Following a lengthy discussion during Monday morning’s end-of-year meeting, the Mathews County School Board voted to remain as a member of the Virginia School Boards Association, at least for the coming year.
By a 4-1 vote during the meeting, which was held in the Mathews High School media center, the board approved the payment of $1,509.07 in 2025-2026 dues and another $500 in the VSBA legal assistance fee fund.
At its June 17 regular monthly meeting, the board voted by a 3-2 margin to turn down renewal of the division’s VSBA Policy Services Agreement for 2025-2026. That contract, which expired Monday, provided the division with updated sample policies based on statutory law, case law and Virginia Attorney General opinions.
At that meeting, school board chair Dr. Mari Gibbs brought up concerns she had that VSBA devotes much of its efforts to lobbying the General Assembly on behalf of its members.
She expanded on that during this week’s end-of-year meeting. “This is a huge part of what they do,” Gibbs said of the group’s lobbying efforts. She said she was at a VSBA convention when the keynote speaker asked members in the crowd:
“What are you here for, school boards?” While Gibbs replied with “student achievement … everyone else shouted ‘For the teachers,’” which was the answer the speaker was looking for, she said.
“It influenced my perception of VSBA,” she said. “The focus on student achievement is strong on this board,” Gibbs said, and she is concerned that VSBA doesn’t share this as its main priority. The VSBA represents some very big school divisions with different concerns than those shared by small divisions like Mathews. “Our voice will be used for their emphasis … whether if we agree with them or not,” she said, speaking of the VSBA lobbying efforts.
Gibbs (as well as fellow school board members Calvin Morgan and Bobby Dobson) are members of the School Board Member Alliance of Virginia, and Gibbs has pointed to that group, which like VSBA, offers training and professional development, as being focused on student achievement and not into lobbying.
School board member Mary Kathryn Diggs questioned Gibbs’s perception. At the VSBA conference, Diggs said, “it was all about the students … I have not seen that as you’ve seen that.”
“To me, it’s not good planning to wait until June 30 [to end the VSBA contract] … without a plan in place,” said school board member Linda Hodges. The school board has had discussions about moving away from VSBA, but we “haven’t drilled down” on the details, saying it was not wise to make “last-minute decisions” like this.
One area of immediate concern is the division’s use of BoardDocs management software. Through BoardDocs, the division manages its school board meetings and agendas online. Information on MCPS board meetings available on the BoardDocs platform date to 2013. VSBA partners with BoardDocs, with special pricing of this service available only to VSBA members. School board clerk Sharon Morgan said that by the end of next month, BoardDocs’ parent company Diligent would reach out to the division to let MCPS what the new cost would be, if Mathews was no longer with VSBA.
“By their own admission, [the BoardDocs version used by MCPS] is obsolete,” said school board member Calvin Morgan, and the division will be forced to adopt a new system. “At some point, it’s going to go away,” Gibbs said.
“I agree we should not stay with anything forever,” Hodges said, adding that now is not the time to make this change. She suggested that the board revisit this issue, investigate other online platforms and their costs. Gibbs suggested a two-person committee be set up by the board to head up this.
Morgan asked if, hypothetically, the division didn’t renew its dues would that be something the board could revisit in a month or two. “Is this the drop-dead date?” he asked. Gibbs replied that deputy clerk Stephanie Lowe believes that proration is a possibility.
Eventually, the board voted by a roll call vote on paying the annual dues, with Gibbs voting nay and Hodges, Diggs, Morgan and Bobby Dobson voting in favor.
“I’d really hate to see us back here next year having the same discussion,” Morgan said. “Believe me, that won’t happen,” Gibbs replied.
In other action, the board approved the payment of year-end claims (although Dobson pointed out that the claims weren’t actually for the entire year since that would be after the following day, Tuesday, July 1), adopted a number of updated school board policies, and approved a trip for three students who will attend the FCCLA National Leadership Conference in Orlando, Fla., on July 5-9.
Additionally, the school board approved a number of coaching appointments and volunteer coaching appointments for the upcoming fall season at MHS. They are: Erin Hockenberry (color guard), Jennifer Doss (head cheerleading coach), Dr. Drew Greve (head cross country coach), Dustin Mullins (varsity football), David White (assistant football), Stacey Griffith (strength and conditioning), Jacob Jackson (golf), Pat Moughon (varsity volleyball), Taylor Lee (JV volleyball), Mark Givens (band), Ronald Rife, David Seay and John Lewis (football volunteer coaches) and Sarah Brown and Jessica Deamer (volleyball volunteer coaches).