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Monthly Board of Education meetings will now be filmed and uploaded for the public to view. The board joins the Beaufort County Commissioners and City of Washington in offering citizens the ability to watch recorded meetings. 

Superintendent of Beaufort County Schools Dr. Matthew Cheeseman said filming meetings is a project that has been in the works for a long time. Since last year, the school district has worked to get microphones and a camera installed at their Professional Development Center on North Pierce Street where monthly Board of Education meetings are held. 

Cheeseman explained that at one time Board of Education meetings were filmed, but because of budget cuts during the Covid-19 pandemic, video recordings stopped. 

The Beaufort County Board of Commissioners, who approve the school district’s annual budget, 

provided direct funding to Randy Walker who offers video filming services. This occurred before Walker became a commissioner. 

During the 2020 budget cycle, county commissioners voted to no longer pay Walker and Beaufort County Schools did not have money within their budget to pay him, Cheeseman recalled. 

In subsequent budget proposals presented by Beaufort County Schools to county commissioners, the school district told commissioners that if they wanted to provide money for video services, then the school district would be “happy” to film meetings again, Cheeseman said. 

In the FY 2022-2023 school budget, county commissioners added a line item for the purchase of video equipment that could be bought by the school district using capital funding. 

Over the last year, the school district has worked with Pair Electronics, of Greenville, to add microphones that were screwed into desks, drop down microphones that were hung from the ceiling and a camera. The camera gives viewers a wide angle of the meeting space. Members of the school district’s IT department will operate the equipment during meetings. 

Cheeseman believes the video recordings are “a good thing” that will help citizens and public school families stay informed of what’s happening within the school system. 

“I always think it’s really good that people are informed and our communities get to see the great things that are going on across the county…I think it’s always great that people get to see and hear what’s happening in their public school system.” 

As of press time, there is one filmed meeting posted to Beaufort County Schools’ website. The meeting is from earlier this month on Oct. 10, but a recording of the Oct. 24 is expected to be uploaded by the weekend. 

To find meetings, go to https://www.beaufort.k12.nc.us/ then click on the Administration tab. From there, click on “Board of Education” from the drop down menu. On the left hand side of the page, there is a link to “Board of Education meetings on video.” 

According to Beaufort County Schools’ Public Information Officer, Kristen Riddle,  a recording will be uploaded two days after a meeting. At this time, the school district is not pursuing live recordings of meetings. 

Board of Education meetings are typically held on the first and third meetings of the month at 5:30 p.m. in the Beaufort County School Professional Development Center at 845 N Pierce Street, Washington.