April School Board Meeting: upgrading chromebooks, Riverside roof repairs underway
by Melissa Yekulis
The monthly School Board meeting for Manchester Community Schools was called to order at 6:00pm on Monday, April 20. Three board members were absent from the meeting.
The meeting began with the approval of the agenda, which was approved unanimously.
Before voting on the approval of the consent agenda took place, time was taken to address the personnel report and publicly acknowledge the retirements of teachers Bryan Barnard, John Wilkins, and Scott Marvin. All retirements will take place at the end of the school year. The superintendent and Board members thanked them for their years of service to the district. Another teacher is stepping down at the end of the year, and a new custodian was hired. A recommendation was made to accept the Consent Agenda as it was presented. A motion was made to remove the personnel report from the consent agenda to vote on separately. The consent agenda was unanimously accepted without the personnel report.
The personnel report was discussed. The personnel report failed to pass after discussion with a 3-1 vote.
There was no Public Participation.
There was no Old Business.
Under New Business, there was a field trip request from Randy Smith for a long distance FFA trip. A student from Manchester will be running for Regional Officer at the event. The field trip was approved by the board unanimously. They were invited to come back and share their experience when they return from their trip. The board was also reminded of the upcoming Greenhouse Sale on Saturday, May 9.
The contract for Chartwells Food Service required a standard renewal for the 2026-2027 school year. The contract was approved by the board unanimously.
A series of bond recommendations were made for technology upgrades with bond funds. A replacement system for the district wide phone system was recommended with the company Kinetix. Server infrastructure updates were recommended with the company Inacomp. The district copy machines contract expires at the end of this year. A recommendation was made to work with the company Printer Source Plus to develop a five-year contract. UPS battery replacements were recommended to be purchased through Inacomp. It was recommended to begin annual Chromebook upgrades in small allotments, two grade levels at a time. It was recommended that purchases be made through Forte. Each recommendation was discussed and approved by the board unanimously.
A series of first look recommendations were made for updating board policies. Revisions have been proposed around definitions, online blended learning programming, purchasing, volunteers, and emergency plans. There are replacement proposals around wireless communication devices and artificial intelligence. There are new proposals around staff ethics, care of students with diabetes, and specialized transportation for students with IEPs. There are also rescinded policies around volunteers. These proposals are only first looks. Board members will have time to ask questions about the updates before voting on the proposals to make them official at the May Board Meeting.
Handbook updates were presented for the three school buildings, for employees, and for athletics. These were also meant to be first looks. Board members will have time to pose questions around the updates before voting on the handbooks to make them official during the May Board Meeting.
Building department reports have been posted and made available for viewing on the district website. During that time, Board Member Caszatt provided an update on the classes she has been taking through Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) to earn certifications as a board member. It was also shared the spring MASB conference is taking place May 1 and 2. Most classes are available at a small cost and provide networking opportunities. Board members were strongly encouraged to attend.
Superintendent Head was next to present to the board. He reminded board members that there is an ISD budget hearing on Thursday, April 23. Board members have been provided with a link so they can participate.
A brief update was shared around the progress being made at Riverside with preliminary bond work. Some work was completed around brick repairs over Spring Break. Work is currently being done on the roof. The team has also been meeting to discuss schematic designs for the Junior/Senior High School.
Head provided a detailed update on the progress around the development of the county wide CTE program. The first tax payments will start being distributed in July. Discussions have started around the “buckets” for funding that will be taking place across the county. Funding pots include the following focus areas:
- PreK-12 Programming, Field Trips, Experiential Learning
- Capital Outlay for renovating buildings, new equipment, etc.
- Salary and Benefits of CTE Instructors
- Pilot Programming (State Approved)
- Transportation to and from the Programs
- Innovative Programs
- Research and Partnerships
- Career Counseling and Supervision of Programming
- CTE Leadership and Regional Tech Support
- Millage ISD Oversite
- Fund Equity to Manage Cash Flow
- Other Costs
- Tuition for Students attending programs in other districts
- Discussion is ongoing on this topic
There was no Public Participation.
Kudos were offered to the Klager/Riverside PTO and the amazing work they did with the Glow Dance.
A public reminder was made that Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week is the first week of May. PTO and the School Board will be participating in honoring faculty and staff.
The board voted to go into a closed session to review updates on contract negotiations at 6:50pm. The motion passed unanimously and public participants were dismissed for the evening.
The next public board meeting will take place on Monday, May 18 at 6pm in the Junior/Senior High School Media Center.
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