CULLMAN, Ala. – In honor of School Board Appreciation Month, Cullman City Schools is celebrating the accomplishments of its current school board this January and looking at how the district has grown over the past four years. The school board is comprised of Cheryl Harrison, Chris Branham, Amy Carter, Jason Neal and Jill Bradberry.
Superintendent Kyle Kallhoff noted the board has accomplished much in its latest term from 2021 to the present, including implementing its strategic plan, starting numerous capital projects and keeping the system among the most academically successful in the state.
“I’m so thankful for the work and leadership of our board, and it’s incredible what has been accomplished just over the past four years,” Kallhoff said. “The board has positioned our school system to continue to succeed and prosper for years to come.”
Many of those accomplishments can be tracked to the six-part strategic plan the board crafted and approved in the summer of 2023, which includes the priorities that have been the focus over the past four years, and will guide the district into the future. The accomplishments over the past four years is also a testament to the strong working relationship and cooperation the board has fostered with the Cullman City Council and Mayor Woody Jacobs.
Student Support and Safety
One component of the strategic plan focuses on Student Support and Safety, with those efforts reducing chronic absenteeism among students from 14.5% in 2018 to 8.3% in 2024. There has also been an investment of $192,000 per year in school resource officers, as well as $764,000 invested in security upgrades across all five campuses, including cameras and door access controls. Thanks to that hard work, Cullman City Primary School was a 2024 recipient of the Alabama Attorney General’s Safe Schools Award
Technology
A renewed focus on technology was also part of the strategic plan, led by efforts to maintain funding and support to ensure student-use Chromebooks are placed on a three-year refresh cycle. That comes with a commitment of $335,000 every three-year cycle.
Curriculum and Assessment
The strategic plan implemented by the board also includes a focus on curriculum and assessment, which encompasses a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) investment plan, as well as expansion and re-calibration of career technical education.
In recent years, the district has received two “A” grades in the state report card, while the system (95 grade) as a whole and three separate schools (West: 96, CCPS: 96, East: 99) all posted their highest grades ever in 2024.
Employees
Care of employees was also part of the strategic plan, with employees receiving a pay increase and package in 2022, along with recognizing the successes of those within the district, with two of three principal vacancies during that time filled internally, along with three assistant principal vacancies all filled internally.
In 2023 the board also established an onboarding process to retain employees, as well as revamped the mentoring program to retain new employees. Thanks to that work, the number of full-time employees has increased from 359 to 386.
The board also restructured the central office administration to maximize efficiency and services to students, teachers, administrators and families. To that end, the district spends just 2.65% of its budget on administration, well below the state average of 4%.
Finances and Resources
On the finances and resources front, the strategic plan has seen the board update its extra-curricular and student activity bus fleet, with five buses purchased and three more slated for delivery later this year, for a total investment of $985,000.
The system also continues to maintain a healthy financial reserve of more than three months of operating expenses, well above the state-required one-month reserve. Per-pupil spending has also increased from $10,684 to $12,429.
Facilities
The board has also made facilities a top priority, with several expansions and renovations underway. The flagship projects include the construction of a new Cullman Intermediate School (CIS) at the West Elementary School campus, a long-awaited initiative years in the making that will finally combine elementary students who have been split across East and West Elementary Schools. As well as expansions at Cullman City Primary School (CCPS) and Cullman Middle School (CMS), along with other investments across every campus.
Cullman High School has a new STEM facility in the works, along with turf installed on the softball field, soccer field and baseball practice fields. The track is also being resurfaced, along with construction of a maintenance building and fiber project.
