Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Forest Hills board approves adoption of Amplify CKLA, green-lights technology purchases and budget amendments
Loading...
Summary
The Forest Hills Board of Education approved a six-year Amplify CKLA ELA license and several technology and capital purchases, and accepted a budget amendment that reduces projected fund-balance use; a parent raised concerns about DEI content in CKLA materials, which the board said pertained to an earlier edition.
The Forest Hills Board of Education on April 20 approved the district’s recommendation to adopt the Amplify CKLA English language arts program under a six-year online license, authorized multiple technology purchases to support new STEAM electives, and approved a budget amendment that reduced the district’s projected use of fund balance.
The board voted to move forward with the Amplify CKLA package after staff and teacher pilots recommended the program; the materials and six-year online license were described in board packets as an expense expected to exceed $1,105,390. The district plans to cover roughly $815,000 of that cost from an existing district grant allocation and to fund the remainder from the general fund, according to the finance presentation by Dr. Michaud.
Why it matters: The contract and related purchases will shape elementary literacy instruction across the district and require multi-year funding commitments. Board members said the district piloted the program and that adopting a robust ELA package would free classroom teachers to focus on other priorities while STEAM classrooms provide dedicated instruction in science and project-based work.
Board discussion and related purchases: Trustees reviewed several related action items grouped with the curriculum decision. The board authorized a one-year online license for the Boost reading curriculum ($61,152) and a one-year DIBELS subscription ($76,960). To support the STEAM elective rollout across 10 buildings, the board approved purchasing 340 Chromebooks and 10 carts (procured through a cooperative) for an amount not to exceed $228,680 from 2025 capital projects. The board also approved procurement of 609 staff laptops on a five-year replacement cycle, not to exceed $727,146 from capital projects. Dr. Michaud presented the purchasing requests and said staff selection followed a 472-response device survey.
The board also approved several smaller capital items: a bidirectional amplifier system for Eastern Middle High School (safety equipment to improve emergency responder radio coverage) with a not-to-exceed price of $137,373; a fine-arts center video-projection package funded by the district foundation; and limited mechanical work at the operations facility with low bids totaling $62,994.20.
Budget amendment and fiscal context: The business office presented an amendment reflecting roughly $1.5 million more in revenue (including grants and asset sales) and about $750,000 in additional expenses since the last amendment. That change lowered the projected use of fund balance this year from about $5.1 million to roughly $4.3 million, leaving a projected fund balance near 16.73% at June, the presentation said.
Public comment and content concerns: Parent and community member Vincent Bonhart addressed the board during public comment to say that Amplify CKLA “contains a substantial DEI and social justice component” and that supplementary teacher guides were not easily accessible on the vendor’s public website. He handed the board printed materials and urged trustees to review the curriculum and consider modifications. Board members and curriculum presenters replied that the guide Bonhart referenced was developed by another district for an earlier (second) version of CKLA and does not apply to the third version under consideration in Forest Hills.
What happens next: Several of the purchases will be paid from designated capital project funds and a district grant; the CKLA contract will proceed per the administration’s recommendation. The board completed roll-call votes during the meeting on consent and action items before adjourning.
