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Board approves calendars, learning plan and transportation purchases; several items tabled
Summary
At its April meeting the Pender County Board of Education approved the Penderlea 2026–27 calendar, a revised 2024–25 summer learning plan, purchase of an activity bus and bus radio equipment, and several personnel and administrative motions; the new K-8 naming and the three-tier bell schedule were tabled.
The Pender County Board of Education took a series of routine and operational votes at its meeting.
The board approved the consent agenda and then voted to approve the Penderlea Elementary proposed 2026–27 calendar as recommended by the school improvement team and staff. The board also approved a revised summer learning plan for 2024–25 that adjusts re-administration and remediation windows to May 12–22 for elementary and middle grades and maintains high-school remediation after the summer start.
On transportation, the board approved purchase of one new activity bus to expand the district’s fleet and reduce use of aging vehicles. Staff described the district’s goal of buying roughly one activity bus per year for the next five years to keep pace with enrollment and the new K-8 opening. The board also authorized purchase and installation of districtwide bus radio equipment (UHF/VHF with a repeater at the Saint Helena tower) at a quoted cost of $348,104.76; staff said installation will be staggered and that Penderlea (with a July start) should be prioritized for early installation.
Other board action: the Pender County Schools personnel report was approved after closed session. The board also approved a motion to begin discussions with the county about a land transfer related to the South Topsail Elementary water/tower site.
Items tabled: the proposed name for the new K-8 (staff recommended “Hampstead Elementary and Hampstead Middle” per stakeholder survey) was tabled for further discussion at a meeting with a full board. The proposed three-tier bell schedule for the east side — presented after extensive staff modeling, prior DOT studies and community surveys — was also tabled until the full board can review consultant data and hear from absent members.
Nut graf: The meeting combined routine approvals with a handful of operational purchases affecting student transportation and district logistics while leaving two consequential policy issues — school naming and bell-time restructuring — to be decided later by the full board.
Votes and motions at a glance (as recorded in the meeting): - Consent agenda: motion and second; "All in favor, aye" (approved). - Penderlea Elementary 2026–27 calendar (approved): motion made; second; "Aye." (approved) - Summer learning plan 2024–25 (approved): motion made; second; "Aye." (approved) - New K-8 naming (Hamstead Elementary/Hamstead Middle) (tabled): Motion to table made and seconded; "Aye." (tabled) - Purchase of activity bus (approved): motion made and seconded; "Aye." (approved) - Purchase of bus radio equipment, UHF/VHF with Saint Helena repeater, $348,104.76 (approved): motion made and seconded; "Aye." (approved) - Three-tier bell schedule proposal (tabled): motion to table made and seconded; "Aye." (tabled) - Personnel report (approved, after closed session): motion made and seconded; "Aye." (approved) - Motion to start conversation with county on South Topsail Elementary water/tower land transfer (approved): motion made; seconded; "Aye." (approved)
Ending: Where motions lacked a named mover or seconder in the transcript, the meeting record reports the board’s standard procedural formulation and an "all in favor" voice vote. The district will return these tabled items for further board consideration.
