JACKSON – What is the status of the new enhanced curriculum and where’s the money?

That is the $10,000 question the Northampton County Board of Commissioners has for Northampton County Schools.

At Monday’s meeting, the commissioners along with County Manager Wayne Jenkins discussed an enhanced curriculum program they have yet to see a progress report on.

That curriculum is being applied at Northampton County High School-West, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) school that is part of the North Carolina New Schools Project.

For the commissioners, those subjects are needed in the schools to help prepare Northampton County graduates to be competitive for NCCAR (North Carolina Center for Automotive Research) jobs.

The commissioners also have not seen where $10,000 they appropriated has been applied.

In March, the commissioners agreed to provide Northampton County Schools with $10,000 for a New Schools Project facilitator’s four-month salary.

In that meeting, Northampton County Schools Superintendent Dr. Kathi Gibson initially requested $20,000, but only half of that was approved

This recent discussion comes after requests of Gibson to provide the commissioners with a progress report on the curriculum and who the funds have been paid to.

In a Wednesday interview Jenkins said, Gibson did offer to give him a verbal report on the curriculum, but he said he rather have a documented report so it could be circulated.

In Monday’s meeting, Jenkins said he reviewed information supplied to him by Northampton County Schools on September 28, which the commissioners had been briefed on.

“In my opinion it failed to address where the curriculum is,” Jenkins said about the information.

Vice Chairman Commissioner Robert Carter as if the $10,000 the county had contributed to the initiative had been spent.

Jenkins said the information provided did not show where that money was applied.

Jenkins said on October 2 another letter had been drafted to Gibson.

“I have not heard back,” he said.

Jenkins then asked the board if it met their request expectations.

“No, it does not,” said Commissioner Chairwoman Virginia Spruill (D-2nd)

Carter agreed.

It was requested of Jenkins to get a progress report on the curriculum and who the $10,000 was allocated.