During the August 13, 2024 PSRC Board of Education Meeting, board members recognized the service of the late Mike Smith who was the longest serving board member on the school board. Mr. Smith passed away in July, but his legacy will live on and the football stadium at the Red Springs High School Athletic Complex will bear his name.
Board members shared remarks honoring Mr. Smith and presented a rendering of a scoreboard bearing Mr. Smith’s name. Receiving the rendering during the special presentation were Mr. Smith’s wife Judy and son Matt.
District 3 PSRC Board of Education Representative Dr. Linda Emanuel described Mr. Smith as an “even tempered person” who was always smiling.
“I’ve known Mike for over 30 years,” said District 5 PSRC Board of Education Representative Craig Lowry. “Mike, as Vonta said, he wanted what was best for all children. He just had a deep love for this school system.”
“He was a wonderful person,” said At-Large PSRC Board of Education Representative Kristy Fields.
PSRC Superintendent Dr. Freddie Williamson also shared words about working with Mr. Smith.
“When Mike would come into my office in his own way he would always let me know ‘it is well with my soul.’ I was just so honored to have the opportunity to serve with Mike, a legend really, to be honest, in terms of serving as a board member and for students,” Williamson added.
Judy also shared words of gratitude for board members and their kindness and words honoring her late husband.
“He did love all the children and he helped everybody he could. Mike was a good listener. He didn’t just listen to speak, he listened to understand,” she said.
“If he were here tonight I can say that his wish, his hope, his prayer would be that the members of the board, the faculty, the students, the parents would all continue to work together for the common goal of making the Public Schools of Robeson County great, a great place to be a part of no matter what your role is,” she added.
Also during the meeting, board members heard about the clean audit that the PSRC McKinney-Vento Program received. The program serves homeless students throughout the district and works to remove barriers to learning for students facing housing insecurity.
During the meeting, board members approved:
Easements for Piedmont Natural Gas at the site of the former Central Office (Caton Road) and for Duke Energy (for the placement of residential light poles on school property) at East Robeson Primary School
EC Contracts
Monthly Financial Report
Minutes from the June 18 & July 9 board meetings
Personnel Report
At the start of the meeting, board members held a moment of silence for former administrators including Cornell Singletary, Grady Locklear, and Mable Revels and former educator Inez McKoy who passed away recently.
As a reminder, PSRC Open House Events will take place at schools on August 22 from 1-6 pm. This Saturday, PSRC will host its Back to School Celebration at the Southeastern Agricultural Center from 8 am to 1 pm.
Visit the following link to view the meeting: https://www.youtube.com/live/QjV5VsnDEbU?si=RZ_cgoB4wOxbiH1v