By Carl Helton, Lakeland Currents
In honor of TSBA (Tennessee School Board Association) School Board Recognition Week, the Lakeland School System (LSS) thanked the five Lakeland Board members at its Feb. 6 meeting.
A buffet dinner preceded the February work session which featured presentations by Lakeland Elementary School (LES) students to Lakeland School Board members.
The meeting began with the LES students presenting gifts to the Board. Students Maggie Beckham, Lyllian Bogue, Izabella Babcock and Langston Estes presented gift baskets to each of the Board members. Parker Roberts was the master of ceremonies and Josie Todd sang a solo during the presentation. Principal Joretha Lockhart and first-grade teacher Alyson Bogue were on hand coordinating the presentation. Lou Ann Vaught, a fifth-grade teacher, worked with Parker and Josie for their parts.
Details of the work session part of the meeting:
All shared services inter-local agreements will be terminated as of June 30, according to Board member Teresa Henry. There is a new shared service inter-local agreement for transportation with Collierville. There is a new inter-local agreement between LSS and the City of Lakeland for HR/payroll and IT. Stephanie Curland was hired for the HR/payroll position and she began Feb. 6. The IT position should be filled next week.
Interviews are underway for the new Lakeland Prep Middle School. Several new positions for the middle school have been posted this week for individuals to apply. The list of AMS (Arlington Middle School) teachers available to interview for the LSS will be available by Feb. 17.
Construction on the new LMPS (Lakeland Middle Preparatory School) building is moving on time thanks to the good weather conditions during January. The network package and security package have gone out to bid for the new school.
Mrs. Henry and LSB member Geoff Hicks briefly spoke on the TNL. There is a $250 million increase of funds state-wide for K-12 including $100 million set aside for increased teacher salaries. The breakdown for each school has not yet been determined. The new employee two-week pay period will begin April 6.
Board Policy 4.300 – Extracurricular Activities was updated to allow the principal or designee to use attendance in determining eligibility to participate in extracurricular activities.
All discussions items were carried over to the Consent Agenda of the LSB’s regular meeting.
— Photos by Jim Willis
