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Board approves consent agenda, separates two small contracts for review and votes on dozen action items
Summary
The South Bend board approved the consent agenda after pulling two contracts for separate consideration; it then approved a package of purchases, renewals, MOUs and vendor contracts (items 9.01–9.12), including two pre-owned buses for $20,500 and a $91,814 athletic insurance renewal.
The Board of School Trustees of the South Bend Community School Corp approved the consent agenda at its July 13 meeting after a member requested two small contracts be removed for separate review and vote.
Doctor Jeanette McCullough asked whether two contracts listed under the contracts-for-under-$50,000 section had been competitively bid; after discussion the board withdrew the original motion on the consent agenda and re-voted to approve the consent items excluding those two contracts. The board later approved items 6 and 7 under the contracts section by a recorded vote of 6–1.
The board took votes on a series of action items listed as 9.01 through 9.12. Highlights included:
- 9.01: Approved purchase of two pre-owned buses from the Elkhart and Saint Joseph Counties Head Start Consortium for a total of $20,500 (one bus $11,000, one bus $9,500). Vote announced as unanimous (7–0).
- 9.02: Approved student athletic insurance renewal for $91,814 for the 2026–27 school year (effective Aug. 1, 2026). Vote announced as unanimous.
- 9.03: Approved memorandum of understanding with United Way of St. Joseph County for kindergarten camps; motion carried unanimously.
- 9.04: Approved a $15,000 grant under the Notre Dame Arts Initiative to fund the "Our West Side Stories" program in three West Side schools (Dickinson, Navarre, Washington); motion carried unanimously.
- 9.05–9.07: Approved renewal of 1,250 student hotspots (AT&T) at a discounted monthly cost ($12,500/month), renewal of BlockC student-safety software, and a three-year Google Workspace for Education Plus contract (Education Plus licenses and added security/AI features). Votes recorded as carrying unanimously.
- 9.08–9.11: Approved a generative-AI platform for teachers (reimbursed in part by an Indiana Digital Learning Grant) and three special-education vendor contracts (Stepping Stones, BlazerWorks, Tiny Eye) selected via an RFP process.
- 9.12: Approved a memorandum of understanding with Teamsters Local 364 to include bilingual education specialists in office-personnel language and retroactive wage adjustments (retro to Jan. 1, 2026); administration estimated the budgetary impact at about $28,000.
Where recorded votes were announced in the transcript, the board indicated unanimous approval on most items; the pair of small contracts was approved 6–1 after the separate vote. Several board members stressed the importance of bidding processes and fiscal prudence during discussion.
The board adjourned following member comments about after-school programs, the arts, and upcoming meeting dates.
