Did you miss the August Montgomery school board meeting? Here's 5 things that happened

Tuesday was the first school board meeting of the new school year.

The combined work session and board meeting lasted about two hours and focused mainly on contracts for the upcoming school year.

1. MPS begins to consider electric vehicles

Chad Anderson, executive director of operations, gave his usual updates about the Montgomery Public Schools facilities at the work session.

He also spent a decent amount of time explaining a potential move to electric buses.

Anderson explained that the buses cost more, but they would likely go down in cost over time. Clare Weil, board president and district 2 representative, asked if they would save costs down the line, but Anderson explained they are chosen mostly for the environment.

Charges for the buses last about 200 miles, Anderson said. In other words, they're intended more for daily bus routes than long sports trips to Mobile.

He said grants are available, citing the EPA Clean Bus Grant Program.

2. Finance proposes COVID money, property tax be used for hiring

Arthur Watts, chief school financial officer, presented his June 2022 financial statement, after which he asked the board to consider two new funding sources for future hires.

Watts suggested the board first use COVID-19 emergency relief funds, known as ESSER, and then later use some of the property tax increase that voters approved in 2020.

That tax increase will not be collected until October of 2023. It's expected to raise $33 million for the schools, increasing their millage rate from the state mandated minimum of 10 mills up to 22 mills.

More: Leadership panel spotlights taxes for education, search for Montgomery school superintendent

3. The board approved a number of programs through ESSER funds

At the work session, Chief Academic Officer Bernard Mitchell shared some of the academic programs the schools would use to address the pandemic learning gap. The school board, at its regular meeting immediately afterward, approved the spending of federal COVID funds for these programs.

The program agreements were with Ed Farm Services; Leading & Teaching for Growth Professional Services; Progress Learning, LLC Software Services Agreement; ABT Associates Professional Services Agreement; Curriculum Management Solutions, Inc. Professional Services; PowerSchool Quote; and Curriculum Associates, LLC Professional Services.

The cost for these agreements was not immediately clear.

More: Making video games helps Montgomery Public Schools students learn confidence, teamwork

4. New mental health opt-in law explained

A state law that went into effect in July requires students under 14 who are receiving mental health services to have parental consent for any ongoing treatment.

Catherliene Williamson, associate superintendent, explained at the work session that the law does not affect guidance counselors or any mental health services otherwise required by Alabama law.

Older students do not need parental consent.

5. Substitute teacher rates

At the board meeting, Cathy Simmons, who identified herself as a long-term substitute teacher, asked about raises for substitute teachers.

Simmons said that short-term substitute teachers had a $30 dollar raise from $70 to $100 per day. Meanwhile, long-term subs only had a $10 raise from $120 to $130.

She explained that while she felt that short-term subs deserved their raise, she felt that long-term substitute teachers deserved more for their work.

Extra Credit

Robert E. Lee High School and Jefferson Davis High School are not expected to get new names until the 2023-24 school year.

The topic was not on the school board agenda, but asked about it afterward, Superintendent Melvin Brown told the Advertiser he imagines they will have identified the new names by the end of fall semester, so that the schools can be rebranded for the next school year.

The killing of Minneapolis man George Floyd by a police officer in May 2020 sparked protests across the country, including in Montgomery, where a group tore down the Lee statue from its pedestal outside the high school named for the Confederate general.

Weeks later, the board voted to rename Lee, Jefferson Davis and Sidney Lanier high schools. Lanier was later dropped from the list when the district announced the school would merge with George Washington Carver High School.

Jemma Stephenson is the children and education reporter for the Montgomery Advertiser. She can be reached at jstephenson@gannett.com or 334-261-1569.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: What you missed at the August 2022 Montgomery school board meeting