Valley Board Discusses Opening Communication Lines With Teachers
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
MENTONE - Tippecanoe Valley School Corp.'s teachers are blocked from e-mailing the school board members.
The policy, approved previously by the school board, built a chain of command. That was superintendent Dr. Karen S. Boling's intent.
Allowing teachers to e-mail board members "makes it easier to break the chain of command," said Boling Monday.
Board members' phone numbers are not blocked, said Hal Hoffman, board member. "It's just as easy to pick up the phone," he said.
He said he understood the chain of command, which tells teachers to confer with the school's principal first, but if addresses and phone numbers are available, e-mail should be open too, said Hoffman.
Changing the e-mail policy might set up a situation for breaking the chain of command, said Boling. She purposely built the policy for that reason.
"If teachers are reluctant to call us, they'd be reluctant to e-mail us, too," said Rod Eaton, board member.
"It strikes me wrong to have board members blocked from the teachers," said school board president Mark Wise. "Why don't we open it all up?"
"As long as we relay the message to the superintendent," Wise said, he thought it better to open all communication lines. Letters, telephone calls or e-mails, it's all the same, he said.
Board members David O'Brien and Hoffman said neither of them had received any e-mails from teachers before.
Information about the computer's ability to send e-mail via Hotmail.com turned out to be inaccurate.
Mariah Wise, the board president's daughter and president of the local FFA chapter, said e-mailing through Hotmail.com on the school's computers is possible.
The board pushed the issue back to January's agenda and will discuss it further with Tom Weaver, board member, who was absent from Monday's meeting.
In other business, the board:
• Recognized Tippecanoe Valley's local FFA chapter crop plot contributors. The FFA grew a soybean crop behind the high school's baseball diamond. FFA sold the beans for $1,900.
Mariah Wise handed out plaques to Jim Doud, who helped with the harvest and tillage; Mike Nelson, who donated Pioneer seed; Royster-Clark, who donated the chemicals; Gordon Potter, who tested the soil; and North-Central Coop, who donated the fertilizer.
The money covers costs to attend FFA's leadership conferences and other activities, so "not everything has to come out of their (the students') pockets," said Lisa Paxton, the chapter's adviser.
The Tippecanoe Valley School Board members are: president Mark Wise, vice president Rod Eaton, secretary Tom Weaver, David O'Brien and Hal Hoffman. Superintendent is Dr. Karen S. Boling. [[In-content Ad]]
MENTONE - Tippecanoe Valley School Corp.'s teachers are blocked from e-mailing the school board members.
The policy, approved previously by the school board, built a chain of command. That was superintendent Dr. Karen S. Boling's intent.
Allowing teachers to e-mail board members "makes it easier to break the chain of command," said Boling Monday.
Board members' phone numbers are not blocked, said Hal Hoffman, board member. "It's just as easy to pick up the phone," he said.
He said he understood the chain of command, which tells teachers to confer with the school's principal first, but if addresses and phone numbers are available, e-mail should be open too, said Hoffman.
Changing the e-mail policy might set up a situation for breaking the chain of command, said Boling. She purposely built the policy for that reason.
"If teachers are reluctant to call us, they'd be reluctant to e-mail us, too," said Rod Eaton, board member.
"It strikes me wrong to have board members blocked from the teachers," said school board president Mark Wise. "Why don't we open it all up?"
"As long as we relay the message to the superintendent," Wise said, he thought it better to open all communication lines. Letters, telephone calls or e-mails, it's all the same, he said.
Board members David O'Brien and Hoffman said neither of them had received any e-mails from teachers before.
Information about the computer's ability to send e-mail via Hotmail.com turned out to be inaccurate.
Mariah Wise, the board president's daughter and president of the local FFA chapter, said e-mailing through Hotmail.com on the school's computers is possible.
The board pushed the issue back to January's agenda and will discuss it further with Tom Weaver, board member, who was absent from Monday's meeting.
In other business, the board:
• Recognized Tippecanoe Valley's local FFA chapter crop plot contributors. The FFA grew a soybean crop behind the high school's baseball diamond. FFA sold the beans for $1,900.
Mariah Wise handed out plaques to Jim Doud, who helped with the harvest and tillage; Mike Nelson, who donated Pioneer seed; Royster-Clark, who donated the chemicals; Gordon Potter, who tested the soil; and North-Central Coop, who donated the fertilizer.
The money covers costs to attend FFA's leadership conferences and other activities, so "not everything has to come out of their (the students') pockets," said Lisa Paxton, the chapter's adviser.
The Tippecanoe Valley School Board members are: president Mark Wise, vice president Rod Eaton, secretary Tom Weaver, David O'Brien and Hal Hoffman. Superintendent is Dr. Karen S. Boling. [[In-content Ad]]