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Bradley County Board approves student nomination, insurer broker, textbooks, construction and policy deletions
Summary
The Bradley County Board of Education approved multiple operational and policy actions at its March 2025 meeting, including the board’s nomination of Bridal Sapp for consideration as the student member of the Tennessee State Board of Education and an eight-year science textbook adoption.
The Bradley County Board of Education approved several administrative actions at its March 2025 meeting, including the board’s nomination of a high school student to be considered for the Tennessee State Board of Education student member, selection of an insurance broker to manage a competitive bid for property and casualty and student accident insurance, adoption of recommended science textbooks, approval of a construction manager for Hopewell Elementary, acceptance of a bid for Walker Valley High School track resurfacing, transfer of a school bus route contract, and deletion of three policies from the district manual.
Why it matters: The measures include both policy-level housekeeping and multi-year operational decisions — notably an eight-year textbook adoption cycle and a broker selection that will run a public procurement for major insurance coverages.
Votes at a glance
- Student nomination to the Tennessee State Board of Education: The board nominated Bridal Sapp, a Bradley Central High School student, to be the district’s recommended candidate for consideration by the governor as the state student member. Motion passed by roll call with board members recorded as voting yes (Amanda Lee, Allen Smith, Vicky Beatty, Josh Taylor, Ted Bryson, Rachel Goen, Nancy Kaysen).
- Insurance broker selection: The board approved engaging Gallagher Student Health and Special Risk as the district’s insurance broker/producer to competitively bid property/casualty insurance and student accident coverage under Tennessee Code Annotated 12-3-1209(a). Motion passed by roll call (yes votes recorded; one no not specified in roll call summary).
- Science textbook adoption: Following recommendations from a teacher-led curriculum committee, the board approved a package of science textbooks and materials. The committee recommended McGraw Hill for multiple grade bands and Savvas (Savvas Learning Company) for certain middle and high school science courses. The adoption follows the state’s eight-year adoption cycle. Motion passed by roll call with unanimous yes votes recorded.
- Construction manager for Hopewell Elementary: Tyson Associates was approved as the construction manager for the Hopewell Elementary project following interviews of two firms. Motion passed by roll call (7 yes, 0 no).
- Walker Valley High School track improvements: Baseline Sports Construction’s bid for track resurfacing was accepted. The original budgeted amount was $300,000; after removing bonding and certain design stamp requirements the district’s reviewed total for the work was stated as $295,238. Motion passed by roll call (7 yes, 0 no).
- Transfer of bus-route ownership: The board approved transfer of contract for Bus Route 12 (Prospect zone) from Willard Ernie Lewis to Will Lewis III, effective in April; motion passed by roll call (7 yes).
- Policy deletions: The board voted to delete three district policies (6.313, 5.204 and 5.205) on the grounds that their language is duplicated and incorporated into updated policies (5.2 series). Motion passed by roll call (7 yes, 0 no).
What the board recorded as formal actions: Each of the above items was moved and seconded (movers/seconders were not consistently named on the record) and recorded in roll-call votes. Where statutory authority was cited, the meeting transcript references Tennessee Code Annotated 49-1-301 for the student member process and Tennessee Code Annotated 12-3-1209(a) for the competitive procurement process related to the insurance broker engagement.
Background and next steps: Several items carry implementation steps. The Gallagher engagement is to administer a competitive bid process; the science adoption begins an eight-year adoption cycle. The Hopewell construction manager selection and Walker Valley track bid will proceed through the district’s contracting and project-management steps. The district clerk indicated a standard roll-call procedure recorded each outcome.
Votes and documentation are publicly recorded in the meeting minutes and in the packet materials referenced during the meeting.
