Board Business Briefs: School Board Approves Budget, Appoints New School Leaders

The Cherokee County School Board on Thursday, April 17, 2025, approved the Superintendent’s recommended budget for next school year, which holds the millage rate steady while raising teacher and support staff pay and increasing funds for classroom resources.

The board also approved updated teaching and learning standards for next school year and its first-ever literacy policy and appointed several new principals and other leaders.

The meeting began with a work session at 5:15 p.m. followed by the last of three millage rate public hearings, and a regular business meeting at 7 p.m.  Both were livestreamed via YouTube, and the videos are archived on the CCSD website in the Board of Education area online here.

APPROVED BUDGET FOR NEXT SCHOOL YEAR
The unanimously approved budget was designed to meet the School Board’s top priorities by implementing financial efficiency stewardship measures including cutting central office expenses by more than 5%.

The board’s vote also retains the millage rate at its historically lowest level of 17.95 mills.  The full budget is posted online here; Financial Facts, a supplement to highlight budget features, is online here.  

The School Board members have been committed to investing resources as close to students and classrooms as possible and investing in teachers and support staff.

“I really appreciate the instructional resources piece,” School Board member Kelly Poole said.  “[Teachers] are really looking forward to getting these materials in their hands and getting ready for the next school year with lesson plans for them.”

School Board Chair Janet Read Welch echoed those comments and thanked the staff for their work to move up the budget adoption timeline to the spring.  The new timeline better aligns with preparations for the next school year and positions CCSD to better recruit and retain high-quality teachers.

School Board member Dr. Susan Padgett-Harrison noted her appreciation for cuts to central office spending including resource redundancies to afford more investment in teachers.

“You get quality teachers by paying a compensation equal to all of our peers around us and it’s really exciting to see we’ve been able to do that,” she said. 

The budget’s improvements include:

• For all teachers and support staff, increasing salaries for 3% in addition to the longevity step increase … this increased investment makes salaries more competitive and closes the gap in teacher salaries with some of our neighboring school districts while also making strides to narrow the gap with Fulton and Cobb Counties.  Administrators will receive the longevity step only.  The value of the total compensation package for all employees also is increasing due to rising employer-paid costs for State Health Benefit Plan healthcare benefits … by 7% for certified employees (teachers, counselors, etc.) and 19% for classified employees, totaling a $19.5 million increase, and a 5.4% increase in the employer cost to the Teacher Retirement System, now at 21.91% of salary;
• Investing in comprehensive K-12 English language arts (includes reading and writing) and math instructional resources (textbooks, workbooks, digital resources) to build the toolbox of resources for teachers and students;
• Decreasing central office expenditures to increase funding for school purchases of classroom instructional materials, supplies, and other instructional expenses … in an effort to help reduce class fees to parents and teacher out-of-pocket expenses;
• Adding more than 20 teachers to improve the student-teacher ratio in fourth and fifth grades;
• Adding one campus security monitor to each of the three high schools with multiple buildings (Cherokee HS, Etowah HS, Sequoyah HS) to support the two POST-certified CCSD Police officers already assigned to each of these large campuses; and,
• Equipping all CCSD Police officers with body cameras.

SAFETY AND SECURITY REPORT & UPDATED CODE OF CONDUCT
CCSD Police Chief Buster Cushing gave the second safety and security report of the school year, which will be a continuing practice in the future to ensure awareness of the School Board’s investments in school safety.

He reviewed the school district’s three-pillar approach to safety and security: prevention, preparation and response, and then detailed improvements that have been made in all three areas, as well as enhancements planned for implementation next school year.

School Board Chair Janet Read Welch thanked Chief Cushing for his report, praising the improvements and his leadership.  “I know we’re already a leader in this area, so thank you for all you do -- it is greatly appreciated,” she said.  

The full report is published online here and a video of the report presentation is online here.  Highlights include: 

• The addition of six police officers since the fall, improving the ratio to two POST-certified police officers at each multi-building high school campus, one officer at each other high school and middle school, and one officer per every two elementary schools;
• The addition for next school year of one campus security monitor to each of the three high schools with multiple buildings (Cherokee HS, Etowah HS, Sequoyah HS) to support police officers;
• The completion of installing expanded school exterior window security film and the ongoing work to upgrade security camera capabilities, including live-feed emergency access for the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office in the event of an incident, and the continuing work to enhance police radio communications systems;
• The completion of training for additional school support staff and district leadership staff to use crisis-alert system badges to support emergency response when on campus; and,
• The development of plans for next school year for increased communication and training through school safety committees and community and parent education programs.

Also during the meeting, the board approved annual updates to the student Code of Conduct for next school year.  

The changes, posted online here and which are based on feedback from students, families, teachers, administrators and board members, include enhanced consequences for students who bring vapes to school and for students who make threats, and better clarity and consistency for elementary school student disciplinary incidents.  

CUSTOMIZED TEACHING & LEARNING STANDARDS & LITERACY POLICY
The School Board took action on two measures designed to improve classroom instruction: the adoption of updated CCSD Teaching & Learning Standards and the final reading of its first-ever literacy policy. 

The district’s Supportive Accountability Governance Model and the Cohesive System of Teaching and Learning it calls for, both established by the School Board this school year, entail customized standards for teaching and learning and a toolbox of instructional resources and tools to support our teachers and provide structures to ensure our students are learning more, growing more, and achieving more in CCSD than they can anywhere else.

Last spring, CCSD introduced its first-ever CCSD Teaching & Learning Standards to customize the state learning standards, which outline what students should learn in each grade.  The Academics & Accountability team then gathered feedback from teachers and leaders across the district to further customize standards in the four core content areas (English language arts, math, science and social studies) to meet teachers’ needs.  

Teachers will begin using the improved CCSD Teaching & Learning Standards, posted online here, next school year.

The school board also adopted the final reading of its first-ever literacy policy, which is online here, designed to ensure consistent literacy expectations, experiences and outcomes for students, teachers, and parents.

“There’s a renewed focus on reading and to making sure that we are elevating the excellence,” School Board member Dr. Susan Padgett-Harrison said.  “What we’re doing is tremendous, I think, for the students and families in Cherokee County.”

LEGISLATIVE REPORT ON EDUCATION-RELATED LEGISLATION
The School Board during its work session heard a legislative report on education-related legislation recently approved by the Georgia General Assembly, which is online here.

Chief of Staff Mike McGowan reviewed highlights including the approval of a state budget, fully funding the state education funding formula, for which he thanked the Governor and State Legislature. 

The legislature also passed a school safety bill, and Mr. McGowan noted most of its requirements already are in place in the school district due to the School Board’s longtime commitment to investing in school safety and security.  It does include a provision to provide each school district with state funding for student advocacy positions to support student mental health.

Mr. McGowan noted that staff and School Board members still are attempting to gain clarification from Cherokee County’s local state legislative delegation regarding the implementation language for HB845, which is local legislation regarding financial auditing. 

School Board member Erin Ragsdale thanked the legislators she has spoken with for their time in conversation and expressed her desire to see future collaboration between the School Board and delegation.

Superintendent Mary Elizabeth Davis also spoke to her optimism for greater communication and collaboration with the delegation and reiterated the work that will be necessary to gain clarity on the bill’s current language.  Like the delegation, she said, the School Board wants to do right by taxpayers by balancing the responsibilities of ensuring high-performing schools across CCSD.

Superintendent Davis acknowledged that the delegation and School Board have many shared objectives, such as predictability and stability for taxpayers in Cherokee, and to sustain the confidence of the community in all financial matters.  The School Board had recently voted to conduct a third-party validation of the projected revenue impact of applying the floating homestead exemption cap. 

NEW LEADERS
The School Board on Thursday, as part of its approval of the monthly human resources employment recommendations, appointed several new principals and other leaders. 

Two executive director positions vacated by promotions were filled: Jessica Currie, a 27-year educator who currently serves as principal at Boston ES, will serve as an executive director in Human Resources, and Ashley McLemore, who has 25 years of experience and currently serves as coordinator for Title I programs, will serve as executive director of accountability.  

The board also named Jenna Williams as a director for Financial Management to prepare for the retirement of the division’s current executive director.  Ms. Williams has 15 years of experience including previous service as CCSD’s supervisor for financial compliance and budgets.

Principal positions for next school year were filled: Erica Morrie, a 25-year educator and current Principal at Mountain Road ES will move to the same role at Indian Knoll ES; Dr. Leah Bleisath, a 19-year educator and assistant principal at R.M. Moore ES STEM Academy, will lead Mountain Road ES; Dr. Celeice Hood, a 15-year educator and assistant principal at Creekland MS, will lead Boston ES; and Adam Johnson, a 17-year educator and assistant principal at Woodstock HS, will lead ACTIVE Academies.

The School Board also:
•    Discussed a proposal by School Board member Chance Beam to craft a policy to move to a single districtwide vendor for school athletic uniforms and apparel.  He said his idea is for the use of the vendor to be optional, with a goal of capitalizing on economies of scale to reduce the cost for teams.  Superintendent Davis said she and her staff would research the issue and share those findings with the Board; 
•    School Board Vice Chair Patsy Jordan thanked the Free Home Elementary School staff, families and volunteers for presenting an outstanding event to say farewell to the current campus in anticipation of the new campus opening in August; 
•    School Board Chair Janet Read Welch thanked the Hickory Flat Elementary School staff, families and volunteers for making its Amazing Shake event to teach students job soft skills, such as eye contact and shaking hands, a success;
•    Heard the monthly financial report, which is online here;
•    Heard the monthly capital outlay report, which is online here.  All projects, including construction of the new replacement Cherokee HS campus and Free Home ES campus, are on schedule and within budget; 
•    Recognized Dr. Scott L. Martin of Creekview HS as the Georgia Music Educators Association Music Teacher of the Year.  Learn more here;
•    Recognized Mable Ferry of Hasty ES Fine Arts Academy as the CCSD Counselor of the Year and recognized the Innovation Zone winners.  Learn more here and here;
•    Recognized CCSD’s Georgia Student Technology Competition champions.  Learn more here;
•    Recognized CCSD’s All-State Band, Orchestra and Chorus honorees.  Learn more here;
•    Recognized Georgia High School Association State and Region 6-5A Champions for girls basketball, River Ridge HS; Region 5-6A Champions for girls basketball, Cherokee HS; and Region 6-5A for boys basketball, Sequoyah HS.  Learn more here; and,
•    Approve a storm water management agreement with the Cherokee County government.