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Board approves two‑year Hampton instructional curriculum contract after questions over digital access and overlap with existing materials
Summary
After public comment and board discussion about digital-first materials, parent access and overlap with HMH resources, the board approved a two‑year purchase of the Hampton curriculum (recommended as a teacher-facing instructional package) and asked staff to provide clearer public-facing documentation before implementation.
The Southampton County School Board voted to approve a two-year purchase of the Hampton instructional curriculum after a prolonged discussion about what the purchase includes, how parents and teachers will access materials, and whether the purchase duplicates resources the division already owns.
Acting Superintendent Dr. Shonda Harris Mohammed and curriculum staff described quotes for one-, two- and five-year options and said the proposal includes curriculum pacing, instructional guidance, and assessment tools. Board members and several speakers pressed for clearer, public-facing explanations: parent Victoria Edwards said parents need greater access to materials so they can help students at home and argued the division should move away from a "heavily digital based curriculum." A board member asked for a stakeholder presentation that would explain what a quoted expense (one board member mentioned "$23,000") would buy for families.
Dr. Blunt, the division's accountability/curriculum lead, explained the purchase is intended to give teachers clearer instructional guidance and pacing (particularly for grades 6–12) because some vendors' platforms such as HMH can be complex for classroom use. The curriculum recommendation also included a testing and assessment workflow using Mastery Connect (the testing platform operated by Instructure) to provide embedded answer keys and teacher-facing assessment data.
Hearing the concerns, the superintendent recommended purchasing a two-year package rather than a five-year commitment to allow time for the incoming superintendent and board to set a longer-term strategy. The board adopted a motion from Dr. Goodwin with a second from Mr. Smith to purchase the Hampton curriculum for two years; the motion carried on a roll-call vote. Members asked staff to present a clear list of the services included in the purchase and to prepare parent-facing materials and presentations at back-to-school or Title I nights.
Next steps: the superintendent said staff will aim to provide a detailed explanation and, if possible, samples and screenshots for parents by a work session in late May or at the June meeting before funds must be allocated by June 30.
Sources: meeting presentation, public comment, board motions and roll-call statements.
