The Coffee County Board of Education policy committee unanimously elected Mr. Gilley as chair and spent the meeting reviewing a packet of district policies, voting to forward several TSBA (Tennessee School Boards Association) model policies to the full board while keeping or modifying others to retain local language.

Committee members said the review is intended to catch the district up after delays earlier in the year. The committee voted on multiple policies and directed staff to incorporate local language on a handful of items before the full board considers final adoption.

Why this matters: The policy updates include changes driven by state law and by TSBA model language. The committee’s choices will determine whether Coffee County retains district‑specific rules (for example on grading or public comment procedures) or adopts the broader TSBA templates. Many of the items discussed affect classroom grading, school‑board meeting procedures, and how stakeholders may address the board.

Most-important facts
- Election: After nominations opened, Mr. Gilley accepted the nomination and the committee recognized him as the new committee chair.
- Policy adoptions forwarded: The committee voted to forward several TSBA model policies to the full board (see “Votes at a glance”). Where the TSBA model removed locally specific language, committee members sometimes agreed to keep Coffee County wording (for example sections retained for grading-point additions and for meeting notification language) or to insert Coffee County paragraphs into the TSBA model before forwarding.
- Grading and bonus points: Committee discussion clarified that under Coffee County practice, honors courses currently receive 3 extra percentage points and dual‑enrollment courses receive 5 extra percentage points to a semester grade, and students must sit for the culminating exam to receive the additional points. TSBA’s model policy does not include that paragraph; committee members discussed preserving the local paragraph (lines 1–5 of page 2 of the Coffee County policy) or inserting it into the TSBA model when forwarding the policy for board action.
- Electronic attendance and meeting time: The committee agreed to update the regular meeting start time from 4:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. and to reconcile local electronic‑attendance notice rules (Coffee County’s present language requires a member to notify the chair and director by 8:30 a.m. on the day of the meeting) with TSBA model language that references a five‑day notice for certain work‑related absences and caps on the number of permitted electronic participations per year. Members discussed changing the 8:30 a.m. requirement to a later same‑day deadline (examples mentioned: 10 a.m. or noon) to accommodate day‑of emergencies while allowing technology staff time to set up connections.
- Public comment and notification: The committee decided to insert TSBA’s required public‑comment sentence (TCA 8‑44‑112 obligation to reserve a public comment period) into the Coffee County public‑comment policy text and to update legal references. The committee retained Coffee County wording that posts meeting schedules to the central office, each school and the system website, and sent schedules to the local education association president and local media for periodic announcement.

Supporting details and discussion points
- TSBA model vs. local language: Committee members repeatedly noted that TSBA drafts are often condensed and reflect current law; members preferred adopting TSBA wording in many places but inserting local language where the district has an established practice. For example, the district’s paragraph requiring students to take culminating exams to receive honors or dual‑enrollment bonus points is part of current Coffee County practice and will be preserved unless staff or the full board decides otherwise.
- Clarifying requests: Board members asked staff (several times referencing the Director of Schools and principals) to verify technical terms (for example “grading floor”), confirm legal citations (Public Act 2024, ch. 105 was referenced), and consult instructional coordinators about impacts to promotion/retention procedures before forwarding policies that touch instruction.
- Committee process and next steps: Motions approved by the committee will be included on a future full‑board agenda (some members noted the next board meeting’s agenda is already long). The committee chair and staff will prepare the final drafts with the agreed insertions and legal references for full‑board consideration.

Votes at a glance
- Nomination and recognition of committee chair: Mr. Gilley — outcome: recognized as chair (consensus in committee; chair accepted nomination).
- Policy 1.105 (School board legislative involvement): Motion to accept TSBA model policy and forward to full board — outcome: passes (committee vote recorded as in favor; forwarded to full board).
- Policy 1.701 / 1.702 (School district planning / Evaluation of school district): Committee accepted TSBA model language for 1.702 and forwarded to full board (vote recorded as passed 7–0).
- Policy 1.201 (Duties of officers): Motion to keep Coffee County’s current 1.201 language — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board.
- Policy 1.3 / 1.308 (Board committees): Motion to accept TSBA model committee language (1.308) — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board with the understanding committee appointment rules remain clarified.
- Policy 1.4 (School board meetings): Motion to retain local policy with the time change to 5 p.m. and updated legal citation — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board.
- Policy 1.402 (Notification of meetings): Motion to keep Coffee County language, break up a long sentence for clarity, and update legal references — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board.
- Policy 1.404 / Appeals & appearances before the board (public comment): Motion to insert TSBA model sentence about reserving a public comment period for meetings with actionable items (and to update legal citation) into Coffee County policy — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board.
- Policy 1.5 (Board–community relations): Motion to adopt TSBA model policy and insert Coffee County lines assigning responsibility to principals for public‑relations work — outcome: passed 7–0; forwarded to full board.

Quotations from the meeting (verbatim as spoken in committee)
- "I nominate mister Robert Mister Robert Gill has been nominated." — (board member, public nomination recorded in transcript)
- "Yes, sir. Sir? I guess I'm chairman." — Mr. Gilley, upon accepting nomination.
- "For dual enrollment courses, with the new policy, you'll get 5 additional points. You don't get those additional points if you don't take the test at the end of the course." — speaker in transcript identified as a staff/administrator explaining current Coffee County policy on culminating exams and bonus points.

Ending note: The committee completed review of the majority of the packet and agreed to carry several more complex or contested policies (promotion/retention, fundraising) to future meetings so staff, principals and TSBA legal staff can provide additional detail before the final votes at the full‑board level.