JACKSBORO, TN- (WLAF)- In the Campbell County Board of Education’s first electronic meeting Thursday afternoon, it voted to adopt several changes to school policy. The vote came in the wake of COVID-19 related changes made by the state board of education and signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee.

All of the modifications adopted by the local board will work in favor of students.
Among those changes:
• TCAP testing has been suspended for the 2019- 20 school year
• No student can receive a grade lower in class than what they had on March 20, 2020
• Dual enrollment students who don’t take part in the end of course final will not have their final weighted GPA penalized as a result
• Only 20 credits are needed to graduate in this school year
• ACT/SAT, civics exams and EOC (end of course) exams are waived
• Students seeking an occupational diploma for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school year will now only need one year of work experience
• Missing an online class will not be held against a student

And while proms and graduations are typically slated for April and May, the county also received guidance on what those celebrations could look like this year.  “Those events will most likely be held in June,” Campbell County Director of Schools Jennifer Fields said.  Football stadiums, large arenas and changes in formats are among some of the guidelines put in place for those events.

She also told the board the county has been slated to receive just over $1.9 million in a CARES (Corona Aid Relief and Economic Security) payment. The funds are designated for “local needs” and the money spent “must be directly related to meet student needs.”

In what could be deemed regular business, Fields said tenure would look different this year than in other years but a list of eligible teachers would be presented at next month’s board meeting.

Reminding those congregated for the online meeting “the school year had not ended,” Fields said “learning was still happening.”

Offering praise for the staff and faculties at the county’s schools during this time, Fields said it was the students who had been the largest part of the success seen during the abrupt halting of traditional school. From volunteering along food service workers to helping younger siblings with school work, Fields said the students had met the challenges put before them.

In other board business, it was agreed by those present at the virtual meeting that the Campbell County Board of Education would join the county in its lawsuit against Potters Southeast. The lawsuit is an attempt to stop Potter Southeast from  establishing a rock quarry near Campbell County High School.  (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED -04/26/2020- 6AM)