By Sherri Blevins
On July 13, 2022, the DeKalb County Board of Education conducted a transfer hearing at the request of Chris Hairston, the former Attendance Supervisor at the Student Services and Registrar’s Office. Hairston requested the hearing after Superintendent Lyles recommended a transfer for Hairston from the 12-month Attendance Supervisor to the 12-month Instructional Supervisor at the DeKalb County Virtual Academy and the transfer of Tony Bell from the 12-month Instructional Supervisor at the DeKalb County Virtual Academy to 12-month Attendance Supervisor at the Student Services and Registrar’s Office.
Board Chairperson Carol Hiett read the instructions for conducting the transfer hearing to the Board and asked Superintendent Lyles to provide evidence supporting Mr. Hairston’s transfer. Lyles stated, “The recommended transfer is in the best interest of the school system. I believe Mr. Hairston’s skill set is a good fit for the supervision of the DeKalb Virtual Academy, Textbook Program, and Recovery Summer Programs.
Hairston addressed the Board and those present to state his case. Before presenting his evidence, he assured the Board that if his request to stay in his current position failed, he would do the new job with thankfulness and unto the Lord. He assured Board members that the job would be done, but he asked them to keep an open mind during the hearing. Hairston stated, “I am objecting to this move based solely on the fact that I believe my skill set and experience provide this County with a valuable asset. I believe having me serve in my current position is truly what is in the best interest of our County.” Before presenting his evidence, Hairston added that he had received a huge unexpected blessing while preparing for the hearing when he reached out to people and organizations he had worked with in his job over the years. He received several letters of support on his job performance and shared many with the Board. Hairston stated that his job required him to work with several outside agencies and that it had taken years to develop those relationships. Hairston indicated that he had heard only good things about Superintendent Tony Bell, who was the person to replace Hairston, and that Hairston only wanted to point out why he felt he was the most qualified for the job.
Hairston explained that his current position involved overseeing discipline issues, mental health issues, attendance problems, registration, and safety issues. He described all the different outside agencies required to assist in dealing with the areas and the working relationships he had to develop. He listed several organizations, including the following:
• DeKalb Youth Services Center (DYSC)
• Juvenile Probation Office
• Dekalb County Courthouse
• Office of Civil Rights (OCR)
• Department of Human Resources (DHR)
• Drug Task Force
• School Resource Officers (SROs)
• Alabama State Department of Education
• Asian Pacific American Student Services (APASS)
• Power Schools
• Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC)
• Federal Programs
• Office of Child Care (OCC)
• Office of Refugee Relocation (ORR)
• State & National SRO Associations
• State Fire Marshall
Hairston said he has worked in his current position for eight years and had previous experience that qualified him for the job. He said he spent fifteen years in the area of special education, most of which were in self-contained behavior classrooms. He worked at Mountain View, Calhoun County Alternative School, and spent two years as the Special Education Coordinator at Huntsville City Schools. He has been a mental health first-aid trainer and an instructor for restraint training. He referred to his twenty years as a youth pastor and twenty-one years in the military and reserves as additional experience that prepared him for the position.
After hearing Hairston’s objections and listening to procedure instructions from Board Chairperson Hiett, the Board voted unanimously to approve the transfers of Hairston and Bell requested by Superintendent Lyles.
In other actions, the Board agreed to the following actions:
• Payment of $15,000.00 for 2022-23 Annual School Board Membership Dues
• Retirement of Lana Smith at Crossville High School as a ½ time Counselor and ½ Teacher
• Resignation of Terrie Stanford as an Itinerant Literacy Coach for the District
• Resignation of Ashley Buttram as an Itinerant Special Education Bus Pararofessional at Fyffe Special Services Center
• Transfer of Sheenia Daniel from English Language Arts Teacher at Fyffe High School to English Language Arts Teacher at Plainview High School
• Transfer of Julie West from Assistant Principal at Geraldine High School to Itinerant Elementary Mathematics Coach for the District
• Transfer of Tracy Tidmore from Middle School Counselor at Crossville Middle School to High School Counselor at Collinsville High School
• Transfer of April Hughes from Bus Driver at Collinsville High School to Bus Driver at Crossville Elementary School
• Placement of Lamar Hendricks as a Secondary Social Science Teacher at Valley Head High School
• Placement of Sharon Miller as an Intervention Teacher at Ruhama Jr. High School
• Placement of Jessica Reed as an Itinerant Instructional Coach in Technology for the District
• Placement of Melissa Roberson as an Itinerant EL Teacher at Collinsville High School
• Placement of Kristin Williams as an ARI Instructional Coach at Crossville Elementary School
• Placement of Maria Turner as an Itinerant Special Education Paraprofessional at Collinsville High School
• Placement of Michaelle Jones as an Itinerant School Social Worker at the District
• Placement of Matthew Henderson as a Bus Driver at Collinsville High School
•Placement of Sarah Tomlinson as an Itinerant School Nurse at Crossville Elementary School
• Contract for Charles Warren as a teacher at Ider High School
• Permission for Superintendent Lyles to Place Pending Board Approval
• Permission to Close Moon Lake Bank Accounts
The next meeting will be on the morning of Friday, July 29, at 8:45 (work session) and 9:00 (meeting).