New Haven School and Horizons Academy.
— approved the 2016-17 school district calendar, which closely mirrors this year’s calendar.
— approved the board’s meeting calendar for 2016.
— presented “Expect the Best” awards to student Camron Robbins; Thomas Nelson High School parent Suzanne Hite, and OKHMS special education teacher Angie White and OKHMS instructional assistant Kristie Gilliland.
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