The Clark County Board of Education approved additional visitor parking at Strode Station Elementary School in a special meeting Tuesday. 

Superintendent Paul Christy said there is limited visitor parking near the front door of Strode. The loop is for traffic only, with no room for parking legally, according to the board item request. 

The board approved the quote to add approximately six visitor parking spots near the front door of Strode, totaling about $7,850.

The board also discussed adding additional funding for schools. 

Board chair Gordon Pairdo said several years ago, the board provided additional funding to each school.

Parido said he believes the district has the resources to provide this again.

“I am a firm believer in putting funds in the hands of our leaders that have direct contact with students each day,” Parido wrote in a prepared document for board members. “Each school should develop a plan for their use and provide us feedback on the impact on students.”

Parido said  the funding is loosely based on the number of students within each school. He hopes the funds could provide cultural improvements within the building, increase community involvement and promote academics.

Parido pinpointed some programs within the schools he would like to see receive additional funding, adding schools cannot use the funds for salaries or to supplant.

Parido’s proposal was to allocate:

— $15,000 to each elementary school

— $25,000 to Baker Intermediate School

— $50,000 to Campbell Junior High School, with funds made available to but not limited to music, art and more.

— $100,000 to George Rogers Clark High School with funds made available to but not limited to academic team, journalism, ROTC, music, orchestra, agriculture and more.

— $115,000 for athletic uniforms which should provide every team a new set of uniforms once during the three-year rotation.

— $150,000 for band to purchase instruments.

These amounts total $500,000. Parido said he did not include the preschool or Phoenix Academy because he was unsure of their funding mechanisms but he has no objection if necessary.

Parido asked each board member to look over the numbers and to come back to future board meetings with ideas on how they want to move forward. 

Parido said he hopes the proposal will encourage discussion on how the board can have the greatest impact on student lives, adding he hopes the board can allocate additional funding every three years or as the budget permits in the future. 

The board also appointed board member Ashley Ritchie to serve on the local facilities planning committee. The committee will begin to look at a district facilities plan, marking priority projects and more. 

In other action, the board: 

— discussed pros and cons of contracting with an outside firm to do social media monitoring. 

— discussed pros and cons of contracting with a budget analyst firm to review the details of the budget and identify savings

— discussed the 2019-20 budget 

— approved board members and superintendent to attend the KSBA fall regional meeting, Sept. 26 at Mercer County High School in Harrodsburg

— reviewed of school board member code of ethics and public information policies

— discussed development of district communication plan.