One by one, parents of students in the Copper Basin schools asked James Jones, Director of Polk County schools, to explain problems they have seen with the schools.
The questions came during a town hall meeting held Wednesday, September 6, in the gym at Copper Basin Elementary. The meeting was called to address concerns about Copper Basin School’s environments for learning. Numerous parents came forward to lament their issues.
Parents discussed rumors of Basin being shut down, the misuse of discipline, the lack of communication from school administration, the topic of bullying and complaints that there has been unequal treatment of students, inadequate school lunches, and a number of other topics.
Jones began the meeting by discussing plans for a CTE building and an upcoming innovative lab for Copper Basin students. CTE,or Career Technical Education, was a key topic from Jones. He explained that CTE would allow Basin students to earn certification in a trade before they graduate high school.
When parents raised concerns over the high school’s principal team, Kevin and Holly Smith, Jones said that Kevin Smith will be taking a more part-time role moving forward, thanks to a position in a work-based learning program. “I think the world of them,” Jones said.
Landon Parris, Basin parent, asked Jones if there were any future plans to shut down the school. “No. That’s not even in a realm of possibility,” Jones responded.
Parris went on to confront Jones over feelings of inadequate communication between parents and school administration. Parris presented statistics that said there was a 60% decrease in student enrollment compared to 2021’s roster.
Jamie Parris, another parent, took the floor and raised her concerns over lack of communication and engagement, the apparent veto of Basin’s basketball team’s booster club, inadequate school lunches, the severe lack of bus drivers, and unequal treatment among staff to students. “School should be a safe haven,” she stated.
According to multiple parents, children are being taken from school hours early due to bus drivers having to double-up on routes because of the driver shortage. A number of parents expressed their outrage over the lack of communication regarding this issue specifically, saying that the school has never communicated to them that the buses may have later or earlier arrival times.
“We literally cannot get more bus drivers,” Jones said, before he went on to explain that the school system had placed various ads and offered numerous incentives for bus drivers. He said that they’ve had no luck getting an interested applicants for these jobs.
Matthew Guffie, parent, confronted Jones over an apparent attempt to speak with the director on an issue his daughter faced at the school. Guffie said that his daughter was treated poorly by school staff because of her mental health issues. Guffie went on to say that he attempted to talk to both the principal and the director on this issue, to no avail. He apparently never received a call back from either of them on this issue.
Parents went on to discuss the issue of bullying among students at Basin. “If it’s reported to me, I investigate,” Jones said. Many parents said that they have noticed that some students are favored more by staff and as a result, others fall through the cracks. “How many kids have to leave our school or die for the administration to take a look at their staff?,” said Isabella Brown, a 2023 Basin graduate.
Jones said that during this meeting, two things really stood out to him: communication among all of administration, and how a large number of these parents reported never receiving any correspondence from him when they reached out to him on these issues previously. Jones said that going forward, if a parent has a concern, to call his office and that he’d guarantee to set aside time to hear out concerns and investigate each report.
Parents seemed dubious and reminded Jones that if these issues aren’t resolved, that many more families would be leaving the school system entirely.