Gilmer County Board of Education chairman Ronald Watkins is not happy.
At the end of last Monday’s board work session, Watkins addressed those in attendance, which included school administrators, some central office personnel and the Times-Courier.
Watkins shared his frustrations stemming from feedback he has received since the board’s adoption of the 2021-2022 academic calendar. Watkins nominated and voted for the calendar a month prior at March’s regular meeting.
“I’ve got some stuff I want to air out,” Watkins said. “Some of this stuff that has been talked about the calendar and crap, I’m kind of pissed about it. People telling just a little bit of truth and a little bit of lies on some of this stuff. It Ts me off.”
At that March 18 meeting, Watkins nominated and voted for a calendar that garnered 38.22 percent of votes from a survey sent to parents and school staff. Board members Michael Parks and Joe Pflueger voted for it as well, and it passed 3-2 with vice chairman Doug Pritchett and Michael Bramlett voting against.
In the survey, the calendar that was eventually adopted was referred to as “calendar one.” The more popular choice that was not selected was “calendar three,” which received 52.59 percent of votes.
Watkins defended his nomination of the calendar and subsequent vote, saying, “My schedule is not built around that calendar one. It is not built around that calendar. I grow chickens for a living. I grow five flocks a year. I get paid vacation in-between flocks. I’ve been on this school board all these years, I’ve took up for every kid, teacher, everybody.
“What I’ve seen out there in these emails — and let me tell you this, too, don’t think you-uns run me off. I done made my mind up this is my last term. So you-uns ain’t gonna get to vote against me next year. There will be a new board member up here next year because I’m giving it up.”
One would have to go back to the Feb. 22 work session for the bulk of the discussion surrounding the calendar choices. At that meeting, Ellijay Elementary principal Lauree Pierce shared favorable feedback she received from teachers regarding calendar three. She noted one reason teachers prefer it is because of the breaks and the vacations it affords.
Watkins interrupted Pierce at that meeting and stated, “You’re messing my vacation up by starting back in July. You mess up my vacation.”
However, that sentiment changed by last Monday.
“This calendar (one) is not around my vacation. I like to take a vacation. I’m around chickens 45 days,” Watkins said. “I got to go last week on my vacation for spring break. It very seldom falls when you-uns take a break. I work two jobs. I work my butt off ... and to catch some crap like I caught about this calendar.”
Watkins voted against a nearly identical calendar as calendar three last year as well and has been a strong proponent of adopting a calendar similar to the one used in Murray County, which consists of 160 days of instruction.
Gilmer, as well as the overwhelming majority of districts in the state, operate on calendars that consist of 180 days of instruction.
Each year, classes in Murray start a month later than most of the state and every school day is longer in duration. Murray made the change about 10 years ago, and it saves the system money on utilities and paying hourly employees such as bus drivers and cafeteria staff.
Watkins made reference to that calendar last Monday and also addressed the recent resignation of Gilmer superintendent Dr. Shanna Downs.
“Personally, I want to do the Murray County calendar,” he said. “If I had my way about it, we’d do the Murray calendar. They would get rid of their superintendent if they tried to do away with their calendar over there.
“And speaking of superintendents, Dr. Downs resigned. We did not ask her to resign. We did not run Dr. Downs off. She had my full backing.”
After apparently noticing a gesture from someone in the crowd, Watkins said, “You-uns can sit there and shake your head ‘no, no, no,’ I don’t care. She had my full backing. This was her decision. Quit telling, twisting it around with little half truths and half lies to make us look bad; to make me look bad. I’m tired of it.”
At the end of his address, Watkins added, “I ain’t taking comments either.”
The meeting then concluded and the board entered executive session.