June 17, 2025 at 5:00 PM - Smith County Board of Education Agenda

Discussion:  The Smith County Board of Education met at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, at the Smith County Board of Education. Mr. Tommy Manning provided the invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag. 

Discussion:  Mr. Ricky Shoulders, Chairman of the Board, welcomed all visitors and called the June 17, 2025, meeting of the board to order.

Discussion:  Request to approve the regular meeting minutes of the Board - Tuesday, May 20, 2025.

Discussion: 

1. Smith County High School FFCLA Officers request approval for a trip to Bowling Green, KY, for a team building day on July 17, 2025. They will travel back home the same day.
2. Smith County High School FFA requests permission to attend the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, IN, on October 29 - November 1, 2025. This will be an overnight trip.
3. Smith County High School FFA requests permission to attend the State Convention on March 22 - March 25, 2026, in Gatlinburg, TN. This will be an overnight trip.

Discussion:  The Superintendent took the following actions:

1. Staff Placement

• Joshua Hackett, P.E. & wellness teacher and assistant football coach, Smith County High School
• Heston King, social studies teacher and assistant boys basketball coach, Smith County High School
• Emily Pugh, special education paraprofessional, Smith County Middle School

2. Transfers

• Tasha Affourtit, transferred from an after school program position to a night custodian position at Union Heights Elementary School
• Bob Dillard, transferred from a teaching position at Smith County Middle School to an administrative position at the Smith County Alternative School
• Donna Livingston, transferred from an administrative position at the Smith County Alternative School to an ISS teaching position at Smith County Middle School
• Kaycee Restina, transferred from a CDC special education paraprofessional to a full time substitute position at Carthage Elementary School
• Stephanie Wix, transferred from regular education paraprofessional to a CDC special education paraprofessional at Carthage Elementary School

3. Resignations

• Jennifer Burton, cafeteria manager, Carthage Elementary School
• Katie Foster, teacher, Smith County High School
• Chris Freeman, math coach, County-wide

Discussion:  The director of schools shall establish the salary rating of each person employed and shall recommend such salary rating to the Board for its approval as stated in Policy 5.110 Compensation Guides and Contracts.

Discussion:  Request permission to sell SPED bus 08 on govdeals.com. This bus was purchased in 2008 and has aged out.

Discussion:  Request to adopt the following TSBA model policies to ensure compliance with state and federal laws, rules, and regulations due to changes made by the Tennessee General Assembly and the State Board of Education.

As part of your policy subscription, the TSBA Policy Department monitors statutory and regulatory changes to ensure that our model policies comply with state and federal laws, rules, and regulations. Due to changes made by the Tennessee General Assembly and the State Board of Education, TSBA has updated the model policies outlined in this memo. Below are the recommended revisions.

This is the first of two readings for these policy updates.
See the Proposed TSBA Model Policies and Current Policies
Policy 1.1021 - Student Board Member

Public Chapter 359 requires Boards that operate at least one high school to adopt a policy authorizing a student board member. Boards that already have policies on student board members or student advisory groups may maintain the current language. Based on this new requirement, we created the model policy below. This model contains suggested language for criteria, and we encourage you to update this model to best serve your district. 

Policy 1.407 - School District Records

Previously, state law permitted individuals to submit a records request via fax. Public Chapter 94 removes this option. We have updated the corresponding model policy to reflect that change.

Policy 2.403 - Surplus Property Sales

In the past, federal regulations required that certain actions be taken when property valued at $5,000 or below was disposed of. This limit has been increased to $10,000. We have revised policy 2.403 to align with this new standard. Additionally, Public Chapter 500 includes new criteria for posting notices on news and information websites. This new law clarifies that the website is not intended to be the same newspaper of general circulation utilized for the printed publication.

Policy 3.202 - Emergency Preparedness Plans

Public Chapter 315 clarifies that no more than two fire drills are required to occur within the first thirty full school days. We have added a provision to the model policy clarifying this point.

Policy 3.204 - Threat Assessment Team

There are new reporting requirements regarding threats and significantly disruptive behavior. A report must be made to parents/guardians within forty-eight hours of the district reporting to law enforcement. Additionally, there must be a quarterly report of incidents provided at board meetings. 






Policy 4.100 - Instructional Program
Policy 5.500 - Discrimination/Harassment of Employees
Policy 6.304 - Student Discrimination, Harassment, Bullying, Cyber-bullying, and Intimidation

We are updating three policies in response to Public Chapter 293. This new state law requires Boards to include the definition of antisemitism in anti-discrimination policies. The full definition is included in the updated version of policy 4.100, and policies 5.500 and 6.304 have been updated to refer to that definition.


Policy 4.212 - Virtual Education Program

Public Chapter 484 permits districts to use hybrid learning in the event of dangerous or extreme weather or in an emergency, as determined by the Director of Schools. If a district uses hybrid learning, the Board must have a policy in place regarding student attendance. We have added this option to the virtual education policy.

Policy 4.301 - Interscholastic Athletics

Students attending virtual schools will now be permitted to participate in interscholastic athletics in accordance with TSSAA or TMSAA guidelines. If a school is not a member with these organizations, virtual school students zoned for the particular school shall be able to participate in interscholastic athletics to the same extent as other students. We have added a provision to the model policy on this aspect.

Policy 4.403 - Library Materials

A recent change to state law clarifies that materials may not be excluded from school libraries solely on the grounds that they are religious. 

Policy 4.406 - Use of the Internet

The Teen Social Media Act specifies limits that must be in place for district internet use regarding age-appropriate content and protecting personal information. This new law also requires that districts prevent students from accessing social media platforms on district provided internet unless expressly authorized by a teacher for educational purposes.



Policy 4.601 - Reporting Student Progress

Report cards for students in grades K-8 must now include the student's score on the most recently administered universal reading screener and the results of a dyslexia screener, if applicable. 

Policy 5.100 - Personnel Goals

The general assembly finds that LEAs are at their most effective when the employees are the most highly qualified candidates for employment and that hiring decisions should be based on merit rather than any other metric. These changes align with the requirements of Public Chapter 494 which removes the requirement for educator diversity goals.

Policy 5.119 - Employment of Retirees

Public Chapter 159 makes several changes that will impact employing retirees in the 2025-2026 school year. Importantly, there is now a requirement for a bona fide separation of service prior to reemployment. This includes a sixty day separation of service, and there can be no previous agreement to return to work. We have reworked this model policy to align with the changes to state law.

Policies 5.305 (Family and Medical Leave) & 5.701 (Substitute Teachers)

A clean-up bill, Public Chapter 235, made several changes to state law. One significant change is to the paid parental leave statute and which employees may use this type of leave. Under the new law, employees must satisfy the following criteria to be eligible for this paid leave: (1) have received a license or an emergency credential from the Department of Education required for the relevant position; and (2) be in a full-time position that requires the relevant license or emergency credential for at least twelve consecutive months. The changes to state law also clarify how this leave can be taken. Now, employees may choose whether to take the leave consecutively or nonconsecutively but in increments of no less that one week. Please note that there is a difference in how attorneys are interpreting this law. We recommend speaking with your board attorney prior to implementation. If necessary, we will send out further updates to this policy.

Additionally, Public Chapter 235 changes the number of days that a substitute teacher can teach without a license. This was previously set at twenty days and has been increased to thirty.



Policy 6.200a - Attendance

Public Chapter 401 requires entities that provide released time courses to submit proof of compliance with state law on background checks. We maintain an optional provision on released time courses in our alternate version of policy 6.200. This version of the model policy has been updated to highlight the responsibility of these independent entities.

Policy 6.303 - Questioning Students and Searches

There is a new training requirement for school personnel who may conduct searches of students. Going forward, any searches of students must be carried out by a school resource officer, a school security officer, or a school administrator who has completed state required training. Public Chapter 244 requires the Department of Education to develop this training. We have updated this policy to align with these legal changes.

Policy 6.312 - Use of Wireless Communication Devices

Public Chapter 103 requires Boards to adopt a policy on student use of wireless communication devices. We have created two versions of this model policy to assist Boards that may desire to have different practices for younger students. Both versions include exceptions required by state law (e.g., use during emergencies).

Policy 6.411 - Student Wellness

Previously, state law required elementary students to receive 130 minutes of physical activity per week. This has now been increased to 40 minutes each full school day. Middle and high school students are still required to receive 90 minutes of physical activity per full school week. These requirements are separate from physical education classes.

Policy 6.600 - Student Records

If a student transfers from one school to another, Public Chapter 156 requires the district to provide a copy of a student's records to the new school within five business days. We have added a provision to our model policy to clarify this obligation.

Discussion:  Request to approve the Athletic Training Agreement between STAR Therapy Institute, LLC and the Smith County Board of Education and shall be effective July 2025.
The term of this Agreement shall be for the entire school year (as defined by regular class schedule) and shall automatically renew at the beginning of every successive school year unless terminated:

i)          Termination by Agreement.  In the event SCS and STAR shall mutually agree in writing with 30-day notice, this Agreement may be terminated on the terms and date stipulated therein, during the 2025-2026 school year. 
ii)         Termination for Cause.  This Agreement may be terminated by STAR or SCS if either party shall fail by omission or commission in any substantial manner to provide the services and/or fulfill its obligation as specified in this Agreement.
2.3.      Effects of Termination.  The effect of termination of this Agreement as hereinabove provided shall be that neither party shall have any further obligation hereunder except for obligations accruing prior to the date of termination and obligations by their nature extending beyond the date of termination

Discussion:  This letter is to ask for approval of the attached line-item amendments for the FY25 141 General Purpose Budget in order to be in compliance with audit. 

Regular Instruction                          $29,000
Career and Technical Education     $     800
Total                                                   $29,800

Discussion:  The evaluation is in your packet. Please complete the evaluation and mail or email to the Chairman of the Board by July 1, 2025.  Results will be presented at the July board meeting.

Discussion:  None