Siloam Springs School Board members expressed support for a program change during their meeting on Thursday night that will function as an alternative option for expelling students as a means of disciplinary action.
The proposal was presented toward the beginning of the night during SSSD Assistant Superintendent Jody Wiggins' report. It will only affect children in grades seven through 12 and suggests that when the board approves a recommendation to expel a given student for behavioral problems, that the student and their parents be given a chance to meet with school administrators to create a personalized "Student Action Plan," or SAP, according to a PowerPoint presentation that was given at the meeting.
The SAP will outline certain academic and non-academic expectations of the student, which they will be expected to fulfill during a period of "suspended expulsion." During this time, the student in question will not be allowed on school district property or be able to attend school-sponsored activities unless their SAP permits it, but they will be able to complete classes online from home and remain in contact with the school, presuming that they continue to meet the provisions of their SAP, according to the presentation.
The terms of a student's SAP will be negotiated by both the school and the student and his or her parents, and they will be based on the behavior that led to the expulsion in the first place. This could mean mandated drug screenings or counseling services, or requiring a student to meet certain academic benchmarks, according to the presentation.
If the two parties are unable to come to an agreement about the terms of the SAP, then the school district will uphold the expulsion recommendation. If they are able to, however, and the student is able to meet the necessary requirements, they can ultimately reconcile the issue and return to school. Along with others on the board, SSSD Superintendent Ken Ramey applauded the idea and described it as a positive potential solution to a problem that the board never wants to face, namely, expelling a student.
"We've always, after we get through with an expulsion, have had to have that post-expulsion meeting where we talk with a parent and they always go 'now what do we do?'" Ramey said. "Because when you expel them, now they're just in the hands of the parents, but this is an option that will keep them engaged, keep them moving forward and hopefully they won't just be wandering around the community. ... I salute the committee for their efforts to give us some options for these kids."
Wiggins' report was followed by Ramey's report, in which he briefly listed several pieces of legislation pertaining to schools that has been passed in this congressional session. The board then unanimously approved both the district's February financial statement as well as a resolution to authorize the issuance and delivery of approximately $8.8 million in refunding bonds.
The resolution came after the district was able to refinance a 2013 loan and obtain a lower interest rate, Ramey said. That said, the resolution does not give the district more money, but will instead save them and taxpayers about $655,000 over the course of the loan.
In other business, the board:
• Unanimously approved the transfers of two students into SSSD from Gentry.
• Unanimously approved the transfer of one student out of SSSD to Gentry.
• Unanimously approved the resignation of Tracy Birkes, a reading interventionist at Siloam Springs Middle School.
• Unanimously approved the "2nd tier" of sick days for SSSD employee Tamara Lane, which will allow her 20 additional sick days.
• Unanimously approved the renewal of numerous administrator contracts for the 2019-2020 school year.
General News on 03/17/2019