On the agenda: School board to review COVID relief spending, superintendent evaluation

Students across the Port City have just recently returned to school with near-normal conditions -- for the first time in more than two years.

Last year's return, for the 2021-22 school year, came with the COVID-19 pandemic still atop many minds across New Hanover County. Masking remained a requirement in school buildings and the board of education continued to feel pushback from the community for many COVID-era decisions and policies.

Fast forward a year and the board is ready for the new school year's first regularly scheduled meeting. Questions are sure to arise over the district's continued COVID-19 response efforts and a host of other major issues New Hanover County's public schools now confront.

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Here are some key items school board members will address on Tuesday.

COVID emergency funds

In the wake of the pandemic, New Hanover County Schools received more than $95 million in emergency relief funding from the state and federal government.

On Tuesday, the school board will hear an update on how that money is being put to use.

The district's first allotment from the Elementary and Secondary Relief Fund (ESSER) includes more than $6 million, most of which was put toward improving educational technology, according to the school board's agenda item. That funding helped launch the district's first phase of its 1:1 technology plan, providing students across the district with personal laptops.

It has also addressed learning losses caused by COVID-19 by funding tutors, curriculum and software, and other resources, in addition to providing new services for the "unique needs of special populations," like money for occupational therapists.

Policy changes

The school board also has a long list of changes to policies ranging from public participation at school board meetings to bullying and harassment.

Most additions to policies are small wording changes prompted by guidance from the North Carolina School Boards Association.

Policies on the agenda for second reading, in which the board will vote to approve the new policy, include updates to the superintendent evaluation and revised definitions for sexual harassment.

The superintendent evaluation policy guides the board's annual review of the position and outlines that the superintendent provide leadership in a range of areas, including cultural, structural and strategic leadership, among others. The board reviews the superintendent using guidance from the Rubric Evaluating North Carolina Superintendents.

The definitions of sexual harassment help guide the district in understanding what violates Title IX, which protects students from gender-based discrimination. That includes sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking.

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Staffing update

While schools across the nation grapple with staffing shortages due to low pay and burnout among teachers, New Hanover County Schools has nearly all positions filled to start the 2022-23 school year.

Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Chris Barnes will provide the school board an update on staffing needs in the district.

According to the agenda item, only six classroom teacher positions and 15 teacher assistant positions are currently unfilled. Additionally, the district had an 86.6% retention rate of its staff from the 2021-22 school year.

Barnes will also update the board on other staffing information relevant to the district's strategic plan, such as mentoring processes for new teachers and continued recruitment efforts to create a diverse and high-quality staff in the district's schools.

The school board meeting starts at 5 p.m. Sept. 6 at the New Hanover County Board of Education Center, 1805 S. 13th St. The meeting can also be viewed online on the district's YouTube channel.

Contact reporter Sydney Hoover at shoover@gannett.com or on Twitter @sydneymhoover. Join the Education Issues in Southeastern North Carolina Facebook group to stay up-to-date on education news.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: New Hanover school board: What to keep an eye on at September meeting