Some items included in the teacher supply lists for the newschool year sparked some discussion among the superintendent andthe Lincoln County Board of Trustees Monday night.

All agreed that some of the items required were “excessive.”

Teachers annually present the district with their lists, whichdetail supplies students will need to meet the teachers’ plans forthe year.

Among items questioned during the meeting, this year’s listsfrom the district’s four campuses included such items as twopackages of prizes that a child would like to receive for beinggood. It also included some items the district said they should besupplying, such as copy paper.

“Do we have to approve this?” asked District 5 Board MemberBrenda Warren after some discussion of the lists.

Superintendent Terry Brister said that with school beginninglater this week, it really was too late to try to change the listsbecause it would only generate confusion as some parents tried tomatch the published lists while others would be trying to meet thenew lists.

He did, however, agree with the board about some of the items onthe lists.

“It’s better than it used to be,” he said, “but it’s stillexcessive.”

Board members were also concerned about the number of items onthe lists, saying the cost of completing the list could be ahardship on some middle class families and, therefore, nearlyimpossible for those of lower income to complete.

“I would hate for my child to be the only one in a classroom whodidn’t have something because I couldn’t afford it,” Warrensaid.

The board approved the lists because of the time constraints,but did so reluctantly.

District Four Board Member Steve Rushing said he would onlyapprove it “with the understanding that we’ll look at this againbefore next year.”

Brister agreed, adding that he intended to have the lists muchsooner next year for their approval. He promised to pare down thelists before presenting them to the board.

In other matters, Office Manager Cheryl Shelby informed theboard that the district would be requesting approximately $40,000less than anticipated from the county in ad valorem taxes.

The component of taxes affected was in new property, she said.The district has reevaluated the amount of money that will begenerated by new property and lowered their request from $60,000 to$20,000 to account for less new property than expected.

The district receives a total of $3,542,544 from local fundingin a total budget of just over $19 million.

Brister also informed the board of a construction problem withthe new buildings on the Enterprise and West Lincoln AttendanceCenter campuses.

Doors at those two buildings have been rubbing the frames, hesaid, and Paul Jackson & Son Inc., the construction company whocompleted the buildings, has sanded and resealed them to correctthe problem.

However, in a letter to the architect, Garland Wright ofArchitects, Engineers and Associates, a company executive informedthem that because of the type of doors called for in the plans,temperature in the buildings must be maintained at 65-70 degrees,even during the summer, to prevent future rubbing caused byswelling.

“We’re going to do something about these doors,” Brister said.”Can you imagine what it would cost to have to keep the temperatureat that all year long?”

Board members questioned why the architect would include doorsthat would have those requirements when designing the building, butthere were no answers available.

Brister said he wanted to consult with the board about theproblem before pursuing a course of action to correct it.