The Great Valley School District Board voted unanimously Aug. 11 to approve the 2026–27 budget calendar and a package of financial and contractual items, including vendor renewals, educational service agreements and facility and technology renewals.

The board approved items listed as financial approvals 10‑01 through 10‑17 by a 5‑0 vote. Business office staff summarized the package: item 10‑02 was a depository approval consistent with “PA state code 6 21,” and several items were renewals. Notable approvals included a three‑year educational‑service contract with The Meadows covering the 2025–26 through 2027–28 school years, a Lakeside Youth Service Agreement reserving two special‑education spots for 2025–26, an independent‑contractor arrangement with Dr. Karen Taratuski for psychoeducational evaluations, and agreements with Timothy School and Cottage 7 Education for specialized services. The board also approved a West Chester University agreement for student‑teacher placements and a purchase of 41 “Stop the Bleed” kits to be distributed to district buildings.

During discussion trustees asked for more data about several line items. A trustee asked how often the district used the non‑English language interpretation support that appears in the renewals; Sherry from the business office said that the vendor’s per‑hour rate had increased from $60 to $61.50 and that she would need to review invoices to report usage. Later in the meeting staff confirmed the district did not leverage the translation service last year. Board member Caruso pressed for clarity on uncapped arrangements such as the contract with Dr. Taratuski; business office staff said those contracts are open because the number of evaluations or placements required in a school year cannot be predetermined and that contracting can be less costly than using other outside vendors for ad‑hoc needs.

Facility and operations approvals included a three‑year maintenance agreement with Oliver Heating and Cooling at $23,570 annually, transportation driver and monitor approvals for 2025–26, and technology renewals. The board approved a new subscription for Traverse, a social‑studies platform intended to replace the district’s Discovery Education resource for grades 7–12, and Illustrative Math digital resources for grades 5–10 (algebra, geometry and Algebra I/II courses).

Transportation matters discussed included routine questions about bus routes and timing: staff said bus pickup and route information would be distributed by the end of the week and that late signups for transportation would still be assigned to a bus. Staff explained a bus monitor is an aide assigned to support a driver when needed and confirmed there would be no double runs this year.

Motions to approve personnel items (11‑01), program approvals (12‑01 through 12‑07) and facility approvals (13‑01 through 13‑10) also passed by 5‑0 votes. The meeting adjourned after a second public‑comment period.

Board members asked staff to supply additional usage data and to clarify parameters for contracts that do not include an explicit spending cap; staff agreed to obtain invoice and utilization figures and to report back.