School Board Meeting Summary - October 13, 2026

The Watauga County Schools logo. Photo Credits: Watauga County Schools

Roz Rabinowitz, Editor-In-Chief of The Powderhorn and Senior School Board Representative and Brayden Howard, Sports Desk Lead for The Powderhorn and Junior School Board Representative

The monthly school board meeting was this Tuesday, October 13. These meetings often cover accomplishments of students and staff throughout the County, and the Board passes policies that directly affect the Watauga County school system. During the normal opening session Dr. Tierra Stark presented the Northwest NCCTE Superintendent of the year award to Dr. Leslie Alexander, illustrating her dedication to this school system and its success. Gary Childers then called the meeting to order and the meeting began with Dr. Leslie Alexander presenting her Superintendent's report. 

Dr. Alexander reported on a couple of appreciation days including October 2, school custodian appreciation; October 6, national coaches appreciation; and principal appreciation week. She also covered the two Come Back Shack “Give Back to the Shack Nights” which will help combat student lunch debt in Watauga County. The first one was this Thursday October, 15. 

After the Superintendent’s report, a video was shown to celebrate the work and contributions of the county’s principals.

Then the student representatives delivered their reports. The reports included a highlight of The Spark poetry night, the need for a ceramics kiln vent to be installed, ongoing instability in the school’s wi-fi, and celebrating some club activities at the high school. 

Next on the agenda was public comment. The only public comment this week was a local parent requesting that the high school’s class change policy be altered to allow for changes to that don’t increase in rigor in the cases of bullying or harassment.

After public comment, the board moved onto the consent agenda passing it unanimously after a motion by Alison Idol and a second from Adam Hege. 

The next agenda item laid out the opportunity for the Board of Education to possibly join a national litigation against social media platforms such as Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter in regards to students safety and mental health. If the board decided to join this litigation, it would be at no cost to them, and if successful the board would be allocated a portion of the settlement to use however they see fit. The board unanimously decided to keep looking into this litigation.

Next, a set of blueprints was presented detailing the proposal for the new wrestling facility. The proposal has recently been expanded to include space for a cheerleading facility within the building as well. Currently, there is discussion and debate over where the facility should be located. The current leading plan is to place it outside the left field of the softball field.

Then, a presentation was delivered detailing the school systems financial audit for the 2026 fiscal year. The audit gave WCS an unmodified rating, the best result possible to receive. It also indicated that the school system currently has about $4.6 Million in unrestricted general funds, though this is below the 8% threshold typically recommended.

After the presentation of the audit, Dr. Alexander presented a new opportunity for the county to cooperate with Appalachian State University to provide early childcare and child education opportunities by operating a facility out of Central Office on Pioneer Trail. The proposal was passed unanimously.

Dr. Tierra Stark then presented the WCS Data and Accountability update, detailing the state and regional placement of Watauga County Schools academically. Overall, Watauga was ranked 5th in the state in its general academics, and most schools in the county had met or exceeded growth goals in the 25-26 school year.

After the WCS Data and Accountability Update the board moved into policy. The following policies were all substantive for second read and were passed unanimously. 

7325 (New Policy): Video and Audio Recordings by Employees

3200: Selection of Instructional and Supplementary Materials

3210: Inspection of and Objections to Instructional and Supplementary Materials

3510: Religious-Based Exemptions from School Programs

Policy 3510 is a new religious accommodation that allows students to receive up to an hour of religious exemption from non-core classes each week. This policy aims to give students with unique religious traditions and concerns space to practice as needed, without school getting in the way.

Policy 7325, brought forward for first reading, was a new rule that officially prohibits teachers and staff from recording others in private meetings without consent. The stated goal of this policy was to prevent a “chilling effect” caused in private meetings when one party chooses to record against the wishes of the other party.

Policy 3210 was mandated by the state government in Raleigh, and alters the system for objecting to material in schools. Under the new rules, past parents and community members may also object to materials used in schools, whereas previously only current parents or teachers could object.

Policy 7550-R(1): Inclement Weather Leave Regulation was also presented for review. 

After the policy section of the meeting the board moved into operations where they discussed their November work session along with the change in board meeting time starting in December. This time change will have open session board meetings beginning at 5 p.m. instead of the usual 6 p.m. Through board comments, the board discussed the filling of three positions on the board due to the retirements of Dr. Fenwick and Dr. Childers along with the possible loss of Dr. Adam Hege if he wins his County Commissioner election. The board then moved towards adjournment.