GOSNELL -- During its Monday night meeting, the Gosnell School Board received the 2012 Arkansas School Accountability Reports based on the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Gosnell elementary has been judged an "achieving" school in literacy, based on the test scores and achievement growth, but a "needs improvement" school in math for the same reasons. The high school was achieving based on test scores, but not on graduation rate.
High school principal Lynn Whitehead told the board that the drop in graduation rate has been a focus for his faculty and staff, and that a special orientation for seniors and their parents has been held and went very well, explaining to all graduating students what is expected of them. Credit recovery classes have also been made available both before and after school, so that students can have ample opportunity to make up courses they failed.
In financial news, the board approved the district's 2012-13 athletic budget, which comes in at $778,144, including teacher salaries, operation, maintenance, transportation and equipment funds. Whitehead asked that ticket prices for all athletic events remain unchanged from last year, as most other districts in the area have also declined to raise prices.
Cafeteria meal prices for adults were raised, per a state mandate, from $1.75 to $2 for breakfast and from $3 to $3.25 for lunch. Superintendent Bonard Mace said the mandate was only to change the price by a little over a dime, but the change of a quarter was made so that changes would not need to be made again for a more extended period of time.
The district's multicultural recruitment plan was also discussed; the district has increased its minority teacher population by 1 percent each year since 2009, and plans to continue its attempts to recruit qualified minority educators. School enrollment for the district has been on a slow climb back up from a low point over the past several years. As of Monday, enrollment was up by 50 students from last year --- bringing the total number of students in the district to 1,346.
Former Blytheville administrator Sam Macre was hired to be the in-school suspension facilitator for Gosnell High.
The district's public meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 24.
sharris@blythevillecourier.com