Polk board accepts agenda and minutes, approves interim contract and recommends Green for general counsel

The Polk County School Board on April 22 approved the meeting agenda and six sets of minutes, passed the consent agenda, approved an interim agreement with Fortress Secured LLC and voted to recommend a finalist identified in the meeting as Mr. Green for the general counsel position, directing a small negotiation team to begin contract talks.

Board action and context: The board unanimously accepted the meeting agenda as amended at the start of the meeting, then approved minutes for meetings on March 11, March 25 (two sets), April 8, April 15 and April 16. The board then approved the published consent agenda. After routine business, the board approved an interim agreement with Fortress Secured LLC that had been discussed earlier in the day. Later in the meeting the board moved and passed a motion to recommend “Mr. Green” as the board’s next general counsel candidate; the board directed Dr. Allen, Mr. Murphy and others named in the motion to enter negotiations and return a contract recommendation.

Why it matters: The interim contract establishes short-term services the district will receive from a security vendor; the selection of a permanent general counsel follows a multi-month search prompted by the retirement of the prior general counsel and begins the contract negotiation phase for a legally central staff role.

What the board voted on (high-level): - Acceptance of the April 22, 2025 agenda with noted revisions — motion made by Mr. Keyes and seconded by Mr. Sharpless; outcome: carried. - Approval of six sets of minutes (03/11/2025 special work session, 03/25/2025 school board meeting, 03/25/2025 work session, 04/08/2025 work session, 04/15/2025 special board meeting — general counsel interviews, 04/16/2025 special board meeting — general counsel interviews) — motions made and seconded as recorded in the meeting; outcomes: carried. - Approval of the consent agenda for 04/22/2025 — motion by Ms. Fields; outcome: carried. - Approval of an interim agreement with Fortress Secured LLC (listed as S‑1 on the agenda) — motion and second recorded; outcome: carried. - Selection/recommendation of a general counsel candidate (S‑4): motion to recommend Mr. Green as the board’s next general counsel and to authorize contract negotiations by Dr. Allen and Mr. Murphy (with Mr. Thomas included in negotiations as noted) — moved by Ms. Wyatt and seconded by Mr. Sharpless; outcome: carried.

Board comments and process notes: Board members described the general counsel search as “thorough and rigorous,” noting a timeline that began with a retirement notice in June and included multiple rounds of review, interviews and reference checks. Some members raised personal reservations about the finalist’s residency timeline but said they would work with the selected candidate. The board asked SGR and consultants for their work on the search and thanked staff for compiling candidate materials.

Next steps: Staff were directed to return recommended contract language and terms from the negotiating team for board consideration.

Votes at a glance (as recorded in the meeting): agenda acceptance (motion carried); six sets of minutes (each motion carried); consent agenda (carried); interim agreement with Fortress Secured LLC (carried); recommendation of Mr. Green for general counsel and authorization to negotiate (carried).

Notes on public record: The board’s action to recommend a candidate starts a negotiation process; no final employment contract was approved at this meeting. The interim agreement with Fortress Secured LLC was approved as presented; details of the contract (term, dollar amounts) were not read into the record during the public meeting portion and are listed in the agenda packet.