Board approves 120-day CCIS-funded coordinator to address special-education disproportionality

The Hamblen County Board of Education voted June 9 to add a part-time, 120-day coordinator position funded through CCIS to address significant disproportionality in the district's special-education identification of Black students.

Mandy Lloyd, who submitted the request, told the board the coordinator will work at the school level to standardize referral and data-collection processes after a root-cause analysis found inconsistent timelines and documentation across sites. Lloyd said the role is intended to be temporary: "This position is only while we are on this list," and the position will end when the district is removed from the state's identification of disproportionality. The job was approved by the Tennessee Department of Education through the CCIS funding process and is listed as a flat-rate $50,000 salary for 120 days; the position will not be added to the district's ongoing salary schedule unless formally proposed later.

Board members asked about hiring risks and duration; Lloyd responded that she expects applicants for a 120-day contract and that the district will reassess if it remains on the identification list. Superintendent Arnold Bunch and other members emphasized the purpose is to create standardized processes so the district does not return to the identification list.

The board approved the item by motion; the transcript records the chair announcing the motion passed. The meeting materials indicate the position will be funded from a restricted federal set-aside created to address significant disproportionality (amounts were discussed in the meeting but exact internal fund balances were not read aloud).