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Board approves November payments, school hires, course‑guide and kitchen equipment purchase; tie‑breaker vote carries one hire
Summary
At its meeting the Benton Harbor Area Schools board approved monthly payments, multiple personnel hires, course‑guide updates and the purchase of an $81,900 walk‑in cooler for MLK Elementary; one Title I hire passed after a tie‑breaking vote by the board president.
The Board of Education approved a set of routine financial and personnel actions and several staff reports during the meeting.
Payments: Director Brock Carter presented the monthly finance packet and the board approved staff report F1 to accept November payments for the district’s funds.
Kitchen equipment purchase (F2): The board voted to approve staff report F2, authorizing purchase of a walk‑in cooler for Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary from Great Lakes West for $81,900.48 from the Food Service Fund. Director Brock Carter said the existing walk‑in cooler at MLK is effectively inoperable and that the purchase will exhaust the district’s excess Food Service Fund balance before the extended spend‑down deadline of June 30, 2025. Trustees asked whether the unit is built‑in or movable and whether the purchase aligns with the master facilities planning process; administration said the cooler can be disassembled and relocated with tools if needed and that funds were previously set aside for cafeteria updates.
Course guide (T1): The board approved staff report T1 to adopt changes to the Benton Harbor High School course guide, including world‑language credit language aligned to the state’s novice‑high proficiency guidance, additional high‑school reading strategies courses and a pre‑algebra pathway intended to strengthen foundational math skills prior to Algebra I.
Personnel (H1, H2): The board approved multiple hires recommended by the superintendent. Staff report H1 (several paraprofessionals and a kindergarten teacher) passed after the board clarified building assignments for central‑assigned library paraprofessionals. Staff report H2 (Title I academic interventionist for River of Life) initially produced a tied roll call; Board President Robinson cast the tie‑breaking vote in favor, and the hire was approved.
Votes at a glance: agenda and minutes approval (carried); F1 (monthly payments) approved by roll call; F2 (walk‑in cooler, $81,900.48) approved by roll call; T1 (course‑guide updates) approved by roll call; H1 and H2 (personnel hires) approved (H2 required tie‑breaking vote by President Robinson).
Board members asked for follow‑up reporting for items that intersect facilities and program implementation (how the cooler will be used district‑wide, CTE sequencing, and peer‑mediation reporting).
