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Board removes $50,000 SchoolKit early-literacy line from federal budget for review after members flag training content
Summary
Trustees voted to remove an early-literacy $50,000 line (item 142952 / 173) paying vendor SchoolKit from the federal budget amendment and requested staff review training materials after a board member raised concerns about a module linking pedagogical approaches to historical "anti-literacy" laws.
The Sumner County Board of Education on Feb. 21 amended its federal budget package after trustees raised concerns about training material provided by a state'approved vendor.
The contested item was a $50,000 early'literacy allocation to SchoolKit, a vendor listed in Tennessee's vendor pool for foundational literacy work and tutoring. Board member Mister King said he had watched a SchoolKit module that, in his words, framed a debate over phonics and rote memorization in terms of historical "anti'literacy" laws and argued that the pedagogical debate has ties to white supremacy. King called that introduction "a philosophy" and asked that the board see the training materials before authorizing payment.
Dr. Langford (district administration) responded that SchoolKit is one of the vendors identified by the Tennessee Department of Education for the statewide early'literacy initiative and that much of SchoolKit's contract work for the state is governed by the state procurement and RFP; she said the district could investigate the specific module and obtain clarification from the vendor. Langford added that the district need not pay for the service until June, allowing time to review materials.
After discussion, a motion to remove item 142952/173 from the federal budget amendment for further study was made, seconded and approved by the board. The rest of the amendment was approved with that item removed.
Board members noted state approval of the vendor but asked staff to request the specific training content used or an explanation of what modules would be delivered in the district if the vendor is engaged.
