During Thursday’s regular meeting of the Pearl River County School District’s Board of Trustees, the Board heard updates concerning construction projects, accepted donations and recognized two teachers who received grants from the Lower Pearl River Valley Foundation.

 

Pearl River Central School District Chief Operations Officer TJ Burleson provided the Board with district construction updates. He said the auditorium at the PRCHS is 99 percent complete. Burleson has given the contractors until Nov. 25 to complete construction and Dec. 10 will be the deadline to complete the final punch list. Construction of the foundation and plumbing at the cheer and dance facility is underway. The building is expected to finished by the end of the year. The baseball/softball concession stand project started two weeks ago. Contractors say they will have the concession stand done by the start of the season. The baseball/softball field improvement project is in full effect. The softball field grading is completed and the baseball field is approximately 30 percent complete. The fences are estimated to be complete by next week. Installation of a water line surrounding the field is complete.

 

Interim Superintendent Dr. Stacey Boudoin updated the Board on several district wide recognitions. The Mississippi Department of Education released the junior statewide 2022 ACT data. PRCHS earned an 18.4 composite average ACT score. Boudoin stated this is above the state average. It also beats the Picayune, Poplarville and Hancock high schools. MDE also released the 3rd grade reading assessment for the 2021-22 school year. PRCES received a passing rate of 87.3 percent.

 

Boudoin also updated the Board about two teachers receiving grants from the Lower Pearl River Valley Foundation. Haley Lamber,t who teaches the acapella group Sound of PRC, was awarded a $39,802.21 grant.

 

Sounds of PRC performed in six competitions last year and won all six. The grant will used to help fund the program’s new sound system and equipment for their 14 singers.

 

PRCHS interventionist Karen Boutwell received a $3,620.00 grant from LPRVF. The grant will be used to take her students in the Tier Process on field trips around Southern Mississippi. Boutwell said they will go on several different field trips, experience hands-on activities, talk with professionals in their fields and carry a photo book to capture their experiences.

 

“It serves a duel purpose for them to gain background knowledge that they can bring back to the classroom and relate it to the content that we’re learning…They’re also keeping photo journals, so they’re doing some writing and taking pictures of their experience, saving memories and developing their writing skills as well,” said Boutwell.

 

 

In other business, the Board approved a $230,497 donation from the Devil Achievement Foundation and contract with Hellas Construction for the baseball field turf installation.

Said by the PRC softball staff.

A a second donation from the Blue Devil Achievement Foundation in the amount of $35,000 was provided to the district to help offset the costs of installing an irrigation system as part of the Baseball/Softball Improvement Project. The irrigation system is expected to cost $55,000, so the grant will lower the district’s cost for the project to $20,000.