Canton school board approves Saturday School, $42,750 Kids First tutoring contract

The Canton Public School District Board of Trustees voted April 7 to approve a Saturday School program at Nichols Middle School and to contract with Kids First for tutoring services.

The board approved four Saturday sessions — April 11, April 18, April 25 and May 2, 2026 — with sessions scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The board also approved a Kids First contract for $42,750 to provide 30 days of English language arts, mathematics and science pullout tutorials and the four Saturday sessions at Nichols Middle School. The action was taken as part of items 4.1–4.4 on the special meeting agenda.

The board approved two staffing items tied to the Saturday School program: hiring Dexter Brim as Saturday School administrator at $50 per hour for hours listed as 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., and hiring DaRico Johns to serve as Saturday School security at $25 per hour. The board’s motion to approve items 4.1–4.4 was made by Mr. Lenderrick Taylor and seconded by Mr. Peter Brown; the motion carried with all trustees voting Aye (Johnny Brown, Lenderrick Taylor, Peter Brown, Jacqueline Griffin).

Superintendent Dwight J. Luckett Sr. and district counsel Lisa Ross were listed as present for the meeting; the transcript does not specify the contract’s funding source. Board materials referenced an exhibit for the contract and staffing items but the transcript did not include further budget detail.

Board officials said the program is intended to provide extended academic support to students identified in the bottom quartile. The board did not specify follow-up reporting requirements or a timeline for measuring the program’s impact during the meeting. The next regular board meeting was announced for April 14 at Canton High School.