by Janice Daniel
The Carroll County Board of Education met on Monday, August 18th, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. at 164 Independence Drive, Carrollton, for their monthly Work Session. All were present except District 6 Board Member, Bart Cater. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Chairman Kerry Miller, after which a school improvement update was given by Heather Harp, Principal at Whitesburg Elementary; Scott Long, Principal at Bay Springs Middle; and Jeff Bryant, Principal at Bowdon High. The sound quality of the video was very poor, and StarNews has been informed that the problem is being addressed.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with West Georgia Technical College was put on Consent Agenda. This is an effort to offset the expenses incurred by students participating in the Dual Enrollment program where WGTC will provide all required textbooks at no cost to the student, and Carroll County Schools will accept billing for the semesters and fees. This MOU is renewed annually.
Dr. Jessica Ainsworth, Associate Superintendent of School Performance presented some statistical data on school improvement, showing a District graduation rate for 2024-2025 at 97.57%. In the Georgia Milestones Assessment (GMAS) results, Elementary End of Grade results were equal or higher for Carroll County students than the statewide average, and the same was true for Middle School and High School results for every area except algebra, and Carroll County’s numbers included some middle school scores.
All 23 Carroll County Schools are now District STEM Certified, and Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment numbers were up by 300 students from 2024 to 2025. Advanced Placement student recognitions were 107 in 2024 and 145 in 2025.
Superintendent Scott Cowart advised that district enrollment is only three (3) students over last year, but he expects that number to increase by about 100 students by the time of the Georgia State officially recognized enrollment date of September 30, 2025. He advised that the district has not had to add any teachers so far.
Cowart also presented the new Carroll County Student Attendance and School Climate Committee Protocol in accordance with new Georgia legislation O.C.G.A. 20-2-690.2, replacing the School Attendance Protocol Regulation JB-R(1). This new protocol is written as a cooperative effort in coordination with appropriate Carroll County and Carrollton City agencies for purpose of commitment to improving student attendance through utilization of targeted strategies, and intervention for reduction of unexcused absences and truancy. Representatives from the following agencies participated in preparing this protocol:
Carroll County Courts – Superior, Juvenile and Solicitor of State Court
Carroll County Office of the District Attorney
Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice
Carroll County and Carrollton Boards of Education
Carroll County Sheriff’s Office
Carroll County Department of Family and Children Services
Carroll County Health Department
Carroll County Family Connection, Inc.
Carroll County Mental Health
City Chiefs of Police of Bowdon, Carrollton, Mt. Zion, Temple, Whitesburg and Villa Rica
This new protocol is operational under authority of the Chief Superior Court Judge, and the committee from the agencies listed above will meet quarterly during its first year and twice annually thereafter for the purpose of evaluating compliance and effectiveness, and to modify the protocol as appropriate. A copy of the protocol shall be furnished to each agency, official, or program within the county which has any responsibility in assisting children and their parents or guardians in comply with Code Section 20-2-690.1.
The protocol includes definitions of terms such as Tardy to School, Tardy to Class, Excused and Unexcused Tardy, Early Checkouts, both Excused and Unexcused, Excused Absences, Unexcused Absences, Chronically Absent, Truant, Parental Notification Statement, and others, all of which are explained in the protocol. The protocol also provides for Penalties and Consequences for any parent or guardian who violates the Code to be convicted of a misdemeanor subject to fines, imprisonment up to 30 days, community service, or any combination of these at the discretion of the court having jurisdiction. This new policy was put on the Consent Agenda.
All term definitions, penalties and consequences are listed in the six-page document which can be obtained from the School System.
Glen Harding, Assistant Superintendent of Support Services, gave an update on facilities under construction, and also asked that the Field Trip and Fund-Raising Requests be put on the Consent Agenda.
Harding also presented the Internet Acceptable Use Policy with the following changes:
It shall be the policy of the Carroll County Board of Education that the school district shall have in continuous operation, with respect to any computers belonging to the school and having access to the Internet, under item #1 A qualifying technology protection measure, as that term is defined in Section 1703(b)(1) of the Children Internet Protection Act of 2000, an addition of “and O.C.G.A. 20-2-324.”
There are two (2) additions to Page 2 of the policy, firstly, “Parents or guardians have the opportunity to consult with school administrators and teachers to discuss appropriate internet access for their students” and secondly, “Parents or guardians of current students may formally appeal disciplinary actions resulting from alleged violation of Board Policy IFBG: Internet Acceptable Use by contacting school administration.”
A sentence removed from the policy is as follows: “Social Media activities are encouraged to take place in a classroom or school office setting so long as such activities do not detract from the employees’ effectiveness or other job duties.”
And one final addition is as follows: “The Carroll County School System utilizes content filtering on school-owned devices and internet connections to restrict student access to social media platforms such as Tik Tok, Facebook, Instagram, X, etc. Parents/guardians may request information regarding available social media platforms and opportunities to further restrict their child’s access to these platforms. Such requests can be directed to school administrators. The Carroll County School System will adhere to all federal and state laws requiring age verification for social media access on school devices and networks.” The Internet Acceptable Use Policy was put on the Consent Agenda.
The Financial Report for the Year-to-Date at June 30th, 2025 draft was presented by Delene Wolfe, Assistant Superintendent of Finance, as follows:
Revenues $206,293,648 102% of Budget
Expenditures $200,673,461 98% of Budget
Fund Balance 7-1-24 $ 31,338,334
Adjustments to Fund $ 4,023,899
QBE & Tax Receivable $ 17,929,171
Compensation &
Accounts Payable $ 24,557,963
Fund Balance 6-30-25 $ 34,353,628
Encumbrances $ 1,368,704
Under Financial Updates, Budget Amendments for Account Reclassification to align with new state account coding received at the end of the fiscal year were put on the Consent Agenda. There are no changes to the purpose or budget amounts, only an update to the accounting codes for FY 25 and FY 26.
The Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between West Georgia Technical College and the Carroll County School System was also put on the Consent Agenda, agreeing that the School System will accept early childcare students for a practicum or internship assignment and to provide a structured and supervised classroom environment and varied educational experiences to facilitate desired learning outcomes and practical on-the-job training.
Also placed on the Consent Agenda were additions to Policy IDE: Competitive Interscholastic Activities. These are a result of changes in state law and updated information from the Georgia School Board Association (GSBA). The changes are as follows:
“Males shall not be allowed to participate in any interscholastic competition on any team that is designated as female.”
“Females shall not be allowed to participate in any interscholastic competition on any team that is designated as male: provided, however, that females may be allowed to participate in an interscholastic competition on a team that is designated as male if a corresponding team designated for females is not offered or available for interscholastic competitions.”
“Multiple occupancy restrooms or changing areas and sleeping quarters shall be available to student athletes on the basis of sex, and such facilities shall be comparable to such facilities provided for students of the other sex.”
Changes to the Board Policy GARH: Employee Leaves and Absences were put on the Consent Agenda as follows:
LIVING and ORGAN DONATIONS
Each employee shall be entitled to receive the following leaves of absence without loss of pay:
1. Not more than seven (7) days for the purpose of bone marrow donation for transplantation; or
2. Not more than 30 days for the purpose of organ transplantation.
Neither of these will be deducted from an employee’s sick leave and shall be included as creditable service for the purpose of determining any retirement or pension benefits.
The annual Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Willowbrooke division of Tanner Medical Center was approved by the Board unanimously.
After an Executive Session, the Board came back to Regular Session and approved the personnel actions as presented by the Superintendent.
The meeting was then adjourned.