Dierks School Board Extends Superintendent Contract

The Dierks School Board met Monday, January 21st and extended Superintendent Jody Cowart’s contract through the 2022 school year. Cowart reported during the financial report that several line items saw an increase in revenue above last year. He received approval from the school board to move forward with a fiber project that would be funded partly by e-rate funding, if the application is accepted. In a related technology agenda item, the board approved the purchase of 46 Chromebooks to be used by the elementary school at a total cost of $11,382. Other technology purchases did not require board approval, since those costs were below $10,000. Both school campuses recently received $10,000 grants from Weyerhauser and the elementary school also received a $5,000 grant from Arvest for technology upgrades. High school principal Jeff Jones says he is working towards having the campus one to one, providing a device for each student, next school year. Board members also approved raising the classified substitute teacher pay from $65 per day to $70 to stay in line with the minimum wage increase.

The board approved the following substitue hirings: Alayna Morphew, Aide K Soto Sanchez, Terry Helms, Gayla Rowe and Lina Goodner.