Jenkins Independent board approves tentative FY26 budget, retains auditor and awards insurance contract

The Jenkins Independent Board of Education on May 29 approved a tentative budget for fiscal year 2026 and a series of routine contracts, including retaining Allen and Associates as auditor and awarding the district’s school insurance policy.

The board voted to adopt the tentative FY26 budget after a report from Curtis, who described Fund 1 revenues as "around $4,700,000" and said the district held about $1,500,000 in reserves. Board discussion focused on contingency levels; one member said the district requires a 2% contingency and recommended holding 5% or more as a cushion.

"Budget this year for fund 1, between local and state funding, it's gonna be around, 4,700,000," Curtis said. The presenter also noted a contingency that he later described as "300 and some thousand dollars" when questioned about exact figures.

The board approved retaining Allen and Associates as its auditor for FY26; the presenter said this would be the same firm that had served the district for the prior three years.

During the meeting the board heard from Gail Cardwell Peoples, an insurance representative who reviewed the district's package policy. Peoples told trustees the district’s renewal premium "went up $10,000 on your... policy" and flagged one driver placed on a monitoring "watch" because of driving-record concerns. She also said changes to building coverage had increased the exposure and described those changes as sizable when explaining the premium movement.

"There's only a handful of companies that write schools," Peoples said, adding that the last two years had been the most difficult in her 36-year experience.

Board members discussed whether removing the driver from the roster would change the quote; the agent said the carrier was "watching" that driver but was not charging an immediate surcharge at the time of the meeting. The board approved awarding the insurance contract by voice vote.

Other business approved at the meeting included several memorandums of understanding that continue counseling and community-support services for students, an amended FY25 calendar to reflect actual instructional days, an owner-architect agreement to initiate a bonded construction project and a GSA-schedule agreement to restore the legally required elevator phone at lower monthly cost.

The meeting concluded after routine votes; no executive session was requested. The board adjourned following a motion and second.