Dr. Judy approved for retirement at recent BOE meeting

The Emanuel County Board of Education convened Tuesday, Feb. 9, at 5:30 p.m. at the Swainsboro High School cafeteria, where the board approved the retirements of Superintendent Dr. Kevin A. Judy and Assistant Superintendent Toni Terwilliger. The board also approved the employment, retirement and resignation of several certified and classified employees during executive session, listed below.
The meeting began with Chairman Mason Henry welcoming all in attendance before delivering the night’s invocation. Board member Johnny Parker followed with leading in the Pledge of Allegiance before the approval of the night’s agenda being made.
Five items for discussion listed on the consent agenda were unanimously approved by board members. The five items included minutes from the Jan. 12, 2021 board meeting, financial reports, 2020/2021 fundraisers, surplus materials and extracurricular activity approval.
In reference to superintendent comments, Dr. Kevin A. Judy announced the following:
Budget meetings with administrative staff and departments have recently begun.
A board/budget retreat has been set for 5:30 p.m. March 23 and will feature discussion on Emanuel County Schools budget, as well as the approval of new positions needed to be filled to ensure that the school system has the best candidates possible.
Partnership with Ecovase, a company who performs static spraying of all Emanuel County School facilities and buses to help prevent Covid and other bacteria and viruses. Dr. Judy further advised that all buses and schools were sprayed on Feb. 2 and will be done again in April.
Dr. Judy thanked Southeastern Technical College for agreeing to allow the school system to utilize the parking lot next to the city auditorium for bus training purposes.
Dr. Judy announced that he and Jansen Ware have been working with the staff of Swainsboro Middle School on renovations planned for the summer. He further stated that classrooms and hallways will receive new paint, lights, flooring and ceiling tiles, and that redesigning of the office and ISS area will take place to utilize wasted space in the area. Enclosing showers in the school’s PE area was also discussed since they are no longer used and can provide additional storage for athletics and PE cases.

Renovations have been completed in the Swainsboro High School Culinary Arts Lab. Dr. Judy toured board members of the area following the night’s meeting to highlight the phenomenal renovation work performed and discussed the excitement for school students to begin utilizing the new area.
Dr. Judy then went over first semester information packets prepared by Kinvolved, a two-way communication module used by the school system for communication between parents, teachers and students. This communication system allows parents to respond back. It has the capability of translating up to 85 different languages and helps track attendance within the school district. Dr. Judy pointed out the breakdown by schools of their usage. A total of 290,598 messages have been exchanged so far this school year. Positive messages sent to parents totaled 13,458, which averages to 65 messages per student. This system is safety-secured and meets all requirements of FERPA. As an overview, school administrators can also see all messages sent between a parent and teacher. Inappropriate messages are forwarded to the superintendent. It was stated that the school system wants to continue its usage.
Dr. Judy thanked the administrative school staff of Swainsboro High for hosting the night’s meeting and for their hard work this year with keeping students and the school safe.
In reference to the board’s executive session, the following approvals for employment, resignations, and retirements were discussed:
Board members approved the employment for classified employees Angel Beasley, paraprofessional; and Sandra Allen and Logan Gay, substitute teachers.
The board approved the resignation of certified employees Elizabeth DeVane and Donna Godowns, teachers.
Board members approved the resignation of classified employees Susan Brinson, paraprofessional; and Tiffany Bush, SFS assistant.
The board approved the retirement of certified employees Teresa Burke, human resource director; Maribeth Clark, principal; Dr. Kevin A. Judy, superintendent; Toni Terwilliger, assistant superintendent; Elaina Wilkes, psychologist; and Teresa Bright, Sharon Edenfield, Mary Hundley, Regina Paul, Connie Proctor, Cynthia H. Riner, Carrie Rowland, Paula Scott, Corbin Michael Williams, and Deborah Williams, teachers.
Board members approved the retirement of classified employees Diane Morris, bookkeeper; and Carolyn Williams, paraprofessional.