HVAC upgrade, new math textbooks take center stage at JCS monthly meeting

At the Johnson County School Board meeting last Thursday, the school board approved the bid proposal to move forward with a new HVAC system for Roan Creek Elementary School in Mountain City.The Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER) II, a federal grant, will pay for the new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system at Roan Creek Elementary."We've had issues for several years with airflow at Roan Creek," said Leon Henley, Maintenance Supervisor for Johnson County Schools.Three bids were made for the project, and the school board accepted the lowest bid for $199,623.Board member Mike Payne asked if the school system would be able to maintain the equipment, to which Henley responded that they would and that the updated system could be automated via a mobile app.Henley also mentioned that the old equipment is so outdated that repairs are no longer feasible. "We're having problems with the equipment, and we can't get parts," Henley explained. "It's recommended to go with the HOC controls. That is what we need at this point to take care of the airflow situation at Roan Creek."According to Henley, the construction would start in late May or early June, with an anticipated completion date of six to eight weeks later.Another topic of discussion at the meeting was the request to purchase new math textbooks for all six county schools.Secondary Supervisor Dr. Stephen Long addressed the need to upgrade math textbooks across the county. "Our last adoption was eight years ago–we've been with our current textbooks for eight years now" Long said. "Now, the state is changing the standards–we're no longer common core."Long went on to explain that the state formed a review committee, made up of some Johnson County school staff, to review different textbooks. "We vetted the materials and determined what would best help our students learn." Long said.The board approved the motion to purchase Cengage math textbooks for three high school math courses–Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II–in the amount of $64,821.74.The motion was also made and approved to purchase new math textbooks from Curriculum Associates for grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8–totaling $289,784.00. According to Long, these textbooks will come with consumable materials, including workbooks and teacher training materials. Students will also be provided with digital copies of the textbooks.Long explained that the K-8 textbooks are more expensive because they cover nine grade levels, whereas the Cengage textbooks only cover three high school math courses. "This is the best product for these grades," Long said. "If this company made textbooks for high school, we'd probably buy those."Recent standardized tests have shown a need for improvement in math across the county, Long said and he hopes that the new materials will help bring test scores back up. "Math is a need in this county," Long said. "These materials will help our kids learn."