Whitley Co. Schools to expand online options for supporting various programs

Are you a Whitley County alumnus and want to make a donation to the Whitley County High School (WCHS) Future Farmers of America (FFA), or maybe the WCHS JROTC program, or perhaps the Oak Grove Elementary School Academic Team, but you don’t have a convenient way of doing so?

Above and Beyond: L-R, Whitley County Schools Superintendent John Siler, WCHS teacher Johnna Robinson and WCHS Principal Julie Osborne.

Soon, you will be able to do so online.

During its recent regular monthly meeting, the Whitley County Board of Education approved an agreement with Online School Management Systems Inc., which will allow people to make online payments to the district or online donations to their favorite school groups.

Superintendent John Siler added that this isn’t completely new and last year the district started accepting credit card payments at the WCHS greenhouse.

Also, during Thursday’s meeting, the board accepted the 2024 Kentucky Education Technology System (KETS) first offer of assistance, which totaled $41,619, and transferred funds to match the offer.

Siler noted that each district typically gets three offers per school year. The funding can be used in a number of technology related areas.

In addition, the board presented the October Above and Beyond Award to WCHS’s Johnna Robinson. Robinson has begun a career tract program at the high school for students interested in becoming teachers after they graduate high school through the Grow Your Own program.

Students can receive six dual credit hours at the University of the Cumberlands towards their teaching degree through some of Robinson’s classes.

Robinson was nominated by WCHS Principal Julie Osborne.

In other business, the board accepted the 2023-2024 Open Outdoors for Kids Grant that is program between the National Park Foundation, the Cumberland Gap National Historic Park and Whitley East Elementary School.