Board OKs use of credit cards

Although there were some reservations, the Kanawha County school board voted 4 to 1 in favor of issuing credit cards to employees for travel purposes.

Superintendent Ron Duerring proposed the matter at Thursday night's regular meeting in an effort to cut down on paperwork and eliminate the waiting period for teachers and administrators in need of cash advances for conference trips.

When the vote roll was called, board member Pete Thaw emphatically voted "No."

During the discussion period, board member John Luoni questioned whether some might use credit to buy perks such as pay-per-view movies in hotel rooms.

"I would hope you would think we would follow the rules," Duerring said. "We are not the kind of people to charge movies and drinks."

Luoni said he did not want the school system to be "blind sided" like other organizations have been under credit card use.

The plan calls for any debts to be paid in full on a monthly basis to avoid finance charges. Luoni said he wanted to be made aware if any such interest was incurred.

"Credit cards can be an efficient way to purchase something," Luoni said. "They can also be expensive if there are interest charges."

Board member Becky Jordon saw no problem with allowing the use of credit cards.

"It's not a big deal," she said.

"I'll tell you what the big deal is," said Thaw, who added other agencies have had a lot of trouble with credit cards.

Duerring said the cards would be locked up and monitored closely.

In other business, it was reported work is on schedule with the new Sissonville Middle School building project. The survey is complete, appraisals are ongoing on the site and spaces have been modified within the building to stay within budget, said Chuck Wilson, administrative assistant for facilities and planning. A position for "clerk of the works" is being advertised for someone to oversee the project.

Board President Jim Crawford asked that work on the school continue as quickly as possible.

Also, the superintendent said the county's school volunteer policy would be ready for board review at the next regular session 6 p.m. Nov. 18.