The Site-Based Decision-Making Council is a breeding ground for most decision-making in the Fort Thomas Independent School district. On October 9, they discussed the current and ongoing changes and policies of Highlands High School. Plenty of topics were discussed, from the ACT, KOYTE, and SAT testing. For example, any students who got a perfect score on the SAT will not have to retake it in the spring. All policies were reapproved, including the current rules on safety, hiring, and current courses available for students. But the most commonly discussed topic was our school’s finances, which were right within budget.
At the moment, we have $85,000 left for the rest of the year. John Darnell (principal of HHS, and current chair of the council) said he “felt good about the investments made.” In other words, we should have enough to carry us through the year.
One of those investments mentioned was the trip to Des Moines, Iowa, taken by nine teachers and administrators. This trip’s purpose was to exchange teaching techniques; for instance, if one teacher’s students had done well on a test and the others had not, they would compare notes and techniques.
Jamie Richey, a teacher at Highlands High School who went on the Iowa trip, said: “It was a really great opportunity for us, we’re excited to bring the information we learned back to the rest of the faculty here at HHS.”
Despite this informational trip, the most money given to our school is technology money, which is why Highlands has so much newer tech. The money given to our school is often sorted into categories, there is the money for the students’ activities, school supplies, teachers’ salaries, courses, and, of course, technology. These are only a few of the many things that the school spends money on.
During the SBDMC meeting, while the council discussed the trip, and the $13,000 expense (not to mention the interest of almost $2,000), Darnell said: “This was an investment, but overall, I think it was worth it, the Cooperation of the teachers was extraordinarily helpful.” As a result of that occurring interest, Darnell made a reminder to the council that since the district had earned an interest of almost $2,000 last month, they would “have to be more careful in the future.”