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Board directs $50,000 to begin district band and strings instrument program for seventh graders
Summary
The board agreed to allocate the remaining $50,000 in this year's budget to begin purchasing classroom instruments for seventh-grade band and strings, and directed staff to develop a cleaning/insurance fee and a multi-year procurement plan.
The Henderson County Board of Public Education voted Sept. 8 to allocate $50,000 remaining in this year's budget to start purchasing band and string instruments for seventh-grade students across middle schools.
District administrators told the board the intent is to build classroom sets so students are not required to share instruments and so price barriers are reduced. Staff presented an estimated four-year program cost for seventh- through eighth-grade band and strings at roughly $286,000 for band and $49,000 for strings as planning-level figures derived from director input and prior bid pricing.
Dr. Marlowe (district leader) summarized the intent: "The sole intent of when we started the program was to put as many instruments in kids' hands as possible." He and music directors described logistical concerns that will accompany an expanded instrument pool, including storage space, repair and maintenance capacity, and scheduling for larger class sizes.
Board members agreed staff should use the $50,000 balance to begin purchases and return with a recommended fee structure (cleaning/insurance) before the next budget cycle. The board asked staff to develop options for a yearly instrument fee that could include cleaning and insurance and to propose whether fees should vary by instrument type. Staff also outlined a potential annual capital request process for high-cost (>$5,000) instruments and said teachers would prioritize needs by school.
A motion to allocate the remaining $50,000 to begin the purchase plan for seventh-grade instruments passed by board voice vote. Staff said $50,000 had already been released to schools for initial cleaning and minor repairs and that the unallocated $50,000 would be used for instrument purchases once the state budget timing was resolved.
No specific per-family fee was adopted at the meeting; staff will return with fee options and a multi-year procurement/replacement schedule for board review during the budget process.
