DRUG POLICY FOR SCHOOL SYSTEM TO TAKE EFFECT WITHIN A
MONTH

A new drug testing policy for Kanawha County Schools employees should
be in effect in the next 30 days, said Kanawha County Schools attorney
Jim Withrow.

School board members unanimously passed a final version of the policy
at a board meeting Monday night, but not before board member Pete Thaw
tried to amend it.

He wanted to include principals, vice principals, the superintendent,
aides, teachers and board members as safety sensitive employees.

His motion failed 4 to 1.

Under the current policy, safety sensitive employees include anyone
who operates dangerous machinery, anyone who operates a county-owned
vehicle, anyone whose job duties include administering medication to
students, anyone who drives his or her own vehicle on school business
on a routine or regular basis, and any other person who volunteers to
be subject to the policy.

Last month, the board gave preliminary approval to a policy that
backed away from random drug testing.

Under the final policy, all school system job candidates will be
subject to pre-employment testing, and all employees will be subject
to tests for cause, when substances turn up missing, when fitness is
an issue and when those on leave return to duty.

Only safety-sensitive employees would be subject to testing when they
were promoted or transferred.

Before the policy is implemented, school officials must make a
specific list of every position deemed safety sensitive, Withrow said.

That should be finished within the next 30 days, he
said.

Also at the meeting, Withrow announced the board would be sending a
petition to the Supreme Court in the next day or two regarding library
funding.

The board believes the Legislature did not correct a library funding
inequity in keeping with a Supreme Court ruling.

A 1957 law required the Kanawha County school board to share a portion
of its property tax revenue with the county library.

The same requirement was placed on eight other counties in the state -
Berkeley, Hardy, Harrison, Ohio, Raleigh, Tyler, Upshur and Wood.

This arrangement, however, placed Kanawha County at a disadvantage,
school officials said.

Under the original law, state funds were allocated without taking into
account the money the school system had to pay the library.

The board said adjustments to its state aid should have been made to
reflect the library obligation, and it sued the state over the issue.

In March, lawmakers passed a bill intended to address the situation,
but school board members contend the county still is being treated
unfairly and receiving less state aid than it would if it did not have
to fund a public library.

Members will ask the high court to rule quickly.

"I would just like to know what the ruling is," said board member Bill
Raglin. "I'm a little disappointed that it's taken us this long where
we're just now at the point where we're filing this."

Board members have discussed including the $2.9 million library
funding in the proposal it puts before county voters when the time
comes for renewal of its special levy, another layer of property
taxes. Kanawha County Library Director Alan Engelbert does not want to
see that happen.

"Our ideal solution is for Senate Bill 541 to remain in place and for
the Board of Education to continue funding through its regular levy,"
he said. "The library board has asked the Board of Education to
continue to provide (funding) through regular levy, not the excess
levy."

Also at Monday's meeting, Kanawha County Language Arts Specialist Judy
Gillian announced the recommendations of a committee formed to review
controversial books being used in high school honors classes.

The committee read "The Prince of Tides," the second of two Pat Conroy
novels that some Nitro High School parents protested after their
children were assigned to read the books.

Of the 10 panel members who voted, seven advised the book be retained
in the classroom and an alternative book be offered. Two voted that
the book remain with the teacher rationalizing its use, and one said
the book should remain as a choice of titles from which students could
select.

The results for Conroy's "Beach Music" were similar, with the majority
of members also voting to retain the book but offer an
alternative.

School board members are set to vote on an alternative reading
assignment policy after the public comment period ends Jan. 25.

According to the policy, teachers would have to announce which books
their students would be reading the following year before students
schedule classes.

Board member Pete Thaw asked Gillian if it would be possible for
teachers to notify parents in a timely manner.

"In some cases, yes," Gillian said. "My concern is, after 29 years in
the classroom, that teachers' decisions (on which books to use) are
usually made in the spring and summer because that's when teachers
have time to read."

Duerring said teachers know what subject they are teaching by April 1,
but not necessarily what classes they are teaching.

"I think there's instances where it's feasible and some where it may
not be," he said. "We'll work through that."

Raglin said there must be a way to provide a list of books to
parents.

"This surely is not an insurmountable task," he said.