New school board member hears concerns 

SAXE – Newly appointed school board member for the Bacon-Saxe District, Jon Berkley, held a town hall meeting on Monday, February 22 at Bacon District Elementary School to discuss concerns from not only parents, but teachers, school bus and car drivers and the community as a whole.

Sylvia Lockett, principal at Bacon District Elementary, welcomed the many Charlotte County parents, teachers, bus and car drivers, administration and other concerned citizens, and lead the group in the “Pledge of Allegiance.” The meeting was then turned over to the host, Jon Berkley. As a prelude to the meeting, Mr. Berkley invited the group to enjoy a pizza dinner with him, as teachers from Bacon District Elementary, Kate Davis and Shauna Agee volunteered to serve the guests.

Mr. Berkley began the meeting as an introduction of sorts to those in attendance, and thanked them for coming out. He expressed that this was “not a school board meeting” but a meeting that he felt needed to be held for those concerned about the school system.

As he began to touch on subjects that “in his opinion” need to be addressed by the board, Nancy Leonard, Charlotte County Public Schools Superintendent, could be seen taking notes, as she would later take questions as well from those in attendance. Also present at the meeting, to listen to concerns was Drakes Branch District school board member, Gloria Talbott.

Numerous topics were discussed, including the pros and cons of the construction of a new elementary school, including costs, conditions of the current elementary school buildings and the impact that the loss of the small community schools would create.

As the question session began, a large discussion got under way as several of the county’s school bus drivers that were present stood to ask Mr. Berkley about his opinions and what he thinks could be done about the loss of the drivers’ insurance. Many concerns were also expressed over other issues that have arisen concerning the bus drivers, including their inability to obtain other jobs within the school system to gain more hours.

The event offered Berkley a chance to hear concerns and topics that may not be brought up during regular school board meetings. This will give him an opportunity to not only look at these concerns, but to also relay them to other board members and school officials.