School Board honors Arguelles at July meeting

By ANGELA FARR KING

The Alexander County Board of Education met for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting on Monday, July 13, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. This was the first School Board meeting since the tragic passing of School Board member Rob Arguelles, so the first portion of the meeting was dedicated to honoring him.

Superintendent Dr. Bill Griffin was the first to share his sentiments about Mr. Arguelles. He said, in part, “On June 17, 2026, Robert Arguelles, was unfortunately taken from us through a senseless act of violence. The hole he leaves behind us is enormous. Rob was a true leader for the Alexander County Schools Board of Education. When he spoke, whether you agreed with his opinion of the situation or not, you had to respect it. His thoughts were typically followed by data analysis that led you to always understand his depth of knowledge behind every comment. Through the many deliberate and important decision making conversations we had, the one thing that was always true about Rob was when we finished the conversation, he was ready to move on with a smile on his face. Never did he question my role or my intentions of what I believed to be best for Alexander County Schools, nor did he ever let business get in the way of our friendship and the respect that we had for each other.” Dr. Griffin also thanked Mr. Arguelles for believing in him and giving him a chance to guide this spectacular school system.

Corey McLain was the next board member to speak. He said he didn’t know Arguelles as well as some of the other board members did, but he loved watching him during the Honors and Recognitions portion of each meeting. McLain said, “He wasn’t just proud of his own kids. He was proud of every kid in the whole system.”

Board member Shannon Oxentine spoke next. He said he knew Mr. Arguelles long before being on the School Board and found him to be a very genuine person. He also said, “If you were in the room with Rob, he was usually the smartest person in the room.”

Vice-Chairman Jesse Bowles said, “I said this before Rob’s passing. I’m not sure that the people in our county understood the debt of gratitude that we owe to Rob for his determination and his leadership during what was a really hard time for this district. There are a lot of things we get to do now that are easier and more hopeful and better because of his leadership during a tough time.”
Matthew Reese shared that when Rob was the Board Chairman, he had the privilege of being Vice-Chairman. He shared that they spent hours on the phone talking about things pertaining to the School Board. He said, “He was one of the many folks that actually genuinely heard and listened to you. He leaves a big hole, but we do have the promise that we will see him again.”

Board member Anthony McLain said, “I’m a better man for having known Rob Arguelles and having him in my life.”

Chairman Joshua Dagenhart shared a memory of when State Superintendent Mo Greene visited East Alexander Middle School. He said they were outside waiting on Greene to make his grand entrance and Rob pulled him aside to tell him he could only stay one hour due to a commitment he had at the high school helping Donna Reid teach her business class, which he did weekly. Dagenhart said, “That’s the kind of guy he was. He changed the culture here.”

After all board members had shared, Dr. Griffin asked for a moment of silence to be observed in remembrance of Rob Arguelles.

During the Public Comment portion of the meeting, Elizabeth Harrington spoke on behalf of the Band Booster Board at Alexander Central High School. She said, “Building and growth take investment and must start with a foundation. It must be built from the ground up. Over the past several years, our schools have seen a decline in enrollment, but the band program has continued to grow. People coming into this community are going to see what exists here, not what the potential is. To attract people to the community and to our schools, we have to capitalize on the potential and the growth that’s already happening here. We must have these programs already in place. I am asking you not to just look at the numbers on paper, but to look at what’s really happening with our band program. It was stated that at the high school, one teacher has 106 students, but I’m asking you to look at that from the standpoint of the entire program. It’s four teachers for 390 teachers. We are just asking you to look outside the box, to help us create a solid foundation so that we truly can build that legacy here in Alexander County.”

Harrington’s comments were in response to a decision that was made to take one of the full time band teachers at ACHS and share her with two of the elementary schools, along with her band director duties at ACHS. During public comments, board members are not allowed to respond.

Bryan Davis, Director of Facilities and Maintenance, gave a report about an upcoming project at West Alexander Middle School. Due to traffic backup on Hwy. 127, Principal Dr. Amy Daigle and administration made the decision last year to move car riders to the back of the school and bus riders to the front. This did help alleviate the traffic flow, but made bus parking a problem in the front and highlighted other concerns with the paving areas at WAMS. Davis shared a project that his department has already accepted bids on and that will be underway this Summer. There will be a culvert in the front of the school prepped and paved. Potholes in the parking lot will be repaired. Cracks in the pavement will be filled and sealcoated. Mulch, stone, and white gravel in the front of the school will be removed, prepped, and paved. Pavement at the top of the hill will be squared off and extended. Trees will be removed and a bus parking lot will be created in the front of the school. Three different companies have been selected to do the jobs and the minimum bids were selected. Davis has confidence in the companies because he said he has worked with them all before. They are all Alexander County companies. The total minimum cost for all projects is projected to be $111,200.00. There was no need for a board vote, but they were all in favor of the project. Davis said the companies doing the work say it will be completed before school begins in August.

Chief Financial Officer Sharon Mehaffey gave a monthly financial report. She said there were several budget amendments due to closing out the school year. Amendment #14 was a transfer of funds in the amount of $13,775. Here is the explanation: This amendment adds the allotment for NBPTS Certification Support to the budget and makes a transfer between 5000 and 6000 in Low Wealth and Non-Instructional Support Personnel categories.

Amendment #15 transfers $360,000 within the fund to cover the increase in transfers to charter schools and utilities.
Amendment #16 adds lottery funds to the budget in the amount of $350,000 for the HVAC renovation project at WAMS.
Amendment #18 transfer $10,000 from 7200 Supplies to 8100 Indirect Cost.These amendments were approved unanimously by the Board.

Mehaffey also shared news about the NC state budget. She said NC Governor Josh Stein recently signed the 2026 Appropriations Act (Senate Bill 257). She said that “the enacted state budget will include salary increases for public school employees, changes to employer paid benefits, and a one time bonus for eligible employees. Certified employees and assistant principals will receive an average increase of 8%, ranging from 17.7% increase for beginning teachers to a 5.5% increase for the most experienced teachers based on the state salary schedule. Non certified employees, principals, and central office staff will receive a 3% salary increase. The state also provides a one time bonus for eligible employees. Initial guidance for eligibility and payment procedures will be provided by the Department of Public Instruction. The state benefit costs per employee will increase from $8,500 to $8,925. Retirement will increase from 2.67% to 26.10% of the payroll. In addition, the NC State Health Plan Board of Trustees approved a 5% increase in employee health plan premiums, which will affect the amount employees pay for their insurance. Initial state allotments will be released on July 17. Once these allotments are received, the Finance Department will begin developing the District’s proposed 26-27 proposed budget and will present recommendations to the Board for approval.”

During his Superintendent’s Report, Dr. Bill Griffin shared three new hires at the Central Services level. Meggan Eckard was welcomed as the new Public Information Organizer. She replaces Dr. Denita Dowell-Reavis. Eckard will be teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) at ACHS part time while in this role. She has more than 15 years of experience in education. Eckard holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Gardner Webb University and a Master’s Degree in School Administration from Appalachian State University.

BriAnne Hall is the District’s new Beginning Teacher and Instructional Support Specialist. This is a new position. Hall has more than 20 years of experience in education, including service as a Regional Support Consultant with the NC Department of Public Instruction. In her new role, she will provide leadership for the District’s Beginning Teacher Support Program. Hall holds a Masters of Arts in Executive Leadership from Gardner-Webb University.

Melissa Paisley will take over as Director of School Nutrition Services on September 1, 2026, because the current director, Cathy Caudle, is retiring. Paisley is currently enrolled at Caldwell Community College to obtain an Associates in Business Administration. She has seven years of experience in School Nutrition and 15 years of experience in Food Services.

Griffin also addressed North Carolina’s pay increases for teachers and noted that it does mean that the school district has to work their budget in such a way to meet these pay raises because some of these funds come from local sources. He said he is happy to face this challenge because teachers desperately need these pay raises.