BROSELEY — The Twin Rivers R-X Board of Education held its regular monthly meeting recently, and while the agenda looked relatively small, there was a lot to be happy about — particularly when the financial state of the district was discussed.
Twin Rivers Superintendent Dr. Ben Johnson explained why things are looking up financially in the district.
“Our goal this year was to hit four months reserve cushion, which means have cash reserve equal to four months’ worth of operating expenses and we hit it,” Johnson said. “This was something that was advised to us by our auditors — (they said) that’s what your goal should be, to hit that four-month mark by the end of the school year and we did — and we’re very happy about that.”
During the meeting, it was reported that last year the district was in the red in the amount of over $800,000, but due to a coordinated effort district-wide, that deficit has turned into a surplus of over $700,000.
Johnson is quick to recognize that turning things around required everyone to pitch in and through their hard work, the district is in a better position.
“Teachers, administrators and everybody have to kind of have their hand in this and be thinking about that every time that we were to make a decision and I am very happy with how that turned out,” Johnson said.
On the technology front, money was obtained to help in the district’s desire to improve online connectivity for students throughout the district.
“We applied and were offered a couple of grants this year that had to do with expanding our access points district-wide, especially in the lake area where we have a lot of students who don’t necessarily have really good Internet access,” Johnson said. “Now, God forbid, if another pandemic or something like that happens, and we have to shut down for some reason, we’ll be able to provide virtual instruction for those students by having these access points that we’ve actually set up. (They) kind of create these little umbrellas of connectivity so we can issue them devices like Chromebooks and then they’ll be able to log right into the Internet based on what we have.”
The internet service grants were sponsored by T-Mobile and include take-home access points, as well as outside access points in certain areas.
The devices are ready to be implemented, according to Johnson.
“It’s a done deal,” Johnson said. “The devices are already purchased and we’re in the process of getting them kind of stationed in good spots around areas where there’s not very good coverage.”
During the superintendent’s report, Johnson offered his vision for improvements and upgrades in the district, which he calls Phase Two. In it, he addresses improvements to learning environments, programs and staffing suggestions to improve teaching and learning, and some additional goals for improving student’s overall experience.
“Phase One was getting our financial foothold,” Johnson said. “Phase Two is where you’re going to see some really exciting upgrades and changes for our school.”
The district’s food vendor, Chartwell’s, was scheduled to be at the meeting to update the board and renew with the district but was unable to attend. The board tabled the item until the next board meeting on June 17 at 6 p.m.