During its annual convention, the Tennessee School Boards Association named the McMinn County Board of Education as the 2014 School Board of the Year. Members of the McMinn County School Board are:
• Quinten Howard, chairman
• Sharon Brown
• Donna Cagle
• Larry Cantrell
• Mike Cochran
• Joe Coleman
• Johnna Hampton
• Melinda King
• Mike Lowry
• Henry Webb
TSBA annually honors a school board for excellent service.
To be considered for this award, school boards must be a TSBA Board of Distinction; develop, apply and monitor policy; be involved in long-range planning; promote quality education through involvement with the legislature, city/county commission, State Board of Education, community and staff; participate in board development activities, including boardmanship award levels for each member; and exhibit a positive relationship with the media.
Some of the accomplishments of the McMinn County Board of Education include:
- Being an education leader in Tennessee and often cited as a model for other districts
- Has every school accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
- Has a graduation rate of 92%
- Created instructional coaches in all schools to help improve teaching practices
- Developed and implemented a prospective principal academy
- Received the TN Dept. of Education 2014 Best Practice Award for Leadership Development
- Expanded their dual credit options with two local community colleges
- Is a TSBA Board of Distinction
- Board consists of two master school board members, six level four school board members, and one level two board member
- Implemented paperless board meetings at an estimated savings of $9,000 annually
- Established the first Career Coach in Tennessee for Career and Technical Education students
- Conducts board retreats annually