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OCS Board News | December 2024

News from the Board - December 6, 2024

 

At the December 3 meeting of the Onslow County Board of Education, Dr. Barry Collins, OCS superintendent, announced that he would be retiring, effective March 1, 2025. On Friday, December 6, the Board met in special session to discuss the superintendent search process, as well as a letter in support of increased pay for public school employees. 

First, the Board discussed the letter in support of increased pay for school employees, which was proposed by Board member Angie Todd. The letter would be sent to state leaders to advocate for higher pay for school employees statewide. The Board unanimously voted to accept and sign the letter.  

Next, the Board discussed the process for selecting Onslow County Schools’ next superintendent.  

Board Attorney Katie Cornetto led the discussion, offering Board members suggestions and recommendations regarding how to responsibly and efficiently move forward with the hiring of the next superintendent. This process would be facilitated by Cornetto and her office but driven and directed by the Board of Education. The Board would select candidates to interview, conduct all interviews, and drive the selection criteria, whereas Cornetto would facilitate the collection of applications and community feedback.  

Cornetto presented the Board with a proposed timeline that would make it possible for them to hire a qualified candidate before Dr. Collins’ retirement on February 28 and emphasized the need to maintain the integrity and confidentiality of the hiring process. The suggested hiring process would include the advertisement of the job vacancy; the collection of input online and in person from staff, students, parents, and members of the community; as well as multiple rounds of interviews before a decision is made.  

Cornetto also expressed to the Board the flexibility they have in later deciding to extend the search process if they do not find suitable candidates right away. 

The Board unanimously approved the selection process discussed and tentatively scheduled the following timeline of dates:  

  • January 2: Deadline for candidates to submit applications 

  • January 7: Board to meet in closed session to review applications 

  • January 21: In-person public input session 

  • January 25: First round of interviews 

  • February 8: Second round of interviews 

New from the Board - December 3, 2024

 

 

In a Swearing-In Ceremony held before the regular December 3 Onslow County Board of Education meeting, four members were administered the oath of office.  

Newly elected Michele Halley, Susanne Long, and Phillip Williams, as well as recently elected sitting Board member Elbert Garvey, were sworn into office, surrounded by family and friends. The four of them now start their 4-year terms, joining sitting BOE members Bradley Williams, Angie Todd, and Bill Lanier.  

In its first order of business in the regular meeting, the new Board elected a chairperson and vice-chairperson. Members voted using a ballot system and elected member Elbert Garvey as Board chairman and member Bradley Williams as vice-chairman.  

After a Good News Spotlight with several student and staff recognitions, and a public comment period with 3 speakers, the Board addressed its general business.  

First on the agenda was a presentation from Chief Communications Officer Brent Anderson regarding calendar development for the 2025-2026 school year. Anderson shared with the Board the legal calendar requirements, including holidays, start and end dates, workdays, instructional hours, and more.  

Two drafts of the calendar have been shared with the Board, as well as district administrators and the Quality Council/System Involvement Team. These groups include principals, teachers, parents and community members. Feedback from these stakeholders will continue to be collected and taken into consideration through mid-December. A final draft will be created, and feedback on the final draft will be collected through January. The final calendar proposal will be presented to the Board for approval in February. 

Last on the agenda was a closed session. The Board met in closed session to receive legal updates and discuss personnel matters.  

Upon their return to open session, the Board announced that Superintendent Dr. Barry Collins had submitted his resignation, with intentions to retire effective March 1, 2025. The Board voted unanimously to accept Dr. Collins’ resignation and thanked him for his many years of service in education.