[00:04:14] [INAUDIBLE] . SO [00:05:03] IT IS 6:00. WE WILL CALL THE OCTOBER 10TH MEETING OF THE AIKEN COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION TO ORDER. THAT THREW ME OFF. I'LL GET BACK ON TRACK. I HOPE IT REMINDED YOU OF SOMETHING. SO THIS MEETING IS NOW IN SESSION THAT THE WE'VE GOT, WE START ALL OUR MEETINGS WITH A MOMENT OF SILENCE AND A PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. PLEASE JOIN ME IN A MOMENT OF SILENCE. PLEASE STAND FOR THE PLEDGE. THE AGENDA WAS PUBLISHED AND CIRCULATED TO BOTH THE BOARD AND THE PUBLIC IN ADVANCE. I'M SORRY. I HAVE NOT HEARD FOR ANY REQUESTS FOR CHANGES OR ALTERATIONS TO THE AGENDA, AND WILL ACCEPT THE AGENDA AS PRESENTED WITH NO OBJECTIONS. WE DO HAVE ONE SET OF MEETING MINUTES TO APPROVE, AND THAT IS THE MEETING MINUTES FROM OUR REGULAR MEETING FROM SEPTEMBER 26TH, HERE'S OUR MOTION TO APPROVE THE MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 26TH. MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON. IS THERE A SECOND? SECONDED BY MR. SMITH. SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND SECONDED TO APPROVE THE SEPTEMBER 26TH MEETING MINUTES. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT. IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION CARRIES. THE MEETING MINUTES ARE APPROVED. AS FAR AS SPECIAL ORDERS OF BUSINESS, WE HAVE NOT HAD ANY REQUESTS FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AT TONIGHT'S MEETING. NOR DO WE HAVE. WE DON'T HAVE ANY SPECIAL RECOGNITIONS TONIGHT. SORRY, THAT CAUGHT ME. I KNEW THAT, BUT I'M CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD. THERE IS ONE ITEM THAT I HAVE UNDER OFFICE OF BOARD CHAIRMAN, SO WE HAVE ONE TO DISCUSS THE DELEGATE ASSEMBLY THAT'S COMING UP, SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION'S LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY CONFERENCE AND DELEGATE ASSEMBLY. WE'VE HAD ACCEPTED VOLUNTEERS, SO I'VE BEEN PROMOTING THAT AND ASKING FOR VOLUNTEERS TO BE OUR DELEGATE OVER THE LAST MONTH OR SO. AND MR. SILAS HAS VOLUNTEERED TO BE OUR DELEGATE AT THIS YEAR'S MEETING, AND I HAVE NOT HEARD ANY OTHER VOLUNTEERS, BUT WE CAN CERTAINLY DISCUSS IT IF THERE ARE. OKAY. THIS IS AT THE CONFERENCE IN DELEGATE ASSEMBLY ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2ND. AND THEN A LITTLE BIT ON THE THIRD IS WHEN THE CONFERENCE IS. OKAY, SO THE BOARD NEEDS TO CERTIFY OUR DELEGATE TO THE DELEGATE ASSEMBLY. AND I WOULD GO AHEAD AND MAKE THE MOTION THAT WE CERTIFY. MR. BRIAN SILAS AS OUR DELEGATE FROM THE AIKEN COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION WITH ALL EIGHT VOTES. AND HE WOULD USE THE DELEGATE ASSEMBLY AND THAT I WOULD SERVE. I'M ALSO ATTENDING THE CONFERENCE. I WOULD SERVE AS THE ALTERNATE IN CASE MR. SILAS CAN'T ATTEND. THAT'S THE MOTION. IS THERE A SECOND SECOND BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON? SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO CERTIFY MR. SILAS AS OUR DELEGATE WITH ALL EIGHT VOTES FOR DECEMBER 2ND DELEGATE ASSEMBLY MEETING, AND I WOULD SERVE AS THE ALTERNATE. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR. MOTION CARRIES. CONGRATULATIONS, MR. SILAS. THANK YOU. YEAH, AND THANK YOU FOR SERVING. THAT WAS THE ONLY ITEM OF BUSINESS UNDER OFFICE OF BOARD CHAIRMAN. WE HAVE A FEW INDIVIDUAL ITEMS THIS EVENING. A COUPLE OF POLICY REVISIONS AND SOME PERSONNEL APPOINTMENTS AND A BUDGET CALENDAR, BUT WE'LL TAKE THEM IN ORDER. FIRST INDIVIDUAL ITEM IS JUST THAT. WE HAVE A LIST OF CERTIFIED AND CLASSIFIED PERSONNEL THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED TO US, SCREENED BY HUMAN RESOURCES AND APPROVED BY THE ADMINISTRATION AND RECOMMENDED TO US. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE LIST OF PERSONNEL APPOINTMENTS AS PRESENTED? SO MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND BY MR. SMITH. SO WE HAVE A MOTION IN A SECOND ON APPROVING THE PERSONNEL APPOINTMENTS. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE PERSONNEL APPOINTMENTS, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR. MOTION CARRIES. THE PERSONNEL APPOINTMENTS LISTED ARE APPROVED. [00:10:02] NEXT, WE HAVE TWO POLICY REVISIONS. AND I THINK WE WHAT WOULD BE GOOD IS JUST IF THE FOLKS LISTED ON THE AGENDA COULD COME UP AND GIVE SHORT SUMMARIES. THEY'RE PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD. AND THEN IF ANYBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS, WE CAN ANSWER THEM. THE FIRST IS A REVISION OF POLICY IKA GRADING ASSESSMENT SYSTEMS AND JUST MR. DR. MINOLFO, COULD YOU JUST BRIEFLY SUMMARIZE FOR EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM THE CHANGE BEFORE WE MAKE A MOTION? YES, SIR. GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIRMAN NUESSLE SCHOOL BOARD AND MR. LAURENCE. YES AND IKA THE POLICY REVISION IS WE MADE A JUST GRAMMATICAL CHANGES TO DETERMINE HOW WE MAKE HOW WE DETERMINE VALEDICTORIAN AND SALUTATORIAN EACH YEAR. AS YOU CAN SEE, WE MARKED OUT SOME LANGUAGE JUST TO SPECIFY 11TH GRADE FOR THE THIRD YEAR. AND THEN IN THE SECOND SENTENCE FURTHER CLARIFIES VALEDICTORIAN, SALUTATORIAN, TAKE A MINIMUM OF FOUR COURSES. WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S A THAT STUDENTS ARE ACTUALLY IN SCHOOL AND TAKING CLASSES FOR A MINIMUM OF FOUR CLASSES A YEAR. IS THAT CORRECT? RIGHT. OKAY. SO THAT THIS IS SPECIFICALLY CHANGED FOR OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS REVISION FOR VALEDICTORIAN. SALUTATORIAN. IDENTIFICATION OF THOSE TWO. THANK YOU, DR. MINOLFO. YES, SIR. AND I JUST WANT EVERYBODY. IT'S PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD, BUT I WANT TO MAKE EVERYBODY IN THE ROOM TO HEAR THE SUMMARY. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE REVISION TO POLICY IKA ON THIS IS FIRST READING RIGHT? YES, SIR. ALL RIGHT. MR. SMITH HAS MAKES A MOTION. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON? ANY DISCUSSION? SO I JUST HAVE ONE COMMENT I DON'T. MY COMMENT ON THIS IS THAT JUST SO PEOPLE KNOW WHERE WE'RE COMING FROM, SO THAT YOUR DR. MINOLFO EXPLAINED IT VERY WELL, BUT THERE'S A CERTAIN. YOU NEED TO BE ENROLLED IN THE SCHOOL AT A CERTAIN POINT BEFORE YOUR JUNIOR YEAR, AND THEN YOU HAVE TO TAKE A CERTAIN NUMBER OF CLASSES ACTUALLY ON THE CAMPUS. YOUR LAST EIGHT SEMESTERS, EXCUSE ME, FOUR SEMESTERS, YOUR LAST TWO YEARS IN HIGH SCHOOL. AND THIS WAS IN RESPONSE TO SOME FEEDBACK WE GOT JUST SO THAT WE'RE CLEAR ON IT. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION OR COMMENTS ON THIS POLICY CHANGE? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING FIRST READING OF THE CHANGES TO POLICY IKA, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR. MOTION CARRIES. IT'S APPROVED ON FIRST READING. THERE'S THE NEXT ONE IS REVISION TO THE POLICY. ADMINISTRATIVE RULE IKE-R. SO JUST REMEMBER FIRST READING IS THE ONLY READING ON ADMINISTRATIVE RULES. SO WE'RE VOTING TO BASICALLY IMPLEMENT THIS TONIGHT. AND DR. MINOLFO CAN SUMMARIZE. BUT IT'S A LOT OF LANGUAGE UPDATES MORE THAN ANYTHING. BUT DO YOU WANT TO SUMMARIZE SIR. YES SIR. THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. ON PAGE TWO AND THREE. IT REALLY IS JUST UPDATING IT USING THE CORRECT CURRENT TITLES. PAGE FIVE IS WE HAD SUMMER CONTENT RECOVERY, BUT WE'RE OFFERING CONTENT RECOVERY DURING THE YEAR. AND SO WE TOOK AWAY SUMMER SPECIFIC. AND WE'RE PROVIDING THAT CONTENT THROUGHOUT THE CALENDAR THE SCHOOL CALENDAR YEAR. AND THEN ON PAGE SIX IT REALLY IS JUST ALIGNING IT WITH THE THE BLOCK SCHEDULE THAT WE MEAN, EXCUSE ME, IDENTIFYING IT BASED ON MORE SPECIFIC CRITERIA FROM MOVING FROM 10TH GRADE TO 11TH GRADE FOR TO IDENTIFY WHAT WHAT THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS ARE FOR AN 11TH GRADER FOR 12TH GRADE. SAME THING. IT'S JUST THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS THAT IDENTIFY HOW WE PROGRESS OR PROMOTE TO THE NEXT GRADE LEVEL. YEAH. DID I SAY THAT RIGHT, MR. NUESSLE? THANK YOU FOR THAT. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE REVISION TO ADMINISTRATIVE RULE IKE? SR MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON. IS THERE A SECOND, SECOND, SECOND BY MR. SILAS? ANY DISCUSSION? OKAY AND JUST FOR EVERYBODY'S BENEFIT. BUT WHEN YOU HEAR THE WORD, HERE'S MY COMMENT. AND THIS IS MORE FOR FOLKS IN THE ROOM THAN THE BOARD. WHEN YOU HEAR WORDS LIKE, WE'RE CHANGING THE ADMINISTRATIVE RULE ON PROMOTION AND RETENTION OF STUDENTS, THIS DOES NOT REDUCE ANY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROMOTION OF STUDENTS. IT MERELY IT'S LIKE WE DESCRIBED IT IS MOSTLY FOR FOLKS WATCHING AT HOME, LANGUAGE CHANGES AND TITLE CHANGES. OKAY, THAT'S MY ONLY COMMENT. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION OR COMMENTS? I HAVE A COMMENT. YES, SIR. DR. BRADLEY THESE TWO AGENDA ITEMS CAUSE ME TO REREAD THE POLICIES AND IT JUST WAS TOTALLY [00:15:07] DEPRESSING EXPERIENCE TO SEE HOW PATHETIC THE STANDARDS FOR GRADUATING FROM A HIGH SCHOOL IN SOUTH CAROLINA ARE. I MEAN, 60% OF YOUR MATERIAL IS THE CRITERION TO PASS A COURSE. AND IF YOU CAN'T DO THAT, THEN YOU HAVE THE GIMME AT THE END, WHICH IS CALLED CREDIT RECOVERY. IT'S EMBARRASSING. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION. WE'LL CALL FOR THE VOTE BECAUSE WE HAVE A MOTION IN A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE REVISIONS TO ADMINISTRATIVE RULE? PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION CARRIES. THE REVISION TO ADMINISTRATIVE RULE IS APPROVED. THE LAST INDIVIDUAL ITEM IS. MR. TRAXLER HAS SUBMITTED A PROPOSED BUDGET CALENDAR FOR 24-25 BUDGET THAT WAS ATTACHED TO THE AGENDA, AND THAT WOULD START WITH ACTIVITIES HERE. AT THE DISTRICT OFFICE. I'M SURE THAT MR. TRAXLER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR TOWARDS THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR, GOING ON INTO GETTING INPUT FROM FOLKS, INCLUDING ONE THING I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, LIKE WE DID THIS PAST YEAR, WE'VE GOT SPECIFICALLY IN THE CALENDAR, A MEETING TO MAKE SURE WE GET INPUT FROM THE BOARD ON BUDGET REQUESTS AND SO FORTH. MUCH LIKE WE GET FROM SCHOOLS AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS, AND THAT WE WOULD WIND UP WITH IT ALL ENDS BY AS FAR AS PLANNING TO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING. YOU KNOW, THE TENTATIVE PLAN, PUBLIC HEARING ON OUR TENTATIVE BUDGET MAY 14TH, AND HOPEFULLY A SECOND READING AND ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET BY MAY 28TH. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PROPOSED BUDGET CALENDAR FOR 24-25? MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND BY DR. HANKS. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE PROPOSED 24-25 BUDGET CALENDAR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT IS EIGHT IN FAVOR. THE MOTION CARRIES THAT PROPOSED BUDGET CALENDAR IS APPROVED. WE HAVE FIVE CONSENT ITEMS THAT WE WILL VOTE ON AS A GROUP, BUT CERTAINLY CAN DISCUSS THEM INDIVIDUALLY BEFORE A VOTE IS TAKEN. THE FIRST ITEM IS THERE IS A LIST OF EXPULSIONS THAT ARE NOT APPEALED, THAT WE MUST RATIFY, THAT WE'VE HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW IN ADVANCE. SECOND, THERE IS A DONATION FROM PUBLIX IN THE AMOUNT OF OVER $2,800 FOR SCHOOL SUPPLIES FOR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS. THIRD IS ALSO SIMILAR, BUT A GRANT AWARD FROM THE COOL KIDS FOUNDATION GRANT AWARD TO KENNEDY MIDDLE SCHOOL IN THE AMOUNT OF $3,000. PURCHASE EQUIPMENT, MATERIALS, AND SUPPLIES FOR THEIR LETTUCE. GROW KENNEDY TOGETHER. FOURTH. WE'RE WE'VE RECEIVED BIDS FOR PAINTING OF NEW ELLINGTON MIDDLE SCHOOL GYM, AND THAT'S FOR OUR APPROVAL. AND THEN THE LAST ONE IS A CHANGE ORDER NUMBER ONE FOR SCRUBBING AND CODING OF THE GYM FLOORS IN THE AMOUNT OF A CREDIT OF $20,000. SO THAT'S A SUMMARY OF THE FIVE CONSENT ITEMS. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE FIVE CONSENT ITEMS AS PRESENTED? MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON, IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. SECOND BY MISS TYLER. DISCUSSION ON THE CONSENT ITEMS. HEARING NONE. WE'VE GOT A MOTION IN A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE FIVE CONSENT ITEMS AS PRESENTED, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR. THE MOTION CARRIES. ALL RIGHT. SO WE HAVE. SOME GUESTS WITH US TONIGHT FOR OUR FIRST INFORMATIONAL ITEM. WOULD WELCOME MR. SCOTT PRICE FROM THE SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION, AND HE'S BROUGHT TWO GUESTS WITH HIM. IS IT DR. MOORE? YEP. DR. JEAN MOORE, SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION, AS THE BOARD KNOWS, IS MAKING A PRESENTATION TO US TONIGHT ABOUT ESSENTIALLY THEIR SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH SERVICES THAT THEY COULD PROVIDE TO US. AND MR. [00:20:01] PRICE AND DR. MOORE THEIR WORK. WE'RE GOING TO WORK OFF HANDOUTS AND THEY'RE HANDING THOSE OUT NOW. YES, SIR. MR. CHAIRMAN, I HAD SEVERAL PEOPLE ASK ME ON THE WAY IN IF I HAD SLIDES AND I APOLOGIZE. I HAVE JUST A HANDOUT. THAT'S FINE. UM, BUT I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME AND TALK TO YOU ABOUT HOPEFULLY WORKING WITH YOU GOING FORWARD ON THIS VERY MOST IMPORTANT DECISION THAT YOU ALL WILL BE MAKING AS A BOARD. AND ONCE AGAIN, MY NAME IS SCOTT PRICE. I'M EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION. MR. CHAIRMAN, LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU. MR. SILAS, DOWN AT OUR DELEGATE ASSEMBLY THIS YEAR. WE GOT A JAM PACKED AGENDA FOR THAT LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCE. UM, WITH ME TONIGHT IS DR. GENE MOORE, WHO'S BEEN WORKING WITH US FOR SEVERAL YEARS AS A CONSULTANT AND SUPERINTENDENT SEARCHES AND DR. MOORE IS A RETIRED SUPERINTENDENT FROM LANCASTER COUNTY. SO WE'LL BE THE PRIMARY TEAM. AND THIS INCLUDES JUDY LEGRAND, WHO COULDN'T BE HERE THIS EVENING, BUT SHE'S ALSO OUR SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH COORDINATOR. AND AGAIN, IT IS AN HONOR TO TALK TO YOU TONIGHT AND HOPEFULLY ADDRESS ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE. WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IS GIVE YOU SORT OF A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE SEARCH PROCESS THAT WE DO, AND WE'VE BEEN DOING NUMEROUS SEARCHES OVER THE YEARS. WE'VE DONE, I THINK, IN THE PROPOSAL THAT YOU HAVE, AND THIS IS A DRAFT SEARCH PROPOSAL THAT WE HAVE BEEN SINCE 2009. WE'VE CONDUCTED 41 SEARCHES IN SOUTH CAROLINA. UM, BUT I WANT YOU TO KNOW ONE THING ABOUT THIS THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT. THIS IS YOUR SEARCH. WE HAVE A PROCESS AND WE BRING IT TO YOU AND IT'S OUTLINED IN HERE. IT HAS A TIMELINE IN HERE, BUT THERE'S NOTHING IN HERE THAT ISN'T ADAPTABLE TO SUIT YOUR NEEDS. AND WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN JUST A FEW MINUTES. BUT. SO JUST TO MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND, YOU DO ALL YOU ALL CONTROL THE PROCESS. WE DO THE WORK AND YOU ALL CONTROL THE PROCESS. THE TIMELINE FOR A TYPICAL SEARCH IS ANYWHERE FROM 3 TO 6 MONTHS. AND AGAIN, WHAT YOU HAVE IN HERE IS JUST A PROPOSAL, AND WE CAN WORK WITH WHATEVER YOU ALL WANT TO DO IN TERMS OF A TIMELINE. WE'LL HELP. WE'LL WORK WITH YOU ALL TO HELP YOU DETERMINE PRIORITIES THAT, LIKE YOU, THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN YOUR NEXT SUPERINTENDENT. WE ALSO WILL WORK WITH YOU ALL TO ON ADVERTISING AND RECRUITING. AND THAT'S IF YOU ALL DETERMINE YOU WANT TO DO A NATIONAL SEARCH. WE ARE CERTAINLY CAPABLE OF DOING THAT. WE HAVE NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS WE WORK WITH, AS WELL AS MY COUNTERPARTS IN OTHER STATES THAT WE WORK WITH, AND WE ALSO WILL USE THOSE SAME RESOURCES IN TERMS OF RECRUITING CANDIDATES FOR YOU ALL. ALL WE DO ASK THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS, UNTIL WE GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE'RE LOOKING AT NAMING FINALISTS THAT WE MAINTAIN CONFIDENTIALITY IN THE PROCESS, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT HELPS US, ENABLES US TO BRING YOU ALL SOME OF THE BEST CANDIDATES THAT ARE OUT THERE, BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT IT'S A PROCESS WHERE THERE'S GOING TO BE CONFIDENTIALITY. UNTIL WE GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NAMING FINALISTS. WE'LL ALSO WITH THE SCREENING PROCESS, WE WILL HELP YOU ALL THROUGH THE INTERVIEWS OF SEMI FINALISTS AS WELL AS FINALISTS. IN THAT PROCESS, WE HAVE QUESTIONS WE CAN WE'LL BRING TO YOU SAMPLE QUESTIONS, BUT YOU CAN CERTAINLY TAILOR THEM TO FIT WHATEVER YOU WOULD LIKE TO ASK. AND ONE THING I WANT TO MAKE CLEAR TOO IS. IF WE HAVE OPEN UP ADVERTISING FOR MAYBE A MONTH, JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, AND WE GET 20, 25 APPLICATIONS, WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH THOSE APPLICATIONS, AND DR. MOORE WILL HELP US GO THROUGH THOSE APPLICATIONS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY MEET THE QUALIFICATIONS THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. AND WE'RE GOING TO COME TO YOU AND SAY, OKAY, YOU'VE RECEIVED 25 APPLICATIONS. WE FEEL LIKE YOU SHOULD MOVE FORWARD WITH SEMIFINALISTS ON THESE SIX OR WHATEVER THE NUMBER MAY BE. BUT YOU ALL ARE GOING TO HAVE ACCESS TO ALL 25 APPLICATIONS. SO YOU CAN GO DOWN THAT LIST AND YOU CAN SAY, WELL, WHY DIDN'T YOU INCLUDE SO-AND-SO? AND WE'LL TELL YOU WHY WE DIDN'T INCLUDE SO-AND-SO. AND YOU ALL MIGHT SAY, WELL, WE WANT TO ADD THAT PERSON TO THE LIST. SO AGAIN, WE BRING RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT IT'S YOUR LIST AND YOU GET TO LOOK AT ALL THE APPLICATIONS AGAIN AND IN AN EXECUTIVE SESSION. BUT YOU ALL GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE ALL THOSE APPLICATIONS THAT COME IN. UM. AND THE OTHER THING THAT I WANT TO MENTION TOO, IS AT SOME POINT YOU'RE GOING TO GET TO THE WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT MAYBE WANTING TO WORK ON A CONTRACT WITH SOMEBODY. AND WE DON'T TAKE PART IN THAT. [00:25:03] I MEAN, WE'LL DO WHATEVER YOU ALL NEED US TO DO, BUT YOU ALL HAVE IN-HOUSE COUNSEL THAT YOU USE FOR THAT. AND SO WE DON'T GET INVOLVED IN CONTRACT NEGOTIATION ON THE FIELD. LOOK IN HERE. YOU'LL SEE WHERE OUR BASIC FEE IS $15,000. AND WE'RE COULD ADD AN ADDITIONAL $2500 TO $5000 TO COVER ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES. UM, AND I'VE GIVEN YOU A LOT OF INFORMATION. I KNOW YOU MAY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS. DR. MOORE, DO YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING? JUST TO MENTION A COUPLE OF THINGS. AND AGAIN, EVERY SEARCH THAT WE DO IS CATERED TO THE BOARD IN TERMS OF WHAT YOUR INTEREST IS. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS WE DO IN THE PROCESS, DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH OF THIS YOU'D LIKE TO DO, IS WE CAN CONDUCT FOCUS GROUPS. JUDY PUTS TOGETHER A SURVEY THAT YOU PUT ON YOUR WEBSITE AND FOLKS CAN, YOU KNOW, COMPLETE THE SURVEY. SO WE TRY TO GATHER INFORMATION FOR YOU FROM YOUR COMMUNITY TO GET SOME FEEDBACK. TYPICALLY WHEN WE'RE DOING FOCUS GROUPS AND THAT WOULD BE THAT WOULD CONSIST OF MEETING WITH PRINCIPALS, ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS OF TEACHER GROUPS, DISTRICT OFFICE FOLKS. AND YOU GO OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY AS WELL, AND A COUPLE OF EVENINGS AND HAVE SOME COMMUNITY EVENTS WHERE FOLKS CAN COME IN AND TALK ABOUT WHAT THEY'D LIKE TO SEE IN THE NEXT SUPERINTENDENT. BUT WE USUALLY ASK THEM TO RESPOND TO THIS QUESTION, WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS AND QUALITIES THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE YOUR SCHOOL BOARD? CONSIDER WHEN THEY'RE LOOKING FOR THE NEXT SUPERINTENDENT, AND THEN WE'LL COMPILE ALL THAT INFORMATION. AND WE MEANS JUDY, PRIMARILY, BUT I HELP JUDY IN THAT PROCESS AS WELL. AND THEN WE'LL GIVE YOU A REPORT ON THAT OF WHAT PEOPLE HAVE SAID DURING THAT PROCESS, THROUGH THE SURVEYS AND BY FOCUS GROUPS. AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO EITHER ONE OF THOSE. BUT THAT'S TYPICALLY SOMETHING THAT WE DO ALONG THE WAY, OR EVEN THE EXTENT OF THE SURVEY THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO DO SURVEYS AND THE FOCUS GROUPS TOO. SO WE'VE GONE INTO SOME DISTRICTS AND DONE A WHOLE BUNCH OF FOCUS GROUPS, AND SOME HAVE NOT DONE SO MANY. SO THAT'S JUST SOMETHING YOU WOULD HAVE TO THINK ABOUT IN TERMS OF WHAT YOUR INTEREST WOULD BE IN TERMS OF GETTING FEEDBACK AS WELL. THE OTHER THING IN THE SCREENING PROCESS, ONCE IT'S BEEN POSTED AND PEOPLE APPLY FOR IT, WE TRY TO DO A VERY GOOD JOB OF SCREENING THOSE FOLKS AS WELL. JUDY WILL DO PHONE INTERVIEWS WITH EVERYBODY THAT CALLS IN, BUT IN THIS DAY AND AGE, THANKS TO GOOGLE, YOU KNOW, WE GOOGLE EVERYBODY AND WE TRY TO FIND OUT IF THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE BACKGROUND THAT YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF. WHEN WE WOULD BRING THAT POOL OF APPLICANTS TO YOU, AS SCOTT SAID, YOU WILL SEE EVERYBODY THAT APPLIES. BUT IF THERE'S SOMETHING THERE, A RED FLAG WITH SOMEONE THAT SHOWS UP FROM WHERE THEY WERE WORKING, SOMETHING IN THE PAST THAT WE CAN BECOME AWARE OF. WE MAKE SURE YOU ARE AWARE OF THAT, BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT YOU TO BE SURPRISED, AND WE DON'T WANT TO BE SURPRISED IN THAT PROCESS EITHER, BECAUSE I CAN GUARANTEE YOU IF WE GO TO THEM, LOTS OF OTHER FOLKS ARE GOING TO BE GOOGLING THOSE FOLKS, TOO, TO SEE WHAT THEY CAN LEARN ABOUT THE PERSON AND THEIR BACKGROUND. IF THEY'VE COME IN FROM OUTSIDE THE DISTRICT OR WHATEVER. SO WE REALLY TRY TO DO A GOOD JOB OF GETTING INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY AGAIN, TO THE EXTENT THAT YOU WANT THAT INPUT, WHETHER IT'S THROUGH FOCUS GROUPS AND SURVEYS OR WHATEVER MECHANISM YOU'RE GOING TO CONSIDER. BUT THEN WE PUT TOGETHER THAT REPORT AND WE COME TO YOU AND SAY, THIS IS WHAT FOLKS HAVE SAID, YOU KNOW, JUDY AND THEIR SURVEY, AND SHE CAN SEND YOU, I GUESS [INAUDIBLE]. CAN SEND YOU KIND OF A SAMPLE SURVEY THAT'S TYPICALLY USED IN A SEARCH, TOO. SO YOU COULD SEE THAT AND THEN SHARE THAT WITH YOU AS YOU. SO YOU CAN THINK ABOUT THAT THROUGH THE PROCESS OF WHEN YOU'RE CONSIDERING CANDIDATES AND INTERVIEWING CANDIDATES TO DEPENDING ON WHAT FOLKS ARE SAYING THEY THINK THE SCHOOL DISTRICT NEEDS. SO I JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW ABOUT THAT. AND THEN WHAT WE DO IN THE SCREENING PROCESS. AND THE ONE THING THAT I'LL ADD TO THAT WOULD BE WHEN WE GET DOWN TO THE FINAL STAGE WHERE YOU'VE NAMED YOUR FINALISTS, WE DO DO A. CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK AND WE'LL DO CREDIT HISTORIES AND THE LIKE FOR THAT. SO WE DO WHEN WE GET THAT DOWN TO THE FINALIST, WE GO WAY BEYOND SORT OF THE GOOGLE SEARCH, BUT WE ACTUALLY DO BACKGROUND CHECKS AND REFERENCE CHECKS AT THAT POINT. WHOEVER YOUR FINALISTS ARE THAT WE'RE MAKING CONTACT WITH BOTH THAT THEY LISTED REFERENCES TO SEE WHAT WE CAN LEARN ABOUT THOSE FOLKS. BUT AS SCOTT SAID, INITIALLY, A KEY PART OF THE PROCESS, AND I WAS A SUPERINTENDENT A LONG TIME IN NORTH CAROLINA AND SOUTH CAROLINA. CONFIDENTIALITY IS IMPORTANT WHEN SOMEBODY IS GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS AND THEY'RE CONSIDERING APPLYING FOR A SCHOOL DISTRICT SOMEWHERE, YOU KNOW, THEY NEVER KNOW WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO END UP IN THE SCHEME OF THINGS. AND CERTAINLY THEY WOULDN'T WANT THEIR NAME TO BECOME PUBLIC AND NECESSARILY AND, YOU KNOW, DOWN THE ROAD. BUT THAT'S SOMETHING WE ALWAYS TRY TO EMPHASIZE BOTH THE CONFIDENTIALITY IS. SO THAT'S IT IN A NUTSHELL. MR. CHAIRMAN, ONE MORE THING. I'LL BE THE TALKER. IF YOU LOOK HERE AT THIS DRAFT TIME LINE THAT'S IN HERE. AND AS I SAID, THAT'S JUST A PROPOSED TIMELINE. YOU CAN PAGES OUT THAT'S ON PAGE SIX. YOU CAN MODIFY THAT CHANGE OUT TO WHATEVER SUITS YOUR SCHEDULE. [00:30:02] BUT I JUST I TOLD SCOTT ONE THING I LIKE. FIRST OF ALL, YOUR DISTRICT'S GOT A GREAT REPUTATION. SO I WOULD THINK IT LOOKS TO ME LIKE A GREAT AREA TO LIVE IN. I GREW UP IN SOUTH CAROLINA, BUT I WAS UP THERE TOWARD INDIAN LAND. IF YOU'VE EVER HEARD OF INDIAN LAND WHERE THAT IS AND LIVE THERE, WHICH AIN'T LITTLE INDIAN LAND ANYMORE, IT'S GROWN QUITE A BIT OVER THE YEARS. BUT HAVING DONE SEVERAL SUPERINTENDENCIES, YOU KNOW, THROUGH THE YEARS, I'VE BEEN HIRED AT DIFFERENT TIMES DURING THE YEAR. JULY 1ST IS THE TYPICAL ONE, BUT I'VE BEEN HIRED JANUARY THE 1ST. I WAS HIRED IN MAY IN ONE SCHOOL DISTRICT. YOUR TIMELINE IS A GOOD TIMELINE. YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S NICE OF YOUR SUPERINTENDENT TO GIVE YOU ADVANCED NOTICE, SO YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PUT A TIMELINE OUT THERE THAT I THINK WILL REALLY HELP YOU PULL A CANDIDATES IS LOOKING AT IT DEPENDING ON IF YOU NAME SOMEBODY IN FEBRUARY, FOR EXAMPLE, IF IT WORKED OUT IN THE NAME OF SOMEBODY IN FEBRUARY, THEN YOU WOULD HAVE TO DECIDE WITH THAT CANDIDATE WHEN YOU WOULD WANT THEM TO START. SO YOU'RE IN THE FEBRUARY, YOU'RE KIND OF IN THE BUDGET CYCLE AS WELL. SO A PERSON CAN BE A PART OF AND SEE WHAT'S GOING ON. BUT WHATEVER DISTRICT THEY MIGHT BE IN TO, WE ALWAYS TRY TO BE MINDFUL OF WHEREVER THEY ARE, THAT WE DON'T WANT THEM TO LEAVE THAT DISTRICT HIGH AND DRY EITHER. THERE'S A GOOD TRANSITION PERIOD. YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE LEAVING, THE DISTRICT CAN COME IN INTO THIS DISTRICT. SO DEPENDING ON WHO YOU HIRED AND YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY WITH THIS TIMELINE TO HAVE SOME TRANSITION TIME WITH YOUR CURRENT SUPERINTENDENT AS WELL, JUST TO LEARN ABOUT THE DISTRICT, TOO, YOU KNOW, IN THE PROCESS. SO I THINK YOUR TIMING OF WHAT YOU'RE DOING IN TERMS OF BEGINNING, THE SUPERINTENDENT SERVES THE POOL OF CANDIDATES THAT YOU'LL SEE. AND AGAIN, YOU KNOW, YOUR DISTRICT IS AN ATTRACTIVE DISTRICT. IT'S A NICE SIZE. IT'S A GREAT AREA TO LIVE IN. SO I THINK YOU'LL HAVE A STRONG POOL OF CANDIDATES. AND THAT IS THE NUTSHELL, I BELIEVE SO. OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS? QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD. MR. SILAS, JUST REAL QUICKLY, AT WHAT STAGE DOES IT HAVE TO BECOME PUBLIC? IS IT WHEN IT'S DOWN TO THE FINAL 2 OR 3? BUT I THINK WHEN YOU GET DOWN TO THE FINAL LIST, WHO YOU CONSIDER THE GROUP OF PEOPLE FROM WHICH YOU'RE GOING TO SELECT YOUR SUPERINTENDENT. THAT'S WHEN IT BECOMES PUBLIC. IT HAS TO BE THREE. YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE AT LEAST THREE AT THAT POINT. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND SOME HAVE HAD FIVE. SOME HAVE HAD I THINK FIVE IS THE MOST WE'VE HAD. BUT TYPICALLY YOU'RE LOOKING AT AT LEAST THREE. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WHAT, DR. HANKS. WHAT IS THE VARIATION OR WHAT CAUSES THE DIFFERENCE IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE COST? WHAT WOULD WE BE DOING THAT'S GOING TO ADD FROM 2000 TO 5000 ADDITIONAL? IT DEPENDS ON HOW MANY TIMES WE'RE HERE WHETHER WE HAVE TO STAY A COUPLE NIGHTS IN A ROW, HOW MUCH TIME WE'RE ON THE ROAD. THAT DOES INCLUDE SOME OF THE COSTS FOR CONSULTING WORK FROM DR. MOORE. SO IT'S JUST IT'S KIND OF A SLIDING SCALE, BUT MOSTLY DEPENDING ON. AGAIN, IF YOU END UP DOING A LARGE NUMBER OF FOCUS GROUPS, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO BE THERE TO SHEPHERD THAT. AND SO THAT'S WHAT. MY LAST COMMENT TOO, THOUGH I SHOULD HAVE SAID THIS. IF YOU LOOK AT THIS AND YOU SEE THE NUMBER OF SEARCHES THAT JUDY LEGRAND HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN, I GUARANTEE YOU SHE'S DONE MORE SUPERINTENDENT SEARCHES IN SOUTH CAROLINA THAN ANYBODY. JUDY HAS THE PROCESS. I MEAN, SHE'S THE NUTS AND BOLTS. SHE'S THE LOGISTICAL PERSON. SHE WILL WORK CAREFULLY WITH YOU AS A BOARD AND WITH YOUR COMMUNICATIONS PERSON TO MAKE SURE EVERYTHING GOES SMOOTHLY AS WELL, TOO. WHEN YOU'RE DEALING WITH THE MEDIA, DOING PRESS RELEASES AND ALL THOSE THINGS. SO JUDY HAS A TON OF EXPERIENCE. AND IT'S PRETTY TURNKEY. I MEAN, WE DO ALL THE WORK. YOU ALL JUST HAVE TO MAKE THE HARD DECISIONS. MR. SILAS, YOU HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION? YEAH. I'M SORRY. NO, THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE. CAN YOU DESCRIBE TO ME WHERE YOU DO YOUR SEARCHES TYPICALLY LIKE IN, YOU KNOW, WHERE DO YOU ADVERTISE? AND THEN MAYBE I MISSED IT. YOU MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT A NATIONAL SEARCH. IS THAT BY REQUEST? DO YOU AUTOMATICALLY DO THAT? WHAT'S THE SCOPE OF YOUR BASIC. WELL, I MEAN, WHAT WE WOULD WANT YOU ALL TO TELL US IS WHETHER YOU WANT TO LOOK NATIONALLY. MANY BOARDS IN SOUTH CAROLINA REALLY SORT OF THINK THEY WANT TO LOOK AT THE SOUTHEAST REGION, SOUTHEAST UNITED STATES. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME THAT LIMIT THEMSELVES JUST TO SOUTH CAROLINA AND NEIGHBORING STATES. SO WE HAVE THE ABILITY AND TO DO WHATEVER YOU ALL WANT TO DO IN TERMS OF ADVERTISING NATIONALLY. THERE'S A NATIONAL ORGANIZATION THAT WE DO THAT WE'RE AFFILIATED WITH. THAT'S OKAY. [00:35:03] AND THAT'S THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS SAY SOUTH CAROLINA SCHOOL BOARD ASSOCIATION. EVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT IN SOUTH CAROLINA HAS SENT THE INFORMATION AS WELL AS SENDS IT OUT THERE. BUT, YOU KNOW, THROUGH THE ORGANIZATIONS, THROUGH THE STATE ORGANIZATIONS, AGAIN, DEPENDING ON THE THING WOULD BE THE NATIONAL PART OF THAT, BECAUSE THAT IS ACROSS THE NATION AND STUFF. BUT JUST DEPENDS ON WHAT YOUR INTEREST IS. OKAY. DO YOU WANT TO LOOK NATIONALLY AND SEE WHO'S OUT THERE? JUDY CAN PUT IT OUT THERE AND ADVERTISE IT TO THE DEGREE. AND EVEN IF YOU DON'T, I GUARANTEE YOU EVEN IF YOU DON'T NECESSARILY DO IT THAT WAY, YOU'RE GOING TO GET THE NATIONAL. I WAS GOING TO SAY THAT FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THERE'S A POOL OF PEOPLE OUT THERE LOOKING AT SUPERINTENDENTS JOBS. AND AGAIN, THIS WOULD BE ONE, I THINK, IF YOU WERE IN ANOTHER STATE SOMEWHERE AND YOU STARTED LOOKING AROUND AT DISTRICTS AND JOBS THAT WERE GOING TO BE AVAILABLE, I PERSONALLY BELIEVE AND OF COURSE, I'VE LOOKED AT A FEW OF THEM, MY CAREER AS WELL. I'LL TELL YOU, THIS WOULD BE A VERY ATTRACTIVE ONE. OKAY, I APPRECIATE THAT. SO THE SCOPE OF THE SEARCH IS REALLY PENDING OUR DIRECTION. NO. EVERYTHING OKAY? ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR THESE TWO GENTLEMEN? YEAH. TAKING A LONG PAUSE. WELL, FOLKS, THE APPRECIATE Y'ALL PRESENTING US WITH THIS PROPOSAL AND COMING ALL THE WAY DOWN FROM COLUMBIA OR OTHER PARTS TO BE WITH US TONIGHT AS WE MOVE FORWARD INTO THINKING ABOUT HOW WE DO THIS IMPORTANT, PROBABLY OUR MOST IMPORTANT ACTIVITY WE DO THIS YEAR OR ONE OF THEM THOUGHT OF A QUESTION. GO AHEAD, DOCTOR BRADLEY. IN YOUR TYPICAL SEARCH, HOW TIME INTENSIVE? HOW MUCH TIME ARE WE TALKING ABOUT INVOLVING THE BOARD AND FOR OUR PLANNING PURPOSES? WHAT DO WE NEED TO BE LINING UP IN TERMS OF ALLOCATING OUR TIME TOWARD THE VARIOUS STEPS THAT WE UNDERTAKE IN DOING THIS? PROBABLY. AND DOCTOR MOORE MAY WANT TO CHIME IN ON THIS, BUT I WOULD THINK THAT WHEN YOU ARE IN THE SECOND AND THIRD PHASES OF THE SEARCH, WHERE YOU'RE DOING THE INTERVIEW PROCESS, THAT'S GOING TO BE YOUR MOST TIME CONSUMING PART. SEMIFINALIST DOESN'T REALLY INVOLVE PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT, BUT WHEN YOU GET DOWN TO THE FINALIST, YOU'RE GOING TO AGAIN HAVE TO DEDICATE SEVERAL NIGHTS TO WHERE YOU'RE DOING INTERVIEWS. AND SAME THING WITH SEMIFINALISTS, BUT WITH THE FINALISTS, YOU ALL MAY DECIDE THAT YOU WANT TO HAVE. JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, YOU HAVE THREE FINALISTS AND YOU WANT TO HAVE EACH ONE OF THEM COME SPEND A DAY IN THE DISTRICT TOURING THE DISTRICT, AND THEN YOU WANT TO HAVE A MEET AND GREET WITH THAT PERSON IN THE COMMUNITY IN THE EVENING, AND THEN YOU GO AFTER THE MEET AND GREET. YOU GO INTO A BOARD, AN INTERVIEW. SO THAT'S PROBABLY THE MOST TIME COMMITMENT THAT I'M THINKING OF. DOCTOR MOORE TYPICALLY. AND AGAIN, THIS DEPENDS ON WHAT SCHEDULE YOU WOULD ADOPT. WE WOULD COME BACK AT SOME POINT IF YOU DO FOCUS GROUPS AND DO THE SURVEY, AND WE JUST COME TO A BOARD MEETING AND PRESENT THAT INFORMATION TO YOU. AND I DON'T KNOW WHETHER IT WOULD BE THAT SAME NIGHT. AGAIN, IT DEPENDS ON THE TIMELINE. THERE WOULD BE A BOARD MEETING WHERE WE WOULD COME IN AND WE WOULD MEET WITH YOU IN EXECUTIVE SESSION, AND WE'D GO OVER TO CANDIDATE POOL WITH YOU. WE WOULD SHOW YOU EVERYBODY THAT APPLIED FOR THE JOB. WE WOULD TALK TO YOU ABOUT EACH ONE OF THOSE CANDIDATES, THAT WE WOULD BE HERE WITH YOU. AND THAT'S UP TO YOU IN TERMS OF HOW YOU WANT TO STRUCTURE WHEN YOU WOULD MEET. SO THAT ONE WOULD TAKE, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY A COUPLE OF HOURS THERE, YOU KNOW, TO GO THROUGH THAT POOL OF CANDIDATES AFTER THAT, LIKE SCOTT SAYS, YOU KNOW, THEN ONCE YOU DO THOSE, THEN YOU'D SCHEDULE THE INTERVIEW. SO IF YOU DECIDED TO INTERVIEW. NINE PEOPLE, SIX PEOPLE, WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE. TYPICALLY YOU WOULD THINK, HOW MANY INTERVIEWS DO WE WANT TO DO IN AN EVENING? SO IF YOU WERE INTERVIEWING NINE PEOPLE, THEN YOU MIGHT SPEND THREE EVENINGS INTERVIEWING THOSE SEMIFINALISTS. THIS DEPENDS ON WHAT YOUR POOL WOULD BE. SO YOU COULD CONCEIVABLY HAVE 2 OR 3 EVENINGS THERE OF SEVERAL HOURS, BECAUSE MOST INTERVIEWS THAT FIRST ROUND OF INTERVIEWS THEY WOULD MEET WITH YOU WOULD LAST PROBABLY ABOUT AN HOUR EACH AND SO YOU WOULD HAVE THAT. AND THEN AT SOME POINT YOU WOULD DELIBERATE WHETHER YOU DID IT AT THE END OF THE THIRD NIGHT OR YOU HAD ANOTHER MEETING, AT SOME POINT YOU'VE GOT TO DECIDE HOW TO CUT THAT. NINE, EIGHT, SEVEN OR WHATEVER IT IS, DOWN TO THREE OR 4 OR 5 IN THAT PROCESS. SO THAT WOULD BE A MEETING THERE TO THAT. SO IT'S A GOOD BIT OF TIME, YOU KNOW, TO DO IT. BUT WE TRY TO, AS SCOTT SAID, BETWEEN JUDY AND US, WE TRY TO TAKE A LOT OF THE KIND OF LOGISTICS OUT OF IT AND THAT YOU'RE SPENDING YOUR [00:40:05] TIME MORE THAN ANYTHING WITH LOOKING AT APPLICATIONS, YOU KNOW, DOING THE INTERVIEW PROCESS AND THEN DELIBERATING ABOUT WHO IT IS YOU WOULD WANT TO BECOME FROM THE SEMIFINALIST TO YOUR FINALIST POOL AND THE FINALIST POOL. WHEN YOU GET TO THAT ONE, AS SCOTT SAYS, TYPICALLY, AND AGAIN, YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO IT THIS WAY. IF THE FINALISTS COME IN, IF YOU HAD THREE FINALISTS AND I WOULD COME IN TO YOUR DISTRICT FOR A DAY, I MIGHT TOUR SCHOOLS. I MIGHT MEET WITH STAFF THAT DAY. THEN THAT EVENING YOU MIGHT WOULD HAVE A COMMUNITY RECEPTION WHERE PEOPLE COULD COME IN AND MEET THAT PERSON, AND THEN YOU'D DO A FINAL INTERVIEW. SO YOU WOULD DO TWO INTERVIEWS, DO THE FIRST ROUND. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU DECIDE WHO YOUR SEMIFINALISTS ARE GOING TO BE AND THEN YOU DO A FINAL INTERVIEW THAT EVENING. SO IF YOU HAD THREE FINALISTS, THEN YOU'D HAVE THREE MORE INTERVIEWS. YOU KNOW, THAT EVENING, IF YOU HAD A RECEPTION OR HOWEVER IT IS, YOU WOULD CHOOSE TO DO THAT AS WELL. YOU KNOW, SOME BOARDS, DEPENDING ON WHAT YOU WANT TO DO TOO. I'VE SEEN THIS WHERE IF YOU WANTED TO SAY INTERVIEW EIGHT SEMIFINALISTS, YOU JUST BRING THEM ALL IN IN ONE DAY. YOU KNOW, IF YOU CAN DEDICATE A WHOLE DAY, THAT'S KIND OF HARD TO DO WITH, YOU KNOW, BOARD MEMBERS AND SCHEDULES AND TRYING TO PULL THAT ALL. BUT AGAIN, THAT IS TYPICALLY THAT'S GENERALLY ABOUT A THREE EVENING EVENT. IF YOU HAD, SAY, NINE SEMIFINALISTS, YOU DID THREE AND THREE AND THREE. AND EACH INTERVIEW IS ABOUT AN HOUR. AND WE'LL PROVIDE YOU ALL SAMPLE QUESTIONS. AND AGAIN, YOU ALL CAN TAILOR THEM TO HOW YOU WANT TO QUESTIONS YOU WANT TO ASK. JUST MAKING SURE THAT EACH CANDIDATE GETS ASKED THE SAME QUESTIONS FOR FAIRNESS. WE MIGHT HAVE MISLED YOU BY NOT ANSWERING MY BY NOT ASKING MORE QUESTIONS, I THINK THAT. WOULD YOU BE LUCKY TO GET US TO SHUT UP IN AN HOUR NEXT TIME? WELL, YOU KNOW, AS THE CANDIDATE HAVING INTERVIEWED FOR A. SOMETIMES IT'S HARD TO GET THE PERSON BEING INTERVIEWED. YOU KNOW, WE ALWAYS TELL THEM, LOOK, YOU GOT AN HOUR. THIS BOARD'S GOT AN X NUMBER OF QUESTIONS THEY'RE GOING TO ASK YOU. YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT YOUR TIME IN THERE WITH THE BOARD. BUT THEN AGAIN YOU CONTROL THAT. YOU KNOW, SO WHEN THEY GET IN THERE WITH YOU AND YOU'RE IN YOUR INTERVIEW, THAT'S UP TO YOU. FOLLOWING UP ON THAT, DO YOU RECOMMEND A STRUCTURE FOR THESE INTERVIEWS? IN OTHER WORDS, ONE WAY THAT WE'VE DONE IT IN THE PAST IS EACH BOARD MEMBER WAS ALLOCATED A QUESTION OR TWO, AND YOU ROTATE IT AROUND AND OR SOMETHING. YEAH. YOU KNOW, GENERALLY THIS FIRST ROUND WAS SEMIFINALIST. YOU GOT NINE BOARD MEMBERS. OKAY. SO YOU WOULD HAVE AT LEAST NINE QUESTIONS. SO EVERYBODY WOULD HAVE ONE QUESTION. BUT YOU KNOW WE HAVE A DRAFT. YOU PROPOSE A DRAFT OF THOSE QUESTIONS. AND SHE WOULD SEND THAT TO YOU TO REVIEW. IF YOU WANTED TO ADD TWO OF THOSE, TAKE OFF FROM THAT. IT'S JUST AGAIN, IN THIS FIRST ROUND WITH NINE QUESTIONS AND TRYING TO KEEP THAT WITHIN AN HOUR TIME FRAME. THAT'S SOMETIMES VERY DIFFICULT. YEAH. THANK YOU, MR. SMITH. WHEN YOU GO THROUGH THE SELECTION PROCESS OF ALL THE APPLICANTS. WILL A REPRESENTATIVE FROM OUR DISTRICT BE ON THAT SELECTION COMMITTEE? NO, SIR. THE WHOLE BOARD'S GOING TO BE IN THIS ELECTION. OH, WE'RE GOING TO DO IS COME TO INITIAL ONE WHEN YOU'RE GOING THROUGH THE DIFFERENT STAGES. WELL. PART OF THAT. MR. DWIGHT IS BECAUSE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAINTAIN CONFIDENTIALITY. AND WE ONLY, I GUESS, BREACH THAT CONFIDENTIALITY WITH YOU, THE BOARD. SO WE WOULD NOT WANT. WE'VE NEVER DONE IT WHERE WE'VE HAD A MEMBER OF THE STAFF, DISTRICT STAFF GOING THROUGH INITIAL APPLICATIONS WITH US. UM. YOU KNOW, I THINK IT MIGHT BE PROBLEMATIC IF YOU HAVE SOMEBODY WHO INTERNAL AND PEOPLE TALK. BUT DR. MOORE HIT THE NAIL. YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE PLENTY OF TIME AS A BOARD TO GO THROUGH THOSE APPLICATIONS. WE'LL EVEN SET UP A DAY TO COME BE HERE WITH YOU, TO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO READ THROUGH THEM AND ALL THAT AND WHEN WE GET TO THAT GROUP AGAIN, YOU GOT 25 PEOPLE APPLY. WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT ALL 25 OF THEM WITH THE WHOLE BOARD, AND WE'LL COME BACK GIVEN SOME SUGGESTIONS ABOUT HOW WHO WE THINK YOU OUGHT TO CONSIDER INTERVIEWING, BUT YOU CAN INTERVIEW ALL 25 OF THEM. BUT MOST OF THE TIME THERE MAY BE SOMETHING THAT SHOWS UP AS WE'RE DOING OUR BACKGROUND CHECKS AND STUFF, OR THEY MIGHT NOT HAVE THE EXPERIENCE THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. YOU KNOW, IF I HAVEN'T, YOU KNOW, SOME BOARDS PREFER TO HAVE SOMEONE THAT'S JUST KIND OF COME UP THROUGH THE RANKS OF A TEACHER, ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, PRINCIPAL, ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT, SUPERINTENDENT. YOU KNOW, IT DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, TOO. SO WHEN WE GET THE POOL OF APPLICANTS, YOU MIGHT LOOK AT GENE MOORE AND SAY, WELL, YOU KNOW, GENE NEVER DID THIS IN HIS CAREER. NOW, NOT THAT EVERYBODY CAN DO EVERYTHING, BUT WE'LL MAKE SURE YOU'LL SEE OUR PERSPECTIVE ON THAT. [00:45:02] BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, EVERYBODY THAT APPLIES, YOU'LL GET TO LOOK AT IT AND DECIDE, BECAUSE YOU MIGHT SAY, NO, I THINK WE OUGHT TO INTERVIEW THAT PERSON AS WELL. YOU KNOW, SAME THING SOMETIMES IS LIKE OUT OF STATE CANDIDATES. SOME BOARDS CONSIDER OUT OF STATE CANDIDATES. SOME BOARDS SAY, WELL, YOU KNOW, IF WE GOT GOOD FOLKS INSIDE OF SOUTH CAROLINA, LET'S LOOK AT SOUTH CAROLINA. I MEAN, IF YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE PEOPLE APPLY, THOUGH, FROM OUT OF SOUTH CAROLINA, YOU KNOW, FOR A JOB LIKE THIS AND PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY COULD HAVE SOME VERY GOOD CANDIDATES FROM OUT OF STATE, BUT THAT DEPENDS ON YOU PHILOSOPHICALLY ABOUT HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT SOMEBODY COMING IN FROM OUT OF STATE. OKAY. EVERYBODY HAVE THEIR QUESTIONS ANSWERED FOR THE MOMENT. GENTLEMEN, DR. MOORE. MR. PRICE, THANK YOU FOR COMING DOWN AND SPEAKING WITH US. WE APPRECIATE IT. APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. MR. CHAIRMAN, ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE, PLEASE CONTACT ME. YES, SIR. THANK YOU. WE HAVE A COUPLE MORE. Y'ALL HAVE A SAFE TRIP HOME. THANK YOU. WE HAVE A COUPLE MORE INFORMATIONAL ITEMS. DR. MURPHY IS GOING TO REVIEW FOR CONSTRUCTION UPDATES WITH US. GOOD EVENING, MR. CHAIRMAN. DISTINGUISHED BOARD MEMBERS. MR. LAURENCE, WE HAVE AGAIN, I'M GOING TO BRING TO YOU THE FEW PROJECTS THAT ARE ACTUALLY WRAPPING UP RIGHT NOW IN THE DISTRICT, AS WELL AS THE UPDATE ON WAGENER-SALLEY HIGH. AND WE'LL BEGIN HERE WITH AIKEN HIGH SCHOOL AUDITORIUM. IT IS A BEAUTIFULLY COMPLETED VENUE OF 748 SEATS, AND RIGHT NOW WE'RE JUST DOING LIKE LITTLE PUNCH LIST ITEMS, SMALL ITEMS IN THE ACTUAL BUILDING ITSELF. WE HAD OUR FINAL INSPECTION TODAY. IT WAS A VERY FAVORABLE INSPECTION, SO WE EXPECT TO GET A FEEDBACK FROM THAT WITHIN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS. AND THE PROJECT IS CONTINUING ON SCHEDULE, BASICALLY IN AT $16 MILLION. AND WE CAME IN UNDER BUDGET AT THIS TIME. QUESTIONS. I WENT OVER TO HAMMOND HILL. THE PHASE TWO CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETE. THE BUILDING IS IN FULL USE AT THIS TIME. PUNCHING PUNCH LIST ITEMS ARE STILL BEING WORKED BY THE CONTRACTOR. REPLACEMENT OF THE EXISTING ART ROOM, BASE CABINETRY AND SINK STARTED ON OCTOBER 2ND AND SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THURSDAY OR FRIDAY OF THIS WEEK. AND CHANGE UP THERE, PLEASE. THERE YOU GO AGAIN. JUST FINISHING UP WITH MINOR ITEMS. THIS PROJECT WAS WITHIN ITS $15 MILLION BUDGET. AND TONIGHT WE WERE ANNOUNCED THAT WE WERE GOING TO HAVE A DEDICATION FOR THAT NEW STRUCTURE ON NOVEMBER 9TH. BUT YOU'LL RECEIVE A FORMAL INVITATION FROM MISS PICCOLINO REALLY SOON. QUESTIONS. BACK TO HIGHLAND SPRINGS AGAIN. WE MOVED IN JULY FOR THE $4 MILLION PROJECT, AND THE ONLY THING I WOULD SAY IS, AGAIN, WE ARE PUNCHING THE LIST AS THE STUDENTS ARE IN THE SCHOOL. SO SOMETIMES YOU'LL PUSH ONE PLACE AND THEN IT'LL POP UP ANOTHER PLACE. SO WE'RE GETTING IT DONE. THE GUYS ARE VERY RESPONSIVE TO ANY REQUESTS WE'RE BEING MADE OUT THERE. SO AND THE REST OF IT'S GOING TO BE LANDSCAPING AGAIN. WE HAVE AN ENTIRE MOUNTAINSIDE. IT FEELS LIKE SOME TIME TO TO GET CLEANED UP. SO WE'RE CLEANING UP THE SITE AND THE SCHOOL IS FUNCTIONING JUST FINE RIGHT NOW. AND IT WAS A $44 MILLION PROJECT AND IT WAS COMPLETED WITHIN BUDGET. AND THE NEW TALK AGAIN, OF COURSE, IS WAGENER-SALLEY HIGH. AND NOW WE HAVE A STRUCTURE. SO STILL FRAMING CONTINUES. MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL AND PLUMBING CONTINUES. AND ALSO MASONRY WORK. SO YOU CAN KIND OF START SEEING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE HORSESHOE DESIGN OF THE CAMPUS ITSELF. OUR COMPLETION DATE IS SET FOR 1ST JULY. AGAIN, REALLY CLOSE TO WHEN WE'RE COMING BACK TO SCHOOL. BUT RIGHT NOW WE ARE DEFINITELY ON TIME AND WE ARE ON OUR $50 MILLION BUDGET. PENDING YOUR QUESTIONS. YES, MA'AM. WHAT WAS THE NOVEMBER 9TH DEDICATION? TO WHICH FACILITY? HAMMOND HILL'S CAFETERIA AND TECHNOLOGY LAB. THE NEW AUDITORIUM. YES, MA'AM. WE DON'T HAVE A DATE SET JUST YET. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE THAT ACTUAL CERTIFICATE IN HAND BEFORE WE START THE PLANNING. BUT WE WILL. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU, DR. MURPHY. THANK YOU. THE LAST INFORMATIONAL ITEM. IF ANYBODY HAS QUESTIONS. WITH THE AGENDA. MR. TRAXLER SUBMITTED THE MONTHLY FINANCIAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD ENDING JULY 31ST, WHICH WE'VE HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW. DOES ANYBODY HAVE QUESTIONS FOR MR. TRAXLER? THAT WE'D LIKE TO CALL HIM UP FOR. [00:50:05] HEARING NONE. WE WILL MOVE ON. THERE WERE NO INDIVIDUAL BOARD MEMBER ITEMS FOR THIS EVENING. WHICH BRINGS US TO THE OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. SCHOOL REPORT CARDS BECAME PUBLIC TODAY, AND I JUST WANT TO SHARE A COUPLE OF THINGS ABOUT THAT. WE HAD A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF OUR SCHOOLS THAT WERE RATED GOOD OR EXCELLENT. WE HAD NO SCHOOLS THAT WERE RATED UNSATISFACTORY WHICH IS CERTAINLY NICE. WE DID HAVE A SCHOOL IN PREVIOUS YEARS THAT WAS UNSATISFACTORY. THREE OF OUR SCHOOLS INCREASED AT LEAST ONE CATEGORY, SEVERAL INCREASED A COUPLE OF CATEGORIES AND ONE INCREASED THREE CATEGORIES. BELVEDERE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL INCREASED THREE CATEGORIES FROM BELOW AVERAGE TO EXCELLENT FROM LAST YEAR TO THIS YEAR. SO WE'RE VERY PLEASED ABOUT THAT. I DO WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE SIX SCHOOLS THAT RECEIVED AN EXCELLENT RATING. BELVEDERE ELEMENTARY, GLOVERVILLE ELEMENTARY, OAKWOOD-WINDSOR ELEMENTARY, AIKEN SCHOLARS ACADEMY, NEW ELLENTON MIDDLE, AND PAUL KNOX MIDDLE. SO THOSE SIX SCHOOLS ALL RECEIVED EXCELLENT RATINGS ON THEIR REPORT CARDS. AND AGAIN, YOU WILL RECEIVE A MORE IN DEPTH REPORT ON ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AT AN UPCOMING MEETING. BUT SINCE THAT JUST BECAME PUBLIC TODAY, I WANTED TO GO AHEAD AND LET YOU KNOW ABOUT IT. SO THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. YEP. NEVER HOLD BACK ON GOOD NEWS. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. WE DO HAVE A NEED FOR A SHORT EXECUTIVE SESSION THIS EVENING. WE NEED A MOTION TO GO INTO THAT EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR THE PURPOSE OF CONSIDERING THE FOLLOWING MATTERS IN SUCH ORDER AS THE BOARD DEEMS APPROPRIATE. AND WE HAVE ONE CONTRACTUAL MATTER CONCERNING SUPERINTENDENT POSITION. FOLLOWING THE EXECUTIVE SESSION MEETING, THE BOARD WILL RECONVENE IN REGULAR SESSION TO ANNOUNCE THE MATTERS CONSIDERED AND TO TAKE ANY ACTIONS AS MAY BE NECESSARY. IS THERE A MOTION TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR THIS PURPOSE? MOVED BY MISS RHINEHART-JACKSON. SECONDED BY MR. SMITH. SO WE'VE GOT A MOTION IN A SECOND. ANY DISCUSSION? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF ENTERING EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR THIS CONTRACTUAL MATTER, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THAT'S EIGHT IN FAVOR. MOTION CARRIES. WE WILL START EXECUTIVE SESSION APPROXIMATELY 7 P.M.. FUN, FUN FUN. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.