Grants and Apple Festival preparations in financial approvals

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EAST ELLIJAY, Ga. – Several financial approvals came from the Board of Education this week with letters for grants, memorandums, bonds, and the Financial Report for the month.

With October weeks away, the board approved a Memorandum of Understanding with the Gilmer Chamber utilizing its buses again this year. With an increase in the hourly rate for drivers of the buses, the $56,000 agreement was approved during their regular meeting. The largest event of the year in Gilmer County, the buses typically run between several locations including the downtown area for Apple Arts, the joining event for the Apple Festival, the school’s parking lot for visitors to the festival, and the festival grounds themselves.

The board moved on to grant applications for the College and Career Academy at the Larry Walker Education Center. In support of a $3 million grant for the College and Career Academy, a requirement came up to include a Letter of Support from the Board of Education. The board recently approved the transferring of instructional units in July to bring it into state compliance with  the transfer and phase out of buildings in order to put the state credit earnings in there proper place.

The 2022 bond bus approval and September’s monthly financial report rounded out the meeting’s financial approvals alongside purchasing policy information including additional weights for GHS. Board member Joe Pflueger asked about the purchase after the board spent $40,000 in June on new weights for the high school. The purchase came for replacing broken weights as well as 3 additional weight stations due to high volume of students using and waiting on the original stations. With the three additional stations, nine total are now in use at the high school.

Purchases also include $12,000 in inspections for the school system as the board looks to recover from a recent lightning strike that damaged the main administration building and shining a light on a need for an additional or replacement to generators in the system.

 

BOE receives Financial Distinction award again

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EAST ELLIJAY, Ga. – According to Gilmer Schools Superintendent Dr. Shanna Downs, Gilmer has won a Financial Distinction award again this year as it draws closer to the end of its 2019-2020 year.

Won it “again” because it is starting to become a common thing in Gilmer Schools Administration as the financial department, led by Director of Finance Trina Penland, won the award last year and the year before. They also received the award two years prior, meaning that while this is the third year in a row that Gilmer Schools and Penland have achieved this award, it is actually the fourth time in five years that they have gotten it.

While a representative from the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts was not at Gilmer’s meeting to deliver the award this year as they have done previously, Downs said this was due to the current outbreak situation, they did deliver their congratulations through Dr. Downs saying that they wanted to make the board aware of another year of excellence.

The “Award of Distinction for Excellent Financial Reporting for Fiscal Year 19,” as Down named it, is rare among the counties that are reported under this group. While the Board of Education and Penland did not know the numbers this year, previous reports on FYN confirmed that only 32 of the 159 entities audited in 2018 and only 27 of the 150 entities audited in 2017 received this award.

Dr. Downs accredited the hard work of the the entire Financial Department and Trina Penland as the Director to not only have achieved this goal once, but three times in a row. These awards are not just for one area, but include requirements from reporting, annual audits, and documentation.

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