by Teresa Eubanks, Journal Editor
The goal, she said, “Is to make sure everybody stays calm and keeps moving forward.”
With the opening day of school set for Aug. 19, Dr. Kathy Nobles has her work cut out for her. Shortly after Liberty County School Superintendent Gloria “Gay” Uzzell was arrested and then suspended from office on Wednesday, July 17, Nobles was asked to take the helm of the school system until a new superintendent could be appointed.
She was at a conference in Panama City when she got a call from School Board Chairman Kyle Peddie about the arrest. Later, the governor’s office contacted her and asked if she would fill in.
“We didn’t have a contingency plan in place. We didn’t have a deputy or assistant superintendent. We didn’t know the protocol,” she said. Her first act was to meet with her leadership team, which was already with her at a Panhandle Area Educational Consortium Conference.
School Principals Aaron Day, Craig Shuler and Jeff Sewell, along with several school deans and other school administrative staff had plenty to talk about when they came together for two sessions that Thursday morning.
“We talked about what needed to take place between now and the start of school,” she said, explaining, “We talked things through as a group. We prioritized. This list was a little long so we decided on what could be put off until after school started.”
One thing was clear. “We decided we needed to get busy,” she said.
OPEN HOUSE, STAFF BREAKFASTS PLANNED
“Everything’s going to be business as usual,” Nobles said. “I hope the kids don’t see any difference. At least we have the summer to deal with it,” she said of the transition.
There are new textbooks to buy, events to schedule and programs to plan for.
One early decision was to delay the planned changes for the In School Suspension program, which will now have middle school and elementary students bussed to the high school to serve their suspension.
Administrators are making plans to pick up some new reading books for K-5 students from the school book depository in Jacksonville. Because shipping costs can reach $6,000 to $7,000, the school rents a U-Haul and has employees go pick the books up and bring them back to Bristol.
Teachers will be returning to work Monday, Aug. 5.
Open house for all three schools will be held Thursday, Aug. 15. Tolar and Hosford School’s open house will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Open house at Liberty County High School will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
A countywide school staff breakfast is set for 8:30 a.m. at Veterans Memorial Civic Center on Friday, Aug. 16.
TWO FREE MEALS A DAY FOR PRE-K thru 8
Nobles had some good news to share Tuesday. Pre-kindergarteners through eighth-grade students will be able to have free breakfast and lunch every day, thanks to the school board’s participation in the Community Eligibility Option (CEO) pilot program. All students who attend Hosford, W.R. Tolar, Liberty Early Learning Center (LEAC), and Pre-k will be served two free meals each day without having to fill out a qualifying application for the free and reduced meal program.
Students who attend Liberty County High School (LCHS) are being asked to fill out an application to see if they qualify for free and reduced meal programs. Household size and income will be used to determine eligibility. Applications may be picked up at LCHS or the County Office, beginning August 5.
Parents are urged to call (850) 643-2275, ext. 248 for more information.
Nobles is also optimistic about the 21st Century Grant program, even though services for the five-year cycle of the after-school program ended on July 19.
The program provides computer time, tutoring and homework assistance for a three-hour period after school, along with a snack and some physical activity, on a Monday through Thursday schedule.
“The state didn’t release this year’s cycle of grants until June 26,” she said. The deadline to reapply is Aug. 2. She said Liberty County’s application has already been submitted.
“It usually takes at least a month to get the grants scored and the awards back out,” she explained. “The earliest we could start it back would be Oct. 1.”
She added, “We’re very hopeful. It’s a competitive grant, and since we’ve had a successful program, we’ll get extra points for that (in the scoring process to award grants).”
UZZEL HAD ‘A LOT OF GOOD IDEAS’
Despite the turmoil over the past months as issues erupted between Uzzell and the school board, particularly Chairman Kyle Peddie, Nobles is quick to defend the embattled superintendent.
“A lot of the changes she made came quickly and some people aren’t used to that,” she said.
“She had a lot of good ideas and vast experience,” Nobles said of her former boss. “She had a lot of good things she put in place that the district needed. All that’s going to get overshadowed by this issue,” she said, referring to Uzzell’s arrest.