Bath School Board Recognizes Exceptional Girls Sports Teams

Warm Springs, VA – Bath County High School’s 2010 girl’s spring sports teams had exceptional seasons and they were recognized Tuesday night at the Bath School Board meeting. In a special joint meeting with the Board of Supervisors the School Board recognized the accomplishments of the 2010 girl’s tennis, soccer and softball teams.

The tennis team was the Pioneer District champion and the Region C runner up. The team won the first tennis regional game in school history. The Bath County High School soccer team was the Pioneer District runner up and the team also won the first Region C game in school history. And the softball team was the Pioneer District champion and the Region C champion.

Proposed changes to the cell phone policy for Bath County High School have been developed and were presented Tuesday night. The proposed changes include no cell phone usage during the school day or during lunch. Phones must be turned off during the day, can only be used before and after school, and phones will be placed on the teacher’s desk at the beginning of each class.

Principal Pete Pitard said the cell phone policy is a work in progress and it’s needed to keep phones from being used inappropriately and being used for cheating. The proposed changes call for cell phones to be confiscated for one week for the first offense, 30 days for the second offense and confiscated until the end of the school year for the third offense.

Technology and Administrative Services Director Paul Lancaster reported on accreditation and adequate yearly progress scores for Bath Schools. All schools in Bath are fully accredited for next year, meeting Virginia Department of Education standards. But the school division did not meet adequate yearly progress in English and Math last year and the high school did not meet adequate yearly progress in Math.

Adequate Yearly Progress is measured by federal standards. Lancaster reported that a school improvement plan is required division wide to ensure improvements in math scores for grade 8 and beyond.

Millboro Elementary and Valley Elementary Schools principal Les Balgavy reported on the Response to Intervention Program underway at Valley Elementary. Valley is one of 16 elementary schools in Virginia to pilot the program. The program is designed to catch students early in an attempt to steer them away from the need for Special Education classes. Balgavy’s report indicated the success of the program with an increase in SOL reading scores, a drop in discipline referrals and a drop in special education referrals since the program began.