Gainesville Schools rehiring to avoid big class sizes

GAINESVILLE - Gainesville School Superintendent Dr. Merrianne Dyer said Monday night some teachers slated not for rehire are coming back to avoid larger class sizes.
Dr. Dyer said spending priorities need to be set.

"To meet our class size we will have to add back some personnel," Dr. Dyer said. "We will not add back by any means all the people we reduced but we're going to have to balance that and in order to do that, we're going to have to set our priorities."

Dyer said federal stimulus funding would help in specific teaching areas.

"The stimulus money can only be spent on needs that you have and innovations and enhancements to meet those needs," Dyer said. "We're moving people into positions in the areas where we want to innovate and where we have need."
"We've proven we've had a precipitous decline in our revenue."

Dr. Dyer said the Board is on track to reduce its deficit by $1.8-million for the current fiscal year, and $2-million in FY 2010.

Currently FY 2010 expenditures are set at $51.9-million with projected revenues at $52.6-million for the general fund budget.
The Board expects to adopt its new budget by June 15th.

SPENDING GO-AHEAD

The Board gave system technology director Keith Palmer permission to order $373,000 worth of technology for the new middle school so he could have it installed in time for the school opening in August.
Palmer assured board members the cost would show up in next year's budget but he needed to order the equipment before July 1st when the new spending plan takes effect.
Palmer's total budget for school technology is $1.9-million.

GRADUATION TEST RESULTS

Gainesville High School Juniors can claim bragging rights on their high school graduation test results.
Associate Superintendent Dave Shumake told school board members students scored 97 percent in English language arts, math, 100 percent, on the science portion, they scored 92 percent and in social studies, 91 percent.

Shumake said it was the first time 100 percent of students passed the math portion of the test that qualifies them for graduation.

The test results were announced last week. (See earlier story.)


HONORARY DIPLOMAS

Board members learned who would be receiving the system's first honorary Gainesville High School diplomas.
Dr. William Lightfoot of the GHS School Governing Council said those recipients are Lucile Carter, Marvin Orenstein, Durward Pennington and Curtis Segars.


NO SMOKING, PLEASE

Gainesville High School students urged the School Board to 'go all the way' in enforcing the system-smoking ban.

Jasmine Mayes said there needs to be a policy change to ensure that no one smokes on the school grounds or during school athletic events at any time.

Mayes said the ban is supposed to be in force 24 hours a day; right now students said no school in the health district is 100 percent tobacco free.
Only 41 out of 181 Georgia school districts are designated as 100 percent tobacco free campuses according to information supplied by the students.