The Rowan-Salisbury Board of Education held a spirited debate about technology usage fees during their work session Monday.

Vice Chairman Dean Hunter asked that the matter be added to the agenda because of some conversations he had with parents regarding damage fees their children incurred with their laptops and iPads.

Hunter said he and the parents were under the impression that the fee was to be used to self-insure the devices.

He added that many families were being hit with charges they weren’t expecting.

“It’s affecting a lot of people,” Hunter said.

Superintendent Dr. Lynn Moody said this year is a learning curve and that the district’s technology department still trying to figure out the best way to handle damages.

She added that fees for some damages, such as certain types of damages to iPad cases, have been reversed.

Technology facilitators discovered there was a flaw in the case, which caused unnecessary damage.

“We believe the warranty is going to cover those,” Moody said.

She added that damages need to be looked at on an individual basis.

Moody said that all districts with a one-to-one digital devices program charge a usage fee to give the student and their parents a sense of ownership over the devices, but board members showed some resistance.

There was a general consensus of the board that if damage is intentional or due to neglect, a student and their family should pay to repair the damages. If not, however, they shouldn’t be held responsible because of the usage and self-insurance fee issued at the beginning of the year.

Board member Travis Allen pointed out that families with multiple children find it especially difficult to pay the fee year after year.

“I think we put a lot of students and a lot of families in a precarious situation,” he added.

Moody, however, argued that school supplies required at the beginning of the year such as paper, books, pens and pencils have been drastically cut because of the implementation of the digital devices.

The board did not come to a conclusion on the matter, but decided to continue looking into the issue.

Lane Wallace presented options for solar roofing projects during the school board meeting, as well.

She pinpointed Carson High School, Southeast Middle and Koontz Elementary as the district’s optimal sites for solar roofing based on the condition of the roofs and sun exposure.

She also discussed different funding models, including donations, public-private partnerships or lending through a solar developer. Wallace said utilizing a private investor has the best long-term benefit for the school system, even though the investor holds the benefits of the solar project longer than they would if a donation covered part of the expenses.

She also said that she completed the grant application for a small solar panel to be located at Horizons Unlimited and that there was a “really high possibility” the district would be awarded the grant.

Wallace will bring a more in-depth proposal to the district’s August work session.

Assistant Superintendent Dr. Anthony Vann discussed a proposed property swap with IOM Enterprises. The swap would allow the district’s transportation department to use a 3.6-acre parcel of land to move buses from the current bus garage to a property given to the district on the other side of IOM Enterprise’s land.

The district must put out a public notice before adopting a resolution.

Tim Beck, director of transportation, discussed the possibility of reassigning two small pieces of the county from choice zones to one specific school.

Both areas are less than a square mile.

One of them is located in the southern part of the county between Carson High School’s district and South Rowan High School’s district, in the Grace Ridge neighborhood. There are currently two students who live in that zone, and neither uses district transportation.

The other area is nestled between West Rowan and Salisbury high schools’ districts, and is composed of the Summerfield subdivision. There are currently three students who live in this area, all of whom use district transportation and attend Salisbury High School.

Reassessing the pieces of land to one school or the other would help increase route efficiency by keeping buses for two different schools from having to travel portions of the same route.

The board asked Vann and Beck to gather information on the middle schools assigned to the areas, so the board can best decide how to assign the areas.

During closed session, the board discussed two personnel issues, one student matter and potential property for the consolidated elementary school in the western part of the county.

The property is located at the intersection of N.C. 801 and Godbey Road in the west Rowan area, and is included Woodleaf’s tax district.

A Rowan County Tax Administration search shows that the property belongs to Mr. and Mrs. A.L. Powlas of Worthington, Ohio. The property’s market value is listed at $338,588.

There was no action taken after closed session.