Blount County Board of Education approves teacher MOU, district budget, playground donation and Education Freedom Act resolution

The Blount County Board of Education voted on multiple staffing, budget and program measures during its April monthly meeting, approving a memorandum of understanding with the local teachers' association, adopting the proposed fiscal-year 2025–26 budget for multiple funds, approving a privately funded inclusive playground at Mary Blunt Elementary School and passing a resolution to permit teacher participation in the Education Freedom Act incentive program.

The board approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) reached through collaborative conferencing with the Blount County Education Association. Rebecca Dickinson, Blount County Education Association president, thanked the board and central office staff for the collaborative process: "Most of the language covers working conditions ... and regarding salary, teachers are very appreciative of adding steps through 30 and moving our salaries closer to our comparable nearby districts." The roll-call vote on the MOU recorded board members Phil Porter, Randy Early Howard, Brian King, Joe Lindsey, John Lovett, Erica Moore and Chris Pass as voting yes.

The board also voted to adopt the district's proposed FY 2025–26 budgets for multiple funds, including the general-purpose school fund (Fund 141), federal projects (Fund 142), central cafeteria (Fund 143), ESP (Fund 146) and education capital (Fund 177). During budget discussion, district and county officials said the plan includes an earmark of $2.5 million for staffing and an incentive pool for teacher compensation. Director of Schools Dr. Tietler told the board that "the incentive of over $4,000,000 for teacher compensation, several hundred thousand dollars for classified, [and] $2,500,000 earmarking for additional hires" are included in the budget and that the district expects to implement these without asking county government for new taxes. The budget passed on a roll-call vote with board members recorded as voting yes.

On a separate agenda item, the board unanimously approved a privately funded playground project for Mary Blunt Elementary School. Mr. Farrell, representing the school, said the proposed inclusive design "includes a wheelchair accessible play structure, a swing set suitable and accessible for all the students ... and a poured rubber surfacing" and put the project's estimated cost at $330,451.73. Farrell said the work will be funded entirely by private donations that many donors are unwilling to release until the board approves the project; he said construction could begin "as early as the end of the school year" once funding is secured. The board approved the project by voice vote after receiving confirmation from staff that the vendor meets county purchasing requirements.

The board also considered a resolution related to the Education Freedom Act of 2025 that allows teachers to participate in a state-level $2,000 incentive under section 4 of that law. Dustin Park, a District 5 resident speaking during public comment, criticized the state law on record: "It recorded the names of those who voted to openly discriminate against children with disabilities in order to subsidize the education of those already in private schools." After discussion the board approved the resolution by voice vote.

The board discussed the timeline for hiring a new director of schools and agreed to leave the incoming director's start date negotiable to allow flexibility for the chosen candidate; the board asked that Interim Director Dr. Tietler remain in place through May to cover graduation and end-of-year activities.

Votes at a glance: MOU with Blount County Education Association — approved (roll call; yes votes recorded: Phil Porter; Randy Early Howard; Brian King; Joe Lindsey; John Lovett; Erica Moore; Chris Pass). Mary Blunt Elementary playground (privately funded) — approved by voice vote; project cost estimated at $330,451.73. Education Freedom Act resolution (teacher participation in $2,000 incentive) — approved by voice vote. FY 2025–26 budget for Funds 141/142/143/146/177 — approved (roll call; yes votes recorded). Director start date — board approved leaving the start date negotiable; Dr. Tietler to remain for May events.

Board and staff said the budget changes aim to prioritize teachers, classroom support and special education positions. Dr. Tietler and other administrators outlined staffing requests and hires under consideration, including intervention teachers, ESL teachers, instructional assistants and special-education positions; several items were described as contingent on enrollment, audit findings or federal funding allocations. The director and finance staff said much of the planned compensation and new positions are expected to be funded from existing revenue increases and internal reallocation rather than a new county tax request.

Public commenters addressed the MOU, state education policy and staffing. Rebecca Dickinson (BCEA president) praised the collaborative process; community members urged attention to literacy and math proficiency, library materials and student health; and several speakers encouraged continued community support for teachers and staff. The meeting closed with the board scheduling audit debrief sessions and curriculum-audit presentations in April and May.

Key clarifications from the meeting: the Mary Blunt playground project is proposed to be paid entirely with private donations and will not use district capital funds unless otherwise specified; the $330,451.73 cost estimate was presented by the school representative; the $2,500,000 figure discussed during budget review refers to an earmark for staffing in the coming year; and the board left the start date for the new director negotiable rather than fixing a specific date in April.