Friday was one of those days I really enjoy as Superintendent. Friday was the day I surprised our 2018-2019 Teacher of the Year for the entire division. The honoree was Mrs. Julie Eng, a teacher at Smithfield High School. Julie teaches English, Creative Writing, and Teachers for Tomorrow at SHS. She is a very humble person and prefers to let her students have the spotlight. After presenting her with flowers, and taking several pictures, she was ready to resume the normalcy of her classroom. It's evident her students respect her, appreciate her, and love having her as a teacher. Although being selected Teacher of the Year is an incredible honor, it can't top having the approval of the students you teach. She has made a lasting impression on hundreds of lives and that, by far, is the greater legacy.
Congratulations to all of our Teachers of the Year for 2018-2019. You are all excellent representatives of the outstanding educators we have throughout IWCS. For a full list of Teachers of the Year, scroll down below the pictures.
IWCS 2018-2019 Teachers of the Year
Carrollton Elementary: Morgan Chappell Carrsville Elementary: Debbie Story Hardy Elementary: Lee Ann Hawley (Elementary Teacher of the Year) Westside Elementary: Ceceli Lleva Windsor Elementary: Pamela Hall Georgie D. Tyler Middle: Ashleigh Hazel (Middle School Teacher of the Year) Smithfield Middle: Elizabeth Tisdel Smithfield High: Julie Eng (High School Teacher of the Year; Division Teacher of the Year) Windsor High: Deborah Simmons
In March 2019, the Isle of Wight
County School Board approved the proposed budget for 2019-2020. The budget requested an additional $1,981,047
in local funding when compared to the current year. The division has identified required expenditures that will have to be covered as part of the 2019-2020 budget. Those required expenditures will cost $2,178,901. They include:
Teacher
raises -$640,923
3
Guidance Counselors -$190,788
Shared positions: Carrollton and Hardy; Smithfield and Windsor
High; Windsor Elementary and Georgie Tyler Middle
IWCS
is projected to receive an increase in state funding of $1,510,525.
The Isle of Wight County Administrator has proposed funding
IWCS $948,106. When combined with the
state funding, the total would cover:
All
Required Expenditures listed above $2,178,901
Supplemental
pay increases (coaches, sponsors, extra duties) $192,230
Support
Staff Raises $87,500
Some of the items not included in proposed funding:
High
School Finance Teacher (provides additional face to face sections of Economics
and Personal Finance
Carrollton
Elementary School STEM Teacher (reduces high resource class size)
Hardy
Elementary School STEM Teacher (provides equity with other schools)
Westside
Elementary School STEM Teacher (reduces high resource class size)
Windsor
Elementary Environmental Science Teacher (provides a specialized focus for
students)
Georgie
Tyler/Windsor High ISS Teacher (makes
the shared position a whole position for both schools, which will provide a more
timely response to discipline matters)
High
School CTE Teacher (the location has not yet been designated; addresses
increasing class sizes)
WHS
Math Teacher (reduces class size)
GTMS
8th Grade Teacher (reduces class size)
High School--½ Global Logistics Teacher (to
begin offering the Global Logistics program/warehousing as part of the Career
and Tech Ed redesign in IWCS)
2
Technicians for Technology (the number of devices throughout IWCS has increased
annually, but the staff to manage those devices has not)
WHS
Instructional Materials $10,200 (funding for Drama, MakerSpace, and Robotics)
WHS/SHS
funding for all sophomores to take the PSAT
Additional
Maintenance Supplies $60,000
Transportation
$245,965 (to reduce “doubled up” runs when drivers are out, and to help with
transporting small student teams/groups to events without encumbering a full
size bus)
5
vans -$150,000
2 Part Time
bus drivers -$21,160
Full Time
bus driver floater -$20,475
Cost
to move bus driver substitute to $13.50 -$15,380
The Board of Supervisors will make the final decision on the
amount of funding appropriated for the school division. They don’t “fund” a specific project or
position, but they provide the overall funding for IWCS, and the division then decides
how to use the funding to support those needs.
They have not eliminated the STEM teachers, for example, but supporting
the County Administrator’s proposal would mean IWCS would not receive the
funding it needs to add those positions. It will be helpful to keep that in
mind when speaking to the BOS about additional funding.
There are two opportunities to speak on the proposed IWCS budget:
April 18, 5:00 pm, at the Windsor Town Center,
23361 Courthouse Highway, Windsor, VA 23487
This is a regular meeting of the Board of
Supervisors with a public comment period
around 6:00 pm
April 25, 6:00 pm, at the Board of Supervisors
Meeting Room, Courthouse Complex
This is a Public Hearing on the county
administrator’s proposed budget and the Capital Improvement Plan.
This will be the last time to provide comments
on the budget before it is voted on at the May 9 BOS meeting.
The IWCS Capital Improvement Plan approved by the School
Board includes funding for renovating and expanding Hardy Elementary, replacing
the Bus Garage, building a new elementary school in the northern end of the
county (when triggered by enrollment
increases), and an renovating Westside Elementary. Information on the IWCS Capital Improvement
Plan can be found on the IWCS website at https://www.iwcs.k12.va.us/apps/pages/planning
We hope to see, and hear from you, at these upcoming meetings. You need to make your voice heard about the budget. If you can't be there in person, have someone who will be there deliver a letter from you directly to all the supervisors. They need to fully understand the number of parents, community members, and employees who support the division's budget as presented. You need to let them know if there are things that should be funded that were not included in the county administrator's budget. Your voice does matter.
Thank you for
your support of Isle of Wight County Schools
Tuesday evening I spoke to members of the Hardy PTA and other citizens who came out to Hardy for a special meeting on the future of the school. I shared with them our plan for Hardy, which includes a significant renovation and addition to the aging facility. I showed them examples of recent renovations throughout IWCS so they could see that our proposal is not just putting "lipstick on a pig".
Many of the parents, grandparents, and citizens who spoke Tuesday night shared their love for Hardy and their appreciation for the incredible staff who teach and care for their children daily. They agreed that the children in the Hardy district deserve similar spaces and programs offered at other elementary schools. We showed a video that highlights the incredible differences between Hardy Elementary and a newer elementary school less than 15 miles away--Carrollton. Whether you have ever set foot in Hardy or Carrollton, you must watch this video to see for yourself the side by side comparison of these 2 schools. You will immediately recognize the issues at Hardy and understand why we need to implement the proposed plan as soon as possible.
There were some questions from parents about how this project would impact taxpayers. If you
are a homeowner, then the renovation, if approved by the Board of
Supervisors, will probably result in a tax increase. Our calculations
are that it may be around 2.3 cents per $100, but the rate would be determined by the
Supervisors.
I want to thank everyone who came out to the meeting on Tuesday, including Mr. Rudolph Jefferson, Board of Supervisors, Hardy District, and School Board Members Vicky Hulick (Chair, Newport District), Jackie Carr (Vice-Chair, Carrsville District), and Kirstin Cook (Smithfield District). I appreciate Mrs. Denson's assistance with getting the word our to her parents about the meeting. Most importantly, I want to thank everyone who attended the meeting and those who candidly shared their feelings about Hardy.
The Board of Supervisors has scheduled a Public Hearing on the Operating Budget and Capital Improvement Plan budget for April 25, at 6:00 pm, at the IOW Courthouse Complex. We need our parents to share their support for the Hardy project with the Supervisors. If you can't attend, consider writing a letter that someone who is speaking can deliver to the Supervisors that evening. Let's make sure the students and staff at Hardy have a facility that matches their same level of greatness.
