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Santa Fe ISD Board approves consent agenda, vendor renewals, meal-price authority and several district renewals
Summary
At its July 28 meeting the Santa Fe ISD Board of Trustees approved the consent agenda and a package of vendor renewals and district actions, including landscaping and custodial contracts, a solid-waste renewal, technology and curriculum renewals, acceptance of donations and authorization to raise paid-meal prices up to 50 cents.
The Santa Fe Independent School District Board of Trustees met July 28 and voted unanimously to approve the consent agenda and a series of vendor renewals, curriculum purchases and policy items.
Board members approved the consent agenda (items 9.02–9.13) and then voted on individual renewals and district items, including custodial supply renewals, landscape services, solid-waste services, a student information-system renewal, acceptance of donations, curriculum renewals and authorization for a paid-lunch price increase not to exceed $0.50 for the 2025–26 school year.
Why it matters: the approved contracts and budget-authority items set vendor relationships and district operating costs for the coming school year and authorize administrators to act within the approved limits without bringing each adjustment back to the board.
Key outcomes - Consent agenda (items 9.02–9.13): approved (motion made from the dais; second noted; passed unanimously). The consent agenda included routine items previously reviewed by the board in packet materials.
- Custodial supplies and vendor services renewal (Clean Supply Company and Pollock Investments Inc.): motion to approve renewal for the 2025–26 fiscal year at a price not to exceed $122,100; motion seconded and passed unanimously.
- Landscaping services (contract number 21-22002 renewed with Neo Global Enterprises, doing business as HortaCare Landscape Management): renewal approved not to exceed $145,882. The contract covers routine mowing and grounds care for unfenced areas; district staff will continue to maintain fenced areas and specific campus landscaping. The district noted coordination with Santa Fe Little League saved about $12,000 by allowing the league to maintain roughly 11 acres of fields adjacent to the junior high.
- Solid waste services (Ameriways Inc.): renewal for the 2025–26 fiscal year approved not to exceed $58,569.
- Student information and finance system (Skyward): annual renewal approved not to exceed $84,019.
- Acceptance of donations: the board accepted donations received January 1–June 30, 2025, totaling $226,064.79, the majority from the Santa Fe Texas Education Foundation for teacher and program support.
- Paid lunch price authority: the board authorized the district to increase the paid meal price by up to $0.50 for 2025–26; the administration reported it plans a $0.25 increase (making elementary paid lunch $3.25 and secondary $3.75) but requested approval to raise up to $0.50 without returning to the board if changing market conditions require it. The board approved the not-to-exceed amount unanimously.
- Pre-K services for staff: the board approved offering Pre-K4 services as a no-cost benefit to district staff in addition to the state-mandated teacher benefit.
- Pre-K curriculum (Frog Street) for 2025–26: approved not to exceed $64,244.90 from the instructional materials allotment.
- Student code of conduct for 2025–26: approved as presented (see separate article for major substantive changes from recent legislation).
Votes and procedure: Most motions were proposed and seconded from the dais; the board recorded unanimous passage for the items above. No roll-call vote-by-name appears in the meeting transcript; outcomes are recorded in the meeting minutes as passed unanimously.
Staff and board remarks summarized: staff presenters provided background on vendor selection and local cost-saving measures (for example the landscaping arrangement with the Little League) and described the financial and operational context for the meal-price request, including the end of several USDA grants and a small increase in federal reimbursement rates. The CFO explained how state legislation affects the district’s ability to refinance debt and said the district is reviewing options.
What’s next: the approved contracts and authorizations allow staff to finalize vendor renewals and implement the meal-price change and other items before the start of the school year. The board indicated staff will continue to report back if further adjustments are needed.
