THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
- • • .. * : . „ . I
Volume 62, No. 27
Hertford, Perquimans County, N.C., Thursday, Auguet 19, 1993
35 Cents
Business:
Downtown business
gets new name,
new face: Page 8
School:
Preparation can be
key to successful
school year: Pages 5-7
Religion:
Ephesians sets the
tone for Christian
COUpleS: Page 3
in:.
Board takes
no action on
differentiated
pay request
There will be no role and pay
differentiation scale for teacher
assistants implemented by the
Perquimans County Board of Ed
ucation for the coming school
year.
A study committee formed by
schools superintendent Randall
L. Henion last month at the
board’s request recommended
Monday night that the board not
take action on teacher assistant
differentiation.
Mary White and Margie
Nixon, teacher assistants who
operated computer labs at Per
quimans Middle and Perquimans
Central schools, respectively, met
with the board in executive ses
sion in July to air their view that
their technical knowledge and
experience entitled them to addi
tional pay. White and Nixon were
responsible for operating the
computer labs at their respective
schools, including developing les
son plans for students. All sixth
graders were assigned to one se
mester in the computer lab
White operated alone. Nixon was
solely responsible for the com
puter lab serving grades 3-5.
In response to the request,
the board authorized Henion to
form a committee to study the is
sue. Administrators, teachers,
teacher assistants and media
coordinators were chosen by He
nion as committee members.
Victor Eure, Perquimans
High School media coordinator
and chairman of the study com
mittee, presented the commit
tee’s recommendations to the
board in regular session Monday
night
The committee recommended
that the board take no action be
cause die state is studying role
and pay differentiation for assis
tants scheduled to be imple
mented during the 1995-96
school year. Eure said that the
committee hesitated to make
specific recommendations be
cause local decisions might run
contrary to those later set down
by the state.
Eure said Tuesday that while
the state has scheduled imple
mentation of the differentiated
role plan in 1995-96, information
provided to the committee sug
gested that job descriptions and
salary scales corresponding to
the plan would be available prior
to that time. He said the commit
tee suggested that the board re
view the state documents when
they are available to make a dif
ferentiated role decision.
The committee did make
three recommendations: 1. Years
of experience should be a priority
in determining salary increases;
2. Computer lab assistants
should be under the supervision
of media coordinators; and 3.
The finance officer should give
information on salaries and ben
efits to teachers and teacher as
sistants.
Eure said the committee was
given the new teacher assistant
salary scale implemented by the
board last month. That plan in
creased assistants’ pay based on
years of service. Eure said every
assistant received at least a 2
percent pay increase under the
plan and most received a higher
percentage. He said the commit
tee also considered that the local
supplement paid to teacher as
sistants will increase by $50 for
the coming school year.
Board member Wallace Nel
son suggested that Henion, Eure
and the principals meet to dis
cuss the situation and come up
with specific recommendations at
the school level. Nelson said
planning now might put the sys
tem in line to be a pilot program
when the state begins the differ
entiated role plan for teacher as
sistants.
“They (teacher assistants)
.y*4**/9 >Hte * Nalonn wM
Cafeteria characters
The new Jungle Book mural on the Hertford Gram
mar School cafeteria wall brightens up the serving
line and will no doubt be a lunchtime conversation
piece for the school’s pre-kindergarten, kinder
garten, first and second graders. (Photo by Susan
Harris)
Kornegay
resigns
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor__
J. Morris Kornegay, formerly a co-principal at
Perquimans Middle School, resigned Monday.
Schools superintendent Randall L. Henion said
Monday night that Kornegay resigned from the
Perquimans County Schools effective Dec. 31 for
personal and family reasons.
Kornegay has been assigned to the central ad
ministrative office as a special assistant in the in
terim. Henion said Kornegay will be performing
student test profiling and other duties. He will be
paid from state funds.
The school board voted to reorganize the ad
ministration at the middle school in special ses
sion on Aug. 9. For three years, co-principals
Kornegay and Henry Felton had been assigned to
the school. Citing administrative inefficiency, a;
lack of clear lines of authority and inefficient use
of local hinds as reasons to make a change, the
board voted to assign a principal and an assistant
principal to the school, rather than two principals.
The move was recommended in an audit per
formed by the state auditor’s office last year, apd
is projected to save over $10,000 in local funds.
Henion announced on Aug. 10 that co-princi
pal Henry Felton had been assigned to the princi
pal’s post at the school. Karen Luszcz, formerly
assistant principal at Perquimans High 'School,
was transferred to the assistant principal’s posi
tion at the middle school. Kornegay was temporar
ily unassigned as of Aug. 10.
In addition to serving as co-principal at the
middle school. Kornegay served as principal at
both Hertford Grammar and Central schools and
in the central office during his 16-year tenure with
the school system.
Schools faculty, staff head back to class
Students can
expect a few
changes
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor ___
The bells didn’t ring, but
10-month Perquimans County
Schools employees flocked back
to school Monday for their first
day of the 1993-94 school year.
Staff members set to work
arranging furniture, giving
rooms a good cleaning and put
ting up “welcome back” bulletin
boards in classrooms.
There will be a few changes
in some schools this year. Both
Hertford Grammar and Perqui
mans Central schools will have
a full-time guidance counselor
on staff. Prior to this year, the
schools have shared a coun
selor. Schools superintendent
Randall L. Henion said Monday
that the funds to allow the
schools to assign a full-time
counselor to each school came
from the state’s small schools
hinds.
Spanish will be taught at
Workmen are swarming at Perquimans Middle School as sub
contractors are pushing to finish classrooms, hallways and ad
ministrative areas before the first day of school next Thursday.
While officials do not expect the gymnasium, teaching theater
and exterior work to be complete by the time the students re
turn, a delayed opening is not expected. The entire project
should be finished by Oct. 1 .(Photo by Susan Harris)
all four county schools this year.
The board hired two Spanish tea
chers with small schools money
to serve at Perquimans Central
and Perquimans Middle schools.
The N.C. Department of
Transportation has installed
flashing lights on both sides of
Perquimans Central School to
help slow traffic passing the
school. The signs warn motorists
of the school zone, and call for a
25-mile-per-hour speed limit
during the school’s opening and
closing hours.
Central School will also have
a new wastewater treatment sys
tem shortly after school begins.
The project was held up for
months by the state before fi
nally being approved earlier this
summer. Worlanen are presently
on the site.
Subcontractors are working
overtime on the $2.6 million Per
quimans Middle 'School renova
tion project. HBA Architects, the
firm overseeing the project-on be
half of the school system, antic
ipates that classrooms.
administrative areas and hall
ways will be operational when
school opens Aug. 26. The gym
nasium, teaching theater, foyer
and exterior should be complete
30 days after that time.
In the meantime, teachers
and maintenance employees are
working hard to get furniture
and equipment moved back into
place as soon as each section of
the building is complete. As of
Monday, there were no tele
phones at the school.
Perquimans High School will
feature expanded home economics
and computer labs this year.
Schedules for high school stu
dents were mailed last week,
according to principal William E.
Byrum. Class assignments for stu
dents in the three other schools
are being finalized, the principals
said. Teachers will call students as
soon as assignments are finalized.
Bus schedules are also being
finalized. Henion said bus drivers
should be calling students soon
with schedules.
Education group makes school improvement suggestions
By SUSAN R. HARRIS .
Edttor
The Concerned Citizens for
Perquimans Education pre
sented its first formal sugges
tions to the board of education
and administrators Monday
night during the board's regu
lar session.
“We challenge you to take
our suggestions Snd concerns
seriously! and to act on them.”
said Marjorie Rayburn,
spokesperson for the group, af
ter reviewing with the board a
two-page report submitted to
its members by the Concerned
■" Citizens.
Rayburn outlined commit
tee suggestions to improve
communication between hoard
-members, faculty and staff,
parents and the community. In
addition, the group suggested
ways to improve the evaluation
and performance of instructio
nal staff.
To improve communication,
the committee offered seven
.'Suggestions: .. ;V';:. ■> S'
* Develop an open schools
policy designed to encourage vis
itation fay parents and citizens.
Send surveys to teachers,
principals, other staff and stu
dents to assess needs, concerns,
morale and suggestions.
Hold board of education
meetings in die schools. Explain
board procedures so those who
attend meetings can better un
derstand board discussion and
action.
Use peer grievance commit
tees as a step in the grievance
process to arbitrate and suggest
solutions to personnel conflicts,
i Activate the concept of school
advisory committees for each
school to address needs and sug
gest school-based solutions to is
sues.
Initiate public relations ef
forts to help citizens get to know
school and administrative per
sonnel, board members and nave
access to them.
Hold open houses at each
school for citizens and parents to
get to know the school and per
sonnel. This should include an
open house prior to the start of
school.
To improve the evaluation
and performance of instructional
staff, six components were out
lined: . <
Perform regular, periodic,
systematic evaluations of all in
structional staff and principals,
including teachers, coaches and
teacher assistants.
Use an outside evaluator to
try to get more objective evalua
tions.
Present mid-year progress re
ports. especially to new teachers,
to identify those teachers who
may need additional help to meet
performance standards.
Strengthen the mentorship
program.
Conduct student surveys of
teachers, to be used by teachers
only, to assess student satisfac
tion with teaching style, tech
niques and material presented.
Insure that comments and
criticisms regarding teachers are
' In the teachers’ personnel
“Certainly all the suggestions
tylll be considered and we appre
date that they (Concerned do
zens for Perquimans Education)
are citizens that are concerned
about the education of the chil
dren in Perquimans County."
board chairman Wayne Howell
said Tuesday morning.
Howell said some of the rec
ommendations made by the com
mittee are already being
implemented and/or studied.
Some are induded in the Perqui
mans 2000 education goals,/
Howell added. The chairman said\
all the recommendations will be
reviewed by the board.
Howell said he was glad to
see the group trying to work with
the braid to enhance the school
system.
Tm dad to see parents In
volved," Howell said.
The board also met with local
tCAE. president Vlrgie White
irst and N.C.A.E. UniServ rep
resentative Lueta Sellers in
executive session Monday night.
After reconvening in open
session. Whitehurst read a
statement about a recent survey
conducted by N.CA.E. regarding
principal practices in me scnooi
system, and asked the board and
administration to form a school
improvement partnership with
N.CA.E.
Howell said the board agreed
to work with N.C.A.E.
■o ;