Reina Cunningham

Staff Writer

Members of the school board met Monday night at Pineville High School for their regular monthly meeting.

The high school marching band was honored before the meeting officially began. Band teacher, Sheldon House, told board members how hard the band has been working. Their hard work has paid off because they are now a multi-award winning band. Each member of the band was introduced to the board and received applause as their name and instrument(s) were called.

Many of the band members’ parents were in attendance to see their children being honored. Superintendent Terence Hayes thanked the parents for their dedication to both their children and the school marching band.

Next, Troy Gaw gave the results of the financial statement audit for the 2012 school year. Gaw expressed his happiness with how cooperative everyone at the school was with assisting him in his preparation of the report. He said the board office, elementary school, and high school worked together to make sure all information needed to perform the audit easily accessible.

For the first time in seven years, there were no findings on the financial statement audit. Additionally, all previous findings have been fixed.

The monthly elementary report was read next. The report showed the school was constantly receiving more information on how to use the data they currently have to continuously improve the skill levels. Currently, the school is trying to improve 36.8 percent to reach proficiency levels in both reading and math.

The high school monthly report showed vast improvement in math grades. The report showed the ninth grade class has improved two grade levels in one semester. At the beginning of the year, the 9th grade class was tested and the results showed the class testing as if they were in the middle of their seventh grade year. The same students were tested last week and the results showed they were right on track by testing in the middle of their ninth grade year.

Additionally, the academic teams from the middle and high schools currently have a record of 7-1. The middle school is 4-0 and the high school is 3-1. The academic teams are looking forward to competing with Middlesboro.

The report also revealed a mock ACT has been given to the junior class to see what areas need to be focused on before the students take the actual exam.

Attendance was discussed for both the elementary and high schools. The overall attendance was 93.7 percent with the elementary school having an average of 94.23 percent and the high school having an average of 93.09 percent. The board believes the the low attendance levels is due to sickness. The schools have been dealing with an influx of both the flu and stomach viruses.

Hayes took a moment to let board members know he had reviewed the school’s current emergency plans and was updating them in light of last weeks tragic events in Connecticut.

The following items were brought to the attention of the school board and were unanimously approved:

* HB 265 Coal Severance Resolution;

* Local planning committee;

* Cafeteria bid from Flour Baking Company to replace Wonder Bread;

* A family medical leave request;

* Several fundraiser request including a semi-formal dance, Knickerbocker photos, Krispy Kreme Donuts, and a used book drive;

* Field trip requests.

Reina Cunningham is a staff writer for the Middlesboro Daily News. She can be contacted via phone at 606-248-1010, ext. 205.