South Putnam board approves personnel items Thursday

The South Putnam School Board convened for a special meeting Thursday evening to approve new personnel changes, one of which was a termination.

Supt. Corey Smith detailed that math teacher Keith Chew was given written notice on Aug. 7 of a preliminary decision by South Putnam Middle/High School Principal Tona Gardner to cancel his teaching contract. This decision was deemed immediate upon approval by the school board.

Smith reported that Chew was advised of a right to request a conference with him regarding the action, but he did not do so. As such, the board approved canceling the contract with Gardner’s decision being considered final.

As a personnel matter, the circumstances of Chew’s contract being canceled were not — and could not be — discussed at the meeting. Gardner was also in attendance.

The board otherwise approved the resignations of McKenna Jones as the middle/high school’s yearbook sponsor and Cathy Boyce as the middle school’s drama director and seventh-grade class sponsor.

Meanwhile, the board approved the employment of Julie Fisher as the eighth-grade class sponsor, as well as Emily Coke and Judy Crum to succeed Jones and Boyce, respectively.

In other business:

• Per a request by Gardner, the board approved to strike a requirement from South Putnam Middle/High School’s student handbook with regard to drug testing.

Gardner outlined that the handbook required laboratories meeting qualifications under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988, as well as being accredited by The Joint Commission. Per consulting with a representative from Hendricks Regional Health, which provides services to South Putnam, she said the accreditation limits options for freestanding laboratories.

“Hospitals and other health care facilities can get that certification, but if we have a laboratory that’s not part of a health care facility, they can’t get that qualification,” Gardner explained, adding that not having it does not mean lesser standards.

Noting that it was part of a hospital, Gardner relayed that South Putnam’s current company no longer provides drug testing services. However, she said two independent companies are being considered.

• The board approved to label a non-functional treadmill and 20 unused desks as surplus to be disposed of. With the move meant to free up space for learning, Gardner said that 44 other desks are available if needed.

Board Secretary Hollie Hutcheson was the only board member absent. Meanwhile, Executive Secretary Erin Roach joined Smith and the board for the meeting.