Parents raise concerns about board stances

CLOVIS — A Clovis parent told the Clovis Municipal Schools Board of Education he and other parents would like the board to take stances on various issues at its Tuesday meeting.

Josh Parkin, a parent of three students in the Clovis system, said in the meeting’s open forum section he would like the board to use a future meeting to discuss topics like mask wearing and critical race theory, “because we would like to see where the board stands on that.”

Parkin said he attended a recent Public Education Department meeting on upcoming social studies standards and was concerned, but understood the board couldn’t comment or take action on an open forum item during the same meeting.

In other business at the 30-minute Tuesday meeting, which The News covered virtually:

• The board opened the meeting by reorganizing its officer slate in advance of the upcoming fiscal year — Paul Cordova as president, Shawn Hamilton as vice president and Terry Martin as secretary.

The officers were sworn in before the meeting, but will not assume the offices until July 1.

• The board approved annual resolutions regarding board member participation in procurement of services.

The three separate resolutions conceded board members Cordova, Hamilton and Kyle Snider are involved in businesses that could serve as vendors to the district, and required each board member recuse themselves from any role in such agreements as part of the board.

Each of the four resolutions passed 4-0, with the board member in abstaining on the resolution that referenced them.

• The board approved curricula for six high school courses and introduced curricula for five others. The decision will allow Clovis High School to offer an Advanced Placement environmental sciences course.

• The board approved a fine arts application. Joe Strickland, deputy superintendent of employee services, thanked Corey Pickett for his help putting the application together and congratulated him for his recent promotion to an assistant principal position at CHS.

• Strickland took the board through first readings of nine policy changes and nine changes to board policies. Many of the policies, Strickland said, advanced without an introductory reading because they had to align with July 1 changes to state law.

• The board approved of the disposal of a Yale walk behind lift truck, a pallet jack and a Wurlitzer organ, and also approved the annual inventory report for the district.

• The next meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. July 27.