Taking what Webster County School District Superintendent James Kemp referred to as a “leap of faith,” the Webster County Board of Education, at its meeting Monday night, adopted a policy that effectively removes the school district from involvement in transporting students to athletic and extracurricular events.

“What we opted to do... is basically to ask parents to sign a waiver so that they understand we are not providing transportation,” Webster County Board of Education attorney Amy Zachary told school board members at their meeting Monday night as she discussed the design of the policy she helped revise for the district.

“We are not responsible for their transportation (to events),” she said. “They can bring their child; they can arrange for a third party to bring their child, but whatever they do... they are in authority over their child with transportation, not us. That takes the liability away from us. We don’t have to see to it the child rides with a certain person, because quite frankly, that would be a job we would have to hire someone else to do.”

Board member Tim McCormick questioned whether that meant that coaches wouldn’t have authority over how his students arrived or left. Zachary said that was a correct assessment.

“When they get there and they check in the sport, the coach is in control,” she said. “When they leave his play, it’s just like students who ride to school. The school’s not in charge of who they ride with. I know it shakes everybody up, but it’s really not that different than parents who let their children drive to school.

“We can let them drive to school with somebody; we can let them drive somebody home; we can let them drive themselves,” she said. “It’s the same thing. When they get to school... we’re in charge of their behavior. The ride up here, we are not in charge, and we are not responsible.”

She said the parent waiver should be an integral component in the new board policy.

“We don’t want the sponsors or the coaches having to be responsible for the child during transportation, or who they’ll be transported with,” she said.

Board chairman James Nance then asked about placing age restrictions on who would be allowed to drive, but Zachary cautioned against doing that.

“Anything that you put in there that requires us to take authority makes us liable,” she said.

She then reiterated that the policy is nothing new, except that its a change in the way athletics are handled.

“High school students can drop off 14 people at the elementary school if they want to,” she said. “All these other sports have been providing transportation for years.”

She also pointed to the academic team as another example of a program that provides its own transportation as discussion again turned toward potential restrictions in the policy.

“Anything that you put in there that makes us start overseeing it takes away your soverign immunity and makes us liable to make sure those people are safe,” she said. “The only way not to be responsible is for you not to take... any authority over it. Tell the parents right up front ‘we’re not taking authority... and you are in charge.’”

Zachary said the policy could be legally challenged somewhere down the line, but that it’s “the best they could do right now.”

Nance and other board members expressed disappointment about the situation with the economy before approving the new policy. Discussion also turned briefly to the fact that cuts in the state budget have been a significant factor in the school board’s financial issues.

Board member Steve Henry also expressed concern about putting the pressure on the community to completely support all of the local programs.

“This county does not have the economy or the tax base to support all the things that take place in the county,” he said.

Following the vote, board members asked Kemp for an update on efforts to find large fuel storage tanks the school district can use to store diesel fuel. Kemp presented the board a list of potential sellers, though no action was taken on the discussion.

He briefly discussed plans to install new security equipment at several school buildings within the district.

Next on the agenda was consideration of tax rates for the current fiscal year.

“Is any board member at this table wanting to raise taxes in any shape, form, or fashion,” Nance asked as the discussion began. “If so, please raise your hand.”

No one did.

“I’m not going to vote to raise taxes, not one bit,” he said. “These people out there are hurting just as well as we are. We are adding more fees onto them. We’re asking more volunteers to step up and raise money.”

Henry agreed.

“I don’t feel we can go out and ask for more money,” Henry said.

McCormick then pointed out the state has declined to raise taxes right now as well.

“The state’s not willing to step up and give us more money,” he said. “It’s time to make the hard decisions.”

Board member Lisa Preston shared the concern that raising the school district’s taxes at the same time that groups are raising money for the local schools.

“They’re stepping up to the plate and paying for what we as a board should be and would like to be able to pay,” Preston said. “If we increase taxes, we’re just slapping our people who are helping us right in the face.”

Nance then asked about the board’s options to hold the line on taxes, and Kemp offered several suggestions. Eventually, discussion turned to the idea of lowering the district’s compensating tax rate, and after determining the cost to the district would be approximately $21,000, members voted to lower the rate from last year.

“If that’s all it’s going to cost us then I’m all right with that,” board member E Carolyn Tucker said.

Preston made the motion to adopt the policy that sets the compensating rate at 45.8 cents, and Tucker seconded it.

“Let’s give our people some help out there,” Preston said.

Nance joked about the decision after the vote.

“People must be sitting out there saying, ‘That crazy bunch up there, everytime they go up there to meet they holler that they’re going broke, and then they go and lower taxes.’ They must think we’re a bunch of nuts.”

The room was silent for a moment before Nance added, “They’re probably right.”

Several more seconds of silence followed before Preston spoke.

“We’re trying to help,” she started to say, but Nance interrupted her as he called for the next item of business.

The board adopted its salary schedule for athletic and middle school athletic directors, heard the first reading on a 2008 Kentucky School Board Association Policy/Procedure manual, and approved with right to review a student handbook for the district’s alternative learning center as well as a revision in the blueprint plans for the WCHS addition/renovation.

The board also approved a series of action items by consent, including certified and classified evaluation plans for the current school year, various contracts with local service agencies, monthly reports, financial reports, and budget amendments.

Earlier in the meeting, the board heard a report from district parent Shellie Utley regarding an ongoing effort to develop an archery program in the school system. Utley said a meeting with a regional coordinator for archery clubs is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 28. The location is subject to change.

Retirement plaques were presented to retiring Dixon Principal Mike Crouse and educator Theresa Williams for their years of service in the district, and the board recognized WCHS student Michael Winstead for his recent achievement at a USA Skills Conference.

Following the presentations, the board went into closed session to discuss pending litigation and personnel, but said they had no action to report when they returned to open session.

A special called meeting for Tuesday, Aug. 26, was announced as the meeting ended Monday night. The purpose of the session is a student hearing. It’s not known if the closed session was related to the decision to host a special meeting.

Before adjourning the meeting, board members reviewed personnel changes, including the employment of Rebecca Evans, WCHS English teacher; Vicki Rowland, WCHS science teacher; Melissa McCollough, middle school band instructor; Leslie Kuykendall, Doris Lawson, Cassandra Seaburg, and Terry Steff, substitute teachers; Melissa Downey, Clay Elementary instructional assistant; Rebecca Hopkins, substitute instructional assistant/custodian; Doris Lawson, substitute instructional assistant/cook/lunchroom monitor; Velda McChesney, substitute cook and lunchroom/bus monitor; Lana Nall, susbstiture cook; and Lisa Travis, substitute instructional assistant; the transfer of Eric Wheatley to the position of Dixon principal; the retirement of Dixon kindergarten teacher Theresa Williams; the resignation of WCHS Consumer Science teacher Katie Ferguson SDI teacher Aleta Sisk; and Sarah Howard, instructional assistant; and the employment of Trojan Academy teachers Regina Catlett, Carolyn Dacy, Lecia Johnson, Thomas Johnson, Donna Robertson, and Ruth Utley.