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Votes at a glance: Oak Ridge board approves hazard mitigation resolution, policy change, grants, personnel actions and equipment purchases
Summary
The Oak Ridge Board of Education approved a series of motions at its Jan. 27 meeting, including adoption of an Anderson County hazard mitigation plan, revisions to background‑investigation procedures and purchases of laptops and program funding.
The Oak Ridge Board of Education approved a set of motions by voice vote or roll call at its Jan. 27 meeting. All recorded motions on the agenda passed unanimously; the transcript records "motion passes unanimously" for each item but does not provide individual vote counts.
Key actions recorded by the board:
- Adopt Anderson County hazard mitigation plan (Item A). Superintendent Dr. Borchers recommended approval. The plan is required for the district to be eligible for federal disaster funding and reimbursement should a declared disaster occur. Motion to approve was made by Ms. Webb and seconded by Dr. Hartman; the motion passed unanimously.
- Approve Board Policy 5.118, Background Investigations (Item B) — first and second reading. Superintendent recommended entering the district into the federal "rap back" record‑of‑arrest notification program so staff will receive ongoing notifications instead of waiting five years for repeat checks. Motion made by Dr. Hartman and seconded by Ms. Craven; motion passed unanimously.
- Grant exceptions to Board Policy 5.1101 for four staff members (Item C). The superintendent recommended the exceptions; the board approved the waivers. Motion made by Ms. Webb and seconded by Dr. Hartman; vote recorded as unanimous. District staff said they plan to bring a revised policy to reduce recurring waiver requests.
- Reclassify 1.0 FTE software developer position (Item D). Superintendent explained the role has expanded beyond a tier‑2 position to include database integration, Power BI work, laptop rollout and sports ticketing systems. Motion to approve was made by Dr. Hartman and seconded by Ms. Craven; motion passed unanimously.
- Approve FY‑25 tenure status for eligible staff (Item E). The board recognized teachers, novice teachers, teaching assistants and principals who attained tenure; the motion was made by Ms. Craven, seconded by Ms. Webb and passed unanimously. The meeting listed names of staff awarded tenure across preschool, elementary, middle, high school and the Secret City Academy.
- Approve FY‑26 Preschool Voluntary Pre‑K grant (Item F). Superintendent said the grant traditionally funds five pre‑K classrooms to serve 100 four‑year‑old students. Motion to approve was made by Dr. Hartman and seconded by Ms. Crank; motion passed unanimously.
- Approve FY‑26 new high school course requests (Item G). Motion made by Ms. Webb, seconded by Ms. Craven; motion passed unanimously. (Details and follow‑up on the nuclear CTE pathway are reported separately.)
- Approve purchase of 592 Lenovo laptops in the amount of $825,916 (Item H). Superintendent stated laptops were over four years old and out of warranty; the purchase was included in the FY‑25 budget. Motion made by Dr. Hartman and seconded by Ms. Webb; motion passed unanimously.
The board's consent agenda, which included several student trip approvals, also passed unanimously. Following the votes, board members received an informational legislative update and financial report; no board action was recorded on those information items.
Motions, mover/second, and meeting notes below reflect the transcript record; where the transcript did not provide a numeric vote tally the outcome is recorded as "passed unanimously" per the meeting minutes.
