College Community board considers new social networking policy

The College Community school board voted to extend Superintendent Richard Whitehead's contract tonight.

Whitehead has served as the district's superintendent since July 1, 2003. His new contract expires June 30, 2013.

“We are pleased with Dick's leadership,” President Randy Bauer said. “Obviously we show confidence in him with a new three-year contract.”

Whitehead's salary for the 2010-11 school year is $149,827 - the same as it was last year.

Board members discussed the superintendent's annual evaluation in executive session prior to its monthly board meeting. At the meeting, board members reviewed the first draft of the district's new social network and electronic communications policy.

The policy addresses social networking Web sites, cell phones and text messages.

“We need to be as clear as we can about this issue,” Whitehead said. “We're never going to go backwards. There's going to be more and different ways for teachers and students to communicate all the time.”

Whitehead said the decision to write a policy came after a school advisory committee meeting in the spring. Several middle and high school students participated in a panel discussion regarding communication between teachers and students.

“They said teachers need to ‘get with it' and communicate with students through social networking,” Whitehead said.

The district encourages staff to use technology to bring real-world relevance into the classroom, yet some of these tools, such as Facebook, blur the line between communication and socialization.

The policy will stress the boundaries of professional decorum in the use of ever-changing on-line, digital learning possibilities.

“We need to be encouraging of using modern technology, but we need to be careful in navigating those avenues,” Whitehead said. “We need a policy about what's appropriate and what's not appropriate.”

The policy will be brought to the board for a second reading at the Aug. 16 board meeting.