The Falcon School District 49 Board of Education addressed a full agenda at its regular meeting Jan. 10, including the introduction of the newly hired chief operations officer, Jack Bay. As the COO, Bay will manage the districtís operations and maintenance departments.ìIím very excited about joining the Falcon school district,î Bay said. ìMy desire is to obtain a working knowledge about the operations and maintenance department at an accelerated pace. I want to maximize each dollar so we can plow every dollar we can back into the classrooms.îBoard president Tammy Harold reported that the El Paso County Sheriffís Office has committed to fund the current school safety resource officersí contracts for the next 18 months.The board unanimously approved a motion to allow Dave Watson, D 49 safety and emergency coordinator, to obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon as an added security measure. The board also directed district staff to research the policy and procedures necessary for placing armed staff inside schools. The results of the research will be presented at the regular board meeting Feb. 14.The board approved the purchase of a 10-classroom pod for Evans International Elementary School. The pod will be an upgrade to the current facility at Evans and help relieve the overcrowding issue. The cost of the pod, the permits and the fire suppression system ñ necessary for compliance with the International Fire Code ñ is $610,165.24.The board also unanimously approved the Unified Improvement Plan for the district, a Colorado Department of Education annual requirement for the accreditation process, which also contains revisions to board policy to reflect the appropriate titles of the chief education officer, the chief business officer and the chief operations officer.Curriculum, instruction, assessment and professional development administrator Mike Pickering gave an update regarding the iPad pilot program, which is currently running in the Power Zone. The intent of the program is to introduce students to 21st century learning skills and increase levels of engagement, collaboration, immediate feedback and access to the most up-to-date resources to increase learning.Stetson Elementary School fifth-grade teacher John Sabell shared his experiences with the program. ìI have the ability to make a quick assessment to determine what success the teaching has had,î Sabell said. ìI can adjust my teaching to meet the pace of each individual student.îOdyssey Elementary School fifth-grade teacher Gabe Hammel said he has seen bad behavior decrease; teamwork increase; better communication among students, parents and teachers; and an increased sense of responsibility. ìWe have not had one broken or lost iPad, and they never forget to bring it,î he said.The board postponed the discussion of the 2012-2013 amended budget until the Jan. 23 special meeting.Members of the board had a lengthy discussion to refine the CEO job description, which had been drafted Aug. 10 but never finalized. Personnel director Paul Andersen helped the board determine their ìmust havesî and traits they would like to have in the person chosen for the CEO position.Following the discussion, board director Henry Allen moved to amend the agenda so the finalization of the CEO job description could be determined through a vote at the current meeting. The motion passed with Allen, board secretary Chuck Irons and board vice president Chris Wright in favor; and board treasurer Marie LaVere-Wright and Harold opposed.As a late addition action item, the board unanimously approved the finalization of the CEO job description based on revisions given to Andersen. Following that vote, the board unanimously approved the posting of the job description. Wright then moved to post the CEO position as soon as the job description has been legally reviewed and that it be posted for 30 days. His motion passed in a 4-1 vote, with LaVere-Wright opposed.ìI think itís inappropriate to vote on it at this time because we are not hitting the appropriate window (for hiring),î LaVere-Wright said.Harold said, ìI agree on the posting time only if itís very clear that if itís (the CEO position) posted now and we do not get the qualified candidates, we will not rush this process and will look for the appropriate time.îThe board also discussed revisions to several policies regarding board of education agenda-setting meetings. In a consensus, the board moved the revisions to an action item for the next board meeting.The next regular BOE meeting will be held Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m. in the board room at the education service center.
