By Greg Wehner

The Worcester County Board of Education marked a first when met for its monthly meeting on Jan. 18 — it was the first time the board streamed its meeting online.

The streaming worked seamlessly and never crashed, though speakers needed to be reminded at times to speak into the microphone or else the public watching online would not be able to hear them.

Along with introducing this new technology, the board made decisions on the following items:

First semester final exams

At the request of Superintendent Louis Taylor, board members unanimously agreed to nix final exams for the first semester of the school year, which currently count as 20 percent of a student’s grade in the class.

Dr. Annette Wallace, the chief operating officer and chief academic officer for grades 9-12 for the district told the board members that several teachers raised concerns about students being absent from daily classroom instruction because of covid-19. She also said there was some uncertainty regarding how many students would be quarantined when the final exams were held.

On average, 62 staff members were absent from work the week prior to the meeting due to covid, according to Wallace. That does not include staff who were out for other reasons.

She also said the district averages 534 student absences each day for covid-related reasons.

Taylor said rather than eliminate the exams all together, teachers will be required to have a culminating event to conclude the first semester, whether it is a test or a project.

2022-2023 calendar set

Carrie Sterrs, the Coordinator of Public Relations & Special Programs for the school district, presented next year’s school calendar, which was put together after taking feedback from parents, employees, and students.

The new calendar called for a mix between early release and longer, yet more frequent breaks during the school year.

The 2022-2023 school year will start on Sept. 6, includes a winter break that kicks off with a half day on Dec. 21 and lasts well over a week, and a spring break that starts with a half day on Wednesday, April 5, followed by closures that Thursday, Good Friday, Monday after Easter, and Tuesday. The last day of school will be on June 13.

The board approved the new schedule.

Evening meetings

To highlight the students more when families can attend, rather than in the middle of the day when many people work, the board unanimously agreed to hold two evening meetings this year.

The first evening board meeting will take place on March 15, starting at 6 p.m. Board members will hold a closed session earlier in the day, take a short break, then return for the 6 p.m. meeting.

The second evening will take on the same format and will take place in July.

President and VP elected

Superintendent Taylor opened the meeting with a request for nominations for the Board of Education president, a position held by the late Eric Cropper who died in July. Upon his death, then Vice President Elena McComas moved into the position of president and Todd Ferrante was elected by the board as vice president.

Board members nominated and unanimously approved keeping McComas and Ferrante in their current position.