BY DEBBIE PAGE
The Mooresville Graded School District Board of Education heard a lengthy opening of school report from administrative during at its first meeting of the new school year on Tuesday night. The 2024-2025 school year began on Wednesday, August 7, followed by a closure on Thursday due to Tropical Storm Debby.
Chief of Schools Mike Royal reported that open houses, held early this year, were well attended by parents and students.
Chief Student Services Officer Sandy Albert reported that the district is serving over 800 students with Individual Education Plans and over 300 with 504 Plans. The district’s partnership with Children’s Hope Alliance to provide mental health services for students is underway, with counselors already meeting with students.
Chief Human Resource Officer April Kuhn said that the district welcomed 39 new certified staff to MGSD during a three-day session July 29-31. Thirteen of the newcomers are beginning teachers. Teachers enjoyed a tour of Mooresville and the school system led by MGSD Board Chair Greg Whitfield and board member Debbie Marsh.
All elementary schools are fully staffed with certified teachers, with recruiting efforts continuing to fill eight certified positions still open at the middle and high school levels.
Chief Financial Officer Angie Davis reported that all employees have received a pay increase this year, with state raises still up in the air since the N.C. General Assembly has not yet passed the annual budget. She also said auditors were currently going through district financials for the required annual audit, which should be complete by the next board meeting.
Chief Communications Officer Tanae McLean reminded parents that the district’s primary means of communication with them is through ParentSquare. She urged parents to get signed up for the program, with help available as needed through their child’s school, directions on the new district website launching on Friday afternoon, or from McLean.
Chief Operations Officer Scott Smith said that the school resource officers, paid for by a school safety grant, are an asset to the schools. Two officers are currently being recruited to fill openings. He also noted that the comprehensive School Safety Audit will be complete in the next 30 days.
Smith said that the district can contact 98.42 percent of parents in Parent Square, with efforts ongoing to get the rest signed up and all information updated as needed. In Power School, 4,892 parents have updated information, with 1,000 to go.
The Before/After School Program is serving 149 students, with 76 on the waiting list. Smith said program expansion is not possible at this time because of staffing shortages.
Smith praised the maintenance team for its work over the summer, including the addition of enhanced school landscaping just before school started, and a quick response to the water leak issues at Mooresville Middle School on Thursday that allowed students to get back to school on Friday. Most of the damage was confined to the main office area.
Smith said the school and nutrition program is working hard to identify all students eligible for free and reduced lunch. The program is also recruiting staff to replace those who retired or resigned over the summer.
In technology, new Promethean boards were installed in all kindergarten classrooms and district media centers.
The delayed student book bag order is expected August 20, so third-grade laptops will stay at school until they arrive.
Smith said 300 new MGSD students needed devices. Some 270 of those have been distributed. The other 30 students must pay fees and update Power School to get their devices. The tech team is working through repair tickets as quickly as possible to resolve any device operation issues.
In transportation, Smith said the department is recruiting heavily in multiple venues for additional bus drivers. The district is currently transporting 3,865 students. The district is down to less than 20 students getting their bus route assignments.
Parents can use the “Here Comes the Bus” app to keep up with bus arrival times.
After 10 days, the district will look at data to adjust routes so bus assignments may change in a few weeks. Parents are reminded to get their students a seat assignment now if they are planning to ride the bus so they will be included on rider counts during the first ten days.
Three additional buses are joining the fleet, and all buses now have camera systems, paid for by a safety grant.
Smith reminded the community that passing a stopped school bus is dangerous and illegal. Cameras have already recorded three drivers passing buses with stop arms extended. The district has and will continue to pass this footage and information to the Mooresville Police Department for investigation and prosecution.
Vape sensors are now operational in all bathrooms at the middle and high school level, so administrators will be working diligently to curtail this issue in schools. The school board has given full approval and support to the crackdown.
At Mooresville High, Magnolia Street has had more signage and lighting added to promote student safety, as well as improved crossing guard training. More improvements are coming after the completion of the safety audit. Officers also spoke to teen drivers during grade-level high school meetings about safe driving expectations.
UPCOMING EVENTS
McLean announced the15th annual Mooresville Foundation for Excellence in Education Golf Tournament is set for October 4 at 8:30 a.m. at the Mooresville Golf Club. Sponsorship opportunities end next week. Foundation funds have been used as grants to provide a variety of educational tools to use both in and out of the classroom.
The second annual Longest Table event will be held on Sunday, October 6, at 1 p.m. This free event requires sign up for meal planning purposes. For more information, visit https://events.humanitix.com/the-longest-table-mooresville/tickets.
Contact McLean for more information on either event at tmclean@mgsd.k12.nc.us.
SUMMER PROGRAMS REPORT
Over the summer, MGSD provided multiple extended learning opportunities for approximately 1,800 MGSD students at a variety of grade levels. These programs were approved by the board in February and were funded through a variety of sources, including local and state funding and ESSER money.
Y Readers camp (Grades K-1) served 45 at-risk kindergarten and first-grade students in reading through a partnership with the Lowe’s YMCA. The six-week camp featured morning academics and afternoon enrichment as well as weekly off-site field trips.
The small class sizes (15 student average) for the 19 kinders and 26 first-graders gave students extra attention. The Y Readers were assessed with the STAR assessment at the beginning and end of camp, but data has not yet been shared from partners.
Students read 617 books read at the site. The goal was for each student to read 16 books, totaling 720 books, so students achieved 86 percent of the book reading goal.
At the Read to Achieve (RtA) camp for grades 2-3, 110 students demonstrating difficulty with reading received 72 hours of literacy instruction in a five-week program of morning academics and afternoon enrichment and research. The 50 second-graders and 60 third-graders enjoyed small class sizes (average 16 students) during the program.
The second-grade students were assessed in DIBELS at the end of camp, with the overall average composite growth gaining 2 points, along with 7 points for Oral Reading Fluency.
Third-grade students who had not received a Good Cause Exemption were given the opportunity to achieve an alternate pathway of reading proficiency. Four students met proficiency through DIBELS (Lexile 725), and seven students met proficiency through the NC RtA Assessment.
Summer testing served 224 students in grades 3-5, 184 students in grades 6-8, and 44 students in grades 9-12. These students whose scores were not proficient on state EOG or EOC tests received remediation and tested again.
Traditional summer school for grades 9-12 at Mooresville High and NF Woods allowed 235 students who did not receive course credit to take classes for credit recovery or to take new courses online for credit. Students taking new coursework earned 52 credits.
The seven half-day sessions at Mooresville High served 139 students who recovered 158 course credits.
The small groups with certified teachers focused on credit and attendance recovery. Thirteen summer graduates were recognized in a ceremony after summer school.
Mooresville High had a 94.9 graduation rate for the past school year.
NF Woods/ MIWAYE hosted its own five-week summer school for 96 students who recovered 189 credits.
Summer Career Accelerator CTE Camps for students in grades 5-11 focused on building awareness and future enrollment for CTE options. Ninety-nine students attended weeklong sessions.
Sessions featured hands-on skills and project-based learning in STEM for rising sixth- through ninth-graders. The program had three weeks of camp activities in which students rotated through hands-on sessions in cooking and life skills, STEM activities, programming, and engineering concepts.
Rising high school students visited local businesses and industries, including Roush-Yates Engines, Lake Norman Regional Medical Center, Mooresville Police Department, and Ameritech Die & Mold.
The CTE camps had a 98 percent attendance rate, indicating their popularity with participants.
Transition Year Orientations for grades 6 and 9 reached approximately 900 students at these key transition years to get to know their new school. Student WEB leaders led sixth-grade orientations at the middle schools and student LINK leaders led freshman orientation at Mooresville High.
Students enjoyed school tours, received their schedules, had lunch, and participated in team-building activities. Districtwide, approximately 70 to 80 percent of students attended an orientation. NF Woods also hosted orientations for the school’s new students.
BOARD BUSINESS
In other business, the board:
Approved the Consolidated Federal Programs Plan to help the district address the needs of all students through supplemental federal funds. MGSD receive federal funds in the following areas:
● Title I: Support for students from low-income households;
● Title III: Support for multilingual learners of English; and
● Title IV: Support for all students to be safe and healthy, and well-rounded.
The board must approve the plan before it can be submitted as part of a grant application.
Received the first reading of changes to board policies suggested by the N.C. School Board Association.
Title IX changes are still undergoing review.
McLean also asked board members to prepare to decide on one of three extracurricular participation options for home-schooled students living in the district: allow participation, require dual enrollment of 50 percent to participate, or to deny participation. The current board position is to require dual enrollment.
The board unanimously approved a request to amend MGSD Board Policy 7620, which outlines authorized payroll deductions. Item 15 of policy 7620 states that “other deductions may be required by law or approved by the board.” In an effort to streamline the rental process of MGSD owned property, the administration requested that payroll deduction be approved as a condition for rental of district-owned affordable housing.
Approved two field trip opportunities for the Mooresville High School Band:
● On October 12-13, the band will travel to Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C., for a band competition. This trip will involve approximately 145 students with a cost of $75 per student. Five MGSD staff members and 15 parent chaperones will travel with the band.
● On March 11-15, the band will travel to Disney World in Orlando, Fla., for a parade performance in Disney’s Magic Kingdom. This trip will involve approximately 110 students with a cost of $1,050 per student. Four MGSD staff members and 10 parent chaperones will also travel with the band.
Fundraising opportunities are available for students and families.
NEXT MEETING
The next MGSD School Board Meeting is Tuesday, September 10, at 6 p.m. at the Mooresville Town Hall.