Knox School Board Recognizes Elementary JESSE Class
The Knox Community School Board recognized Mrs. Fletcher’s elementary JESSE class Monday night for a special event held during Christmas.
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said 20 people attended the meeting including students, aides, parents and Mrs. Fletcher.
Knox School Board Approves Secured School Safety Grant Matching Funds
The matching grant was presented by Governor Pence in November and Superintendent A.J. Gappa said the school board is trying to be frugal in making a decision on how to spend that money since half of the money must come from the corporation.
“We’re using our grant money for entryway security and upgrades in video surveillance systems throughout the corporation for those that need it,” explained Gappa. “We’re actually going to spend about $55,000. Our half comes to about $27,500. The board approved taking the necessary money from the Rainy Day fund. When the grant money comes in. we’ll just replace it in that fund.”
Knox Community School Board Appoints New President
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said he’s served many years on the board but has never served as the head of the board.
“The president will be Mr. Kirk Bennett,” announced Gappa. “The new vice president is Gary Dulin and the new secretary will be Mary Lynn Ritchie. This will be Kirk’s first go-around as president. It’s going to be a challenging year and he wanted to challenge everybody to live up to it and accept the challenge. As we move forward, we’ll try and do whatever is best for the school corporation.”
Knox Schools, Kiwanis Club Raise Ton of Food for Community
Reality Store Spotlighted at Knox School Board Meeting
Superintendent A.J. Gappa explained that all eighth grade students from Knox, North Judson-San Pierre, Oregon-Davis, and Culver Community students participated in this event. Business leaders and volunteers from organizations from around the area helped the students get a dose of what it is to survive out in the real world.
Special Presentation Featured During Knox Community School Board Meeting
Principal Dr. Elizabeth Ratliff explained that the students in the high school adult roles class featured two technology projects related to roles that students take that are not only inherited but those they accept.
“What the students were asked to do was highlight a couple of the roles that they take in the community – some that are inherited, as a daughter, as a sister, as a family member, and some of those that are chosen. One of the projects a student reviewed was how she has chosen to work with her faith. The other one could have dealt with their role as an employee or their role in school and academics to really be able to highlight a little bit of themselves.”
The students presented their projects to the board that were completed with iMovie on their school-issued computers in the one-to-one computer initiative.
Knox Students Raise Pennies for Vance
Gov. Mike Pence Presents Grant Funds to Knox School Officials
“The Knox Community School Corporation has been awarded a grant for $50,000. This is the maximum allowable grant. It represents strong leadership in the corporation, and a real commitment by this community to make sure our schools are about learning and create a safe environment for our kids,” said Pence.
Knox School Board Spotlights Donation Efforts at the High School
“Mrs. Wood, one of our science club sponsors, has on her property a number of apple trees. Members of the science club went out and picked over 250 pounds of apples and donated those apples to the food pantry for distribution to those in need,” said Gappa.
Knox Community School Board Approves Last QSCB Claim
The QSCB money was used to renovate the pool at the high school and to work on water lines that were clogged and deteriorating. The money also allowed for the purchase and installation of new lockers at the high school.
Superintendent A.J. Gappa explained that some other projects were completed at the high school within the two year span of the funding.
“We had some monies left over so we’ve been doing some other projects at the high school that were included in the project,” said Gappa. “This was the final claim. We had a deadline coming up where we had to expend all of the money from that project. We were down to the last $7,000 and so the board had approved that last claim for some repair work at the high school.”
Knox School Board Recognizes Students Involved in Manufacturer’s Day
Students from all over the county were present for the opportunity to look at the many displays put out by different manufacturers. This was a chance for the students to see what industry is available for them in the county and to ask questions about what each manufacturer specialized in and about potential employment.
Knox School Board Spotlights Boys Tennis Team
Superintendent A.J. Gappa commented that it was the first time in the team’s history the team members were the winners of the Northern State Conference.
“The tennis team was here with their coaches, Mark Krom and Dick Wagner, to be introduced to the board. They not only set a school record for the first conference championship, but they had some individual records. The team had the most wins in history and they had the most consecutive wins. They also won the tournament that Knox hosted for the first time. It was a very good year for the tennis team. It was nice to be able to give them some recognition,” stated Gappa.
Knox Community School Board Adopts Budget
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said there had been no questions asked about the proposed 2014 budget.
“At the previous meeting, we held the public hearing for the 2014 budget and there really weren’t any questions asked at that time. The board moved ahead and adopted the budget for the 2014 year,” stated Gappa.
Knox Community School Board Approves Teacher Agreement
Superintendent A.J. Gappa commented that this was the first time reviewing this contract under the new state law. The old contract had expired June 30 but came to an agreement by the deadline of Sept. 30.
Knox School Board Discusses ISTEP+ Test Results
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said Shidaker highlighted where the students needed work and where the scores stood at the elementary and middle schools.
Knox Community School Board Holds Public Hearing on Budget
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said there wasn’t any public comment on the budget.
“Nobody was here to speak up so we will advertise the budget and then have a meeting on Oct. 7 to adopt it,” explained Gappa. “From that point on, it will be sent down to the DLGF in Indianapolis and they will do their magic on the budget. They will then send us a 1782 notice later on to show what it really looks like.”
Preschool Parent Involvement Activity Spotlighted by Knox School Board
Superintendent A.J. Gappa said 70 people were involved in the effort.
ISTEP+ Results at Knox, West Central and Eastern Pulaski Schools
The ISTEP+ results have been looked at by officials at all schools in our area and Knox Community School Superintendent said there were some positive points and areas that need to be worked on.
“There were some good points and some points that need to be looked at,” explained Gappa. “In the elementary school, the average in both Language Arts and Math were in the upper nineties – the high point being the fifth grade Math with over 90 percent. The middle school had a little bit lower results and those will be checked out and we’ll report to the board at the next meeting.”
ADM Counts Vary at Local Schools
“In this particular year, the elementary was up one student compared to last year. The middle school was down 14 and the high school was down 18,” reported Gappa. “Last year the middle school was up three. It varies from year to year in the class sizes. With the money following the students and open enrollment, it has changed things a little bit more.”
