GASTON SCHOOLS STIFFEN POLICY ON DRUG CRIMES

Employees Now Required To Report Charges Or Convictions By The Next
Business Day

Following three separate incidents in which Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Schools teachers were charged with drug crimes, Gaston County Schools
has changed its employment policies.

Gaston County Schools employees previously had five days to report
that they were convicted of a crime. Now employees are required to
report any criminal charges or traffic violations involving drugs and
alcohol to their supervisor the next business day, the school board
decided this week. The CMS incidents "gave us the opportunity to look
at our policy to see if it needed any tweaking," said school board
chairman David Phillips. The new policy, Phillips said, places the
responsibility on the employee. Lincoln County Schools already has a
similar policy. The school system requires employees to immediately
notify their supervisors of any drug crimes. The school system also
adopted a policy that gives the board and superintendent more
options, including termination, when handling employees who violate
the drug-free and alcohol-free workplace policy. Other Developments
Gaston County middle and high schools are now prohibited from selling
snacks and soft drinks from vending machines before and during the
lunch period, the school board decided this week.

Employees who willfully violate the policy are subject to
disciplinary action, including termination.

"We want to make sure that they receive the proper nutrition instead
of soft drinks or bonbons," said school board Chairman David
Phillips. State law requires that no food be sold in competition with
a school's lunch program, and schools can be fined for violating that
law. Last year, three schools were fined by the state, said Leon
Moretz, deputy superintendent for operations.