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Dougherty County School District board meeting, date not confirmed yet

1 h 21 min · 0 public speakers

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 1 h 21 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Dougherty County school board adopts employee leave policy, approves consent agenda 1:15:34

  • A district staff member reported that the district ended the year with about a $33 million general fund reserve. 7:15
  • The board adopted board policy GARH employee leave, which a district staff member described as a maternal birth leave policy providing 3 weeks after giving birth. 8:51
  • Reverend James Bush asked about rising fuel costs, and a district staff member said diesel was approaching $6.50 a gallon and that the increase affects the budget. 38:42
  • The board approved consent agenda items 2 through 6. 1:14:48
Item by item (14)
  1. Briefing on personnel transfers 0:00
    • A district staff member said employees with fewer than 5 years were transferred to ABM at the beginning of August, while those with more than 5 years had an option with no deadline. 1:06
    • The staff member said the board recently approved waiving vesting for those employees and that more transfers may occur throughout the year. 1:06
  2. Building and grounds committee recommendation 2:42
    • A district staff member said size constraints in the existing 3-story tower required a new elevator in the new 3-story tower addition. 2:52
    • The staff member said the elevator is not included in the capital outlay but is included in the budget. 3:24
  3. Consent items and field trip questions 3:36
    • Dr. Carolyn Hand asked about the age range of students on a Europe college tour, how they and the faculty were chosen, and the male-to-female ratio. 3:51
    • A district staff member said the trip is based on cohorts of current 7th and 8th graders and that chaperones include Gear Up staff funded through the grant. 4:21
  4. Financial report briefing 5:44
    • A district staff member said expenditures rose because of locally funded retention supplements and instructional materials required through the Georgia Literacy Act. 6:18
    • The staff member said the district ended the year with about a $33 million general fund reserve and presented the annual school activity fund report. 7:15
  5. Employee leave policy second read 8:29
    • A district staff member said the policy provides 3 weeks immediately after giving birth, with eligibility requiring 6 months and 700 hours of work in the district. 8:51
    • A district staff member cited House Bill 1118 in connection with the policy. 10:04
  6. Committee report on foundation scholarship 10:12
    • A speaker giving the committee report asked board members to donate to a GSBA foundation that will provide a $5,000 scholarship for each area. 10:12
    • Dr. Carolyn Hand asked whether the recipient must be a graduating student, and a district staff member said the link to the criteria would be sent to board members. 11:46
    • A district staff member said the recipient would come from the region and may not be from Dougherty County. 12:33
  7. Superintendent's report 12:19
    • The superintendent reviewed investment in human capital initiatives, including a teacher apprenticeship program described as the first registered one for K-12 educators in Georgia. 12:19
    • A district staff member said Albany Middle School became the district's first Alpha Distinguished School and that alumni presented a check of $13,668.19 to a middle school. 21:11
    • A district staff member announced a Fall Recharge employee event on October 5th from 11:30 to 3:00 PM on Pine Avenue. 36:28
  8. Fuel cost discussion 37:42
    • Reverend James Bush said paying $80.19 for a tank of gas prompted a question about diesel prices for the schools. 37:49
    • A district staff member said diesel was approaching $6.50 a gallon, buses get about 7 miles to the gallon, and the reserve helps absorb such increases. 38:59
    • Norma Gaines-Heath asked whether the district has a fuel reserve, and a district staff member said the district negotiates a fuel contract with the city and county but lacks storage for months of reserves. 40:56
  9. Executive session 42:27
    • Dr. Carolyn Hand moved to go into executive session for personnel and property. 43:23
  10. Regular meeting opening, agenda and minutes 43:45
    • The regular board meeting was called to order, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. 1:12:39
    • The board considered the agenda and the minutes of the meeting held on September 14th, 2026. 1:13:40
    • Geraldine West-Hudley announced that the agenda and the minutes were approved. 1:14:06
  11. Consent agenda 1:14:48
    • Geraldine West-Hudley offered a motion to approve consent agenda items 2 through 6. 1:14:48
    • Geraldine West-Hudley announced that the motion passed and the consent agenda was approved. 1:15:34
  12. Financial report overview 1:15:44
    • At the request of Reverend James Bush, a district staff member said school activity funds began the year at slightly less than $887,000 and ended at a little less than $880,000. ~1:15:48
    • Asked about the entire budget, a district staff member said all funds total about $357 million, or a little over $250 million without reserves. 1:18:07
  13. Employee leave policy adoption 1:18:39
    • After a question about item 7, Geraldine West-Hudley called for a motion to adopt board policy GARH employee leave. 1:18:43
    • Geraldine West-Hudley announced that the motion passed and the policy was approved. 1:19:42
  14. Announcements and adjournment 1:19:57
    • A district staff member reminded the board of college spirit day and a DCSS Moments event to take place before the board's next meeting on October 5th. 1:19:57
    • A speaker announced the next board meeting for Monday, October 12th, with a briefing at 6:30 and a regular meeting at 7 o'clock. 1:20:41
    • Geraldine West-Hudley announced that the motion to adjourn passed. 1:21:16

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

Other meetings

Other meetings of this board

Video: posted by the district as “Regular Board Meeting - September 24, 2026”