The Blytheville School Board has yet to reach a decision regarding the district's participation in the School Choice Act of 2013.
With an April 1 deadline looming, the board is expected to call a special meeting to discuss the issue.
During Monday night's monthly school board meeting, School Board President Tommy Bennett made a motion to table any discussion about School Choice while the board gathers more information. The motion passed unanimously, which means the board will have to schedule a special meeting sometime before April 1.
A date was not set for the meeting because Superintendent Richard Atwill wanted to get some clarification on the deadline for turning in the board's decision, specifically whether the decision was expected by the start of the day on April 1 or by the end of that business day. The board is expected to have a date set for the special meeting before the end of the week.
Also during Monday's meeting, the board scheduled official makeup dates for the days missed because of the ice storm that hit the area two weeks ago. Blytheville Schools will not make up its days during next week's scheduled Spring Break; instead, the days will be made up on this Friday, which had originally been scheduled as a professional development day; April 18, which is Good Friday; and June 2-6.
During the recent ice storm, Blytheville Primary School had a pipe burst because of the sub-freezing temperatures, causing more than $50,000 in flood damages to instructional and technology materials. Jean Cole, director of Title I, informed the board that she was advised to submit a revised budget, which would include all of the items lost during the flood, for reimbursement.
cpinkard@blythevillecourier.com