By Jacki Harris  

The Fluvanna County School Board meeting got underway with a roll call and introduction of the latest student member -- ¬Olivia Winston of Fluvanna County High School on August 12.  

The meeting room where the monthly school board meetings are held was very crowded as several members of the public were present to discuss Craig Lewis' treatment by Fluvanna County schools. Lewis is a former special education teacher at Fluvanna High School who was also in the Army National Guard. In 2005, while employed as a teacher there, he was called to serve in Iraq.

Lewis returned from Iraq in 2007. Several veterans spoke on Lewis' behalf.

"No one from the school administration contacted Mr. Lewis during his service. His job was protected by USERRA," stated Brian Phillips.

USERRA stands for Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act and is a federal law that protects reservist's jobs if they are called to serve.

"With regard to Mr. Lewis, he was discharged in February 2007. He came to Mr. [James] Barlow in May 2007 to get a job back. This is within the time allowed by the law. He was offered a special education teaching job in July and he turned it down," stated Thomas W.D. Smith, superintendent.

School board member Barbara Gibbons , Rivanna District, had asked that a copy of the military leave policy for Fluvanna schools be provided in the evening's packet, which it was.

"It is a shame that Lewis and the veterans don't feel we did everything we could have. It is a shame Lewis was disappointed. We need to make it clear we appreciate what they do," stated school board member Thomas Muir, Palmyra District.

Gibbons suggested that the administration find out who among the school system's employees is a veteran and make plans to recognize their service on Veteran's Day.           

Dr. Smith noted that the Fluvanna Board of Supervisors had appropriated $400,000 back to the schools for the Central Auditorium renovations. The auditorium is being renovated due to a mold problem. Look for more on this in next week's issue.

A draft policy allowing part-time enrollment of private and home school students was approved unanimously. The policy states that parents are responsible for transporting students who are enrolled part-time.

"It seems to me that this is a good thing for the school system and the community. It is a good thing to accommodate students who want to come," stated Muir.

Chris O'Neal and Marguerite Matics gave a presentation on a proposed iPod pilot project. According to O'Neal, the aim of this project is to engage students at a higher-level using the latest technology.

The project would place a set of iPods in one classroom at each of Fluvanna's schools. Thirty iPods are in each classroom set; the total cost would be about $44,000. Each member of the school board and Dr. Smith was provided an iPod to accompany the hands-on presentation. All agreed that it was engaging but concerns were raised about if this was a good use of money.

"This is fun and innovative. However, there aren't enough calculators in calculus classes. I have trouble spending money on iPods when there aren't enough calculators at the high school," stated Gibbons.

Barlow stated that he had asked math teacher Ms. Blevins to investigate how many calculators were needed and to let him know so that they could buy the calculators. Some parents at the meeting had already bought their child a calculator. A high school student rose to speak and expressed her concern that $44,000 might be spent on iPods when "at the high school, some sinks don't turn on, some toilets don't flush or leak. These things are not at a level that is acceptable."

Ultimately, the school board decided to put off making a decision and moved the iPod proposal to an information item for the September meeting. O'Neal and Matics were asked to look into alternatives that may be less expensive. Smith noted that the iPods could possibly qualify to be paid for by federal stimulus money and stated: "This technology will be the wave of the future."

The 2010-2011 school budget calendar was presented. There will be a public hearing on the school budget on October 14. The next school board meeting will be Wednesday, September 9 at 7 p.m. Meetings are held in the board room of the School Board office located in the Old Palmyra School on Route 15. The public is encouraged to attend.