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Board considers live-streaming meetings; staff outline captioning costs and rollout concerns
Summary
The CMCSS board discussed a first-reading proposal to live-stream meetings with closed captions. Staff said equipment exists and recurring costs would primarily be for CART captioning service estimated $150–$300 per meeting; board members debated timing and comment moderation.
The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System board heard a first reading on a proposal to live-stream board meetings with live captions and discussed cost, timing and moderation options.
Chief Operations Officer Anthony Johnson and district staff explained that the hardware for live streaming was purchased previously and the primary recurring expense would be a CART (real-time captioning) service. Johnson described the recurring cost as a per-meeting expense and said the district estimates a range of roughly $150 to $300 per meeting depending on meeting length and vendor; at the higher estimate that equates to about $3,600 per year.
Board member Mr. Garland urged caution on timing, saying he preferred to "wait until the next budget year" so the cost can be included in planning. Mr. Garland said, "I have no problem with scribe streaming … but I asked the board personally to consider waiting until the next budget year so we can get the cost in the budget." Other board members supported disabling real-time comments to avoid needing live moderation. Several members and staff noted that the district already posts recordings for later viewing and that YouTube is the preferred platform for live streaming.
Staff recommended additional time to test the system, secure a CART vendor and, if the board moves ahead now, to request necessary budget amendments. No formal vote was taken; the item will return for future consideration if the board directs staff to schedule a vote.
