JCBOE will vote soon on fate of PRVHS

Paint Rock Valley community members and faculty attended yesterday's JCBOE meeting to hear the fate of PRVHS.

By Danielle Wallingsford Kirkland

Jackson County Board of Education Superintendent announced yesterday that the school board will soon vote whether to keep Paint Rock Valley High School open or to finally close its doors at the end of this school year.

“I think people need to know,” Dukes said. “The faculty and staff need to know. The parents need to know. The community needs to know … It’s time one way or another. If it’s going to close, let’s ease their minds and let them know.”

JCBOE Superintendent Kevin Dukes

Dukes, with the help of county supervisors, gave a presentation about the state of the school to the large crowd of faculty, staff, parents and community members who attended the meeting.

Dukes first explained the declining enrollment at the school, stating that as of March 15 PRVHS had just 76 students in kindergarten through 12^th grade.

“Over the last 21 years the enrollment has decreased 47 percent,” Dukes said.

According to Dukes, in 2010 Craig Pouncy, with the Alabama Department of Education, recommended that then Superintendent Ken Harding take actions to close the school.

Jeff Middleton, the Chief School Financial Officer, said the cost per student at PRVHS is more than $12,500. That, he explained, is $4000 more per student than at any other Jackson County school.

“Over 10 years, that’s $4 million,” Middleton said.

Paint Rock Valley’s current principal, Kevin McBride, said he is still hopeful that the school will remain open.

“The school is the hub of the community, and I’m a part of that community,” McBride said. “My hope is they will be able to keep our school open and make changes that will benefit those students there.”

PRVHS Principal Kevin McBride

McBride said the most recent talk of closing the school has affected school morale.

“I think any time you mention closing a school people get scared,” McBride said. “Whether it’s the case or not they react. I have had students move because they were fearful the school would close …People are not sure what’s going on with the school and they want to know.”

McBride said he believes Dukes will do what is best for the school.

“I don’t think he is against our school. I think he is for what’s best and he is open for ideas. We just have to come up with ideas,” McBride said.

Dukes said if the board approves closing the school it will remain open for the remainder of this school year, the school zones at Woodville and Skyline will be expanded to accommodate PRVHS students, meetings will be held with parents and community members and all tenured personnel will be placed within the system. 

He added that however the board votes will give the people of PRVHS their final answer about the fate of the school for the remainder of his term.

“It’s about what’s best for the students,” Dukes said. “But this is it. Whatever happens with Paint Rock Valley, if ya’ll vote for it to remain open all I’m going to do is fight for it to be the best it can be. If ya’ll vote for it to close, it closes. But I will never bring Paint Rock Valley up again after we vote on this, because it’s time for them to know one way or another and not have to worry about it.”

Benefit to be held to aid seven year old in battle against cancer

By Danielle Wallingsford Kirkland

Easton Underwood, a student from Caldwell Elementary, has been battling cancer since he was 2-years-old. At the age of seven, Easton is now battling the disease for the fourth time.  A benefit will be held in Easton’s honor beginning at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 11, at Goose Pond Civic Center.

Kim Hastings, along with her husband Josh, organized the event.

“We decided to do this for them because Easton’s mom, Keisha, is my cousin,” Hastings said. “I love her and her family with all my heart.”

Hastings said Easton as first diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in 2012.

“Easton beat cancer the first time, and then relapsed very shortly after,” Hastings said.

The day after his last birthday, Easton’s family learned that he had relapsed and the cancer had spread to his bone marrow.

“We were devastated,” Hastings said. “We were not there expecting to get any type of news like this.”

The benefit will help Easton and his family on several levels.

“They need help paying their bills and have some mold in their house,” Hastings said. “They need to do some remodeling where it is a cleaner and safer living environment for (Easton). Jeff, Easton’s dad, works Monday through Friday so Keisha can stay in Memphis (at St. Jude’s) and take care of their baby.”

A singing will be held at the benefit with performers Face2Face, Sugar Truck, Erica Cookston and Impact Teen Center from Skyline Church of God.

There will also be 50/50, a silent auction, a live auction, raffle tickets for items like a Yeti cooler, Alabama helmet, a smoker and more. In addition, there will be concessions, kid’s games and face painting.

“I would encourage people to put themselves in their situation if they had a 7-year-old son fighting for his life and all you wanted to do is be with him,” Hastings said.

Hastings said Easton is truly her superhero.

“We were told the more the cancer comes back, the harder it is to treat it, but our God is bigger than this,” she said.

North Jackson principal resigns, reassigned to PRVHS as teacher

By Danielle Wallingsford Kirkland
North Jackson High School principal Sam Houston resigned from his position this week, after being placed on a ten day paid administrative leave in February for a personnel matter.
The Jackson County Board of Education voted, four to one, to place Houston at Paint Rock Valley High School as a history teacher, on an interim basis. Board member Charles West made a motion for an executive session to discuss good name and character, but the motion received no second. West voted the only no, but declined to comment.
PRVHS had been without a history teacher since former principal Clay Webber resigned from his position late last year.
 "It will be teacher pay. It will not be administrative pay," said Superintendent Kevin Dukes. "He was tenured as a classroom teacher, so he is going back to a tenured classroom teacher."
 Dukes said because Houston resigned the investigation into the personnel matter is over on the school board's part. He could not elaborate on what the matter was.
"I don't know on the other side," Dukes said.
The position for principal at NJHS will be posted tomorrow, according to Dukes.
Bruce Maples, principal at Woodville High School, remains on administrative leave. Dukes said the  matter is still under investigation.
"I don't have a timeline," Dukes said.