In an effort to cut back on spending, Pike County Schools will freeze all capital expenditures for the current fiscal year.

This comes after a 7.5 percent state-declared proration..

Superintendent Mark Bazzell said the system took a little more than $939,000 hit in state funding when Gov. Bob Riley declared yet another year of proration.

Still, the school system did have some good news, as it ended the last fiscal year with nearly $154,000 more than it anticipated.

Bazzell said with the enrollment being up, PCS will get more sales tax revenue.

“If things start to turn around, we could have 1.5 to 2 percent more than last year,” Bazzell said.

However, if the economy doesn’t turn around, it’s possible the school board will have to approve more adjustments to the 2010 budget.

“We may have to look at additional things later,” Bazzell said.

Bazzell also presented the board with the system comprehensive plan.

“It has anything and everything from a program standpoint,” Bazzell said.

Bazzell said it also comes in handy when auditors come to review the programs, and everything is in one place rather than having to sort through filing cabinets.

The board will not have a new president for the term, as Greg Price will serve another term as president, and long-time school board member Linda Steed will replace Chris Wilkes as vice president.

The board voted unanimously to vote in the new officers.

In other business, the board voted to:

Approve a health and physical education and career education and technology education textbook adoption committee for 2009-2010,

Declare as surplus and dispose of 33 Motorola-brand cell phones that were no longer being used,

Approve request for Agriscience teacher Kelly Pritchett to attend the National Association of Agriscience Educators Conference in Nashville, Tenn., from Nov. 17-21,

Approve request for an overnight trip for Pike County Elementary School Fifth Grade Teacher Janet Rhodes and seven students to attend the Science Expo in Birmingham on Dec. 10-11,

Approve request for a Pike County High School student, LaKenya Wilson and PCHS Band Director James Oliver to attend the 2009 Tri-State Band Festival and Conducting Conference at Florida State University Dec. 3-6,

Approve request for Academy of Business and Finance and the Future Business Leaders of America Club to take a field trip to Atlanta in late November of early December to tour the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank and CNN Atlanta.

Approve Cynthia Price’s request for catastrophic leave from her position as teacher at PCES beginning Nov. 2

Accept Richard Wilson’s resignation from his position as ROTC instructor at Goshen High School, effective Oct. 23.

Accept Stephanie Kraczkowski’s resignation from her position as counselor at PCHS.

Accept Chad Bivins’ resignation from his position as bookkeeper at PCES, effective Nov. 19.

Approval of salary matrix for print shop worker.