Manatee school board to consider over $30 million in spending. You can watch and comment
The School Board of Manatee County will vote on more than $30 million in spending on Tuesday evening. The board room is closed to visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic, but residents can still view the contracts, submit public comments and watch the meeting.
Tuesday’s meeting is scheduled for 5:45 p.m. The agenda includes several big-ticket items: nearly $15 million for food services, $5.25 million for computer equipment and up to $5 million for textbooks and instructional materials, among other contracts.
Residents can watch the meeting online by visiting manateeschools.net/MSTV and clicking “MSTV Watch Live” in the sidebar. Board meetings are also broadcast on Spectrum Channel 646 and Frontier Channel 39.
To review the meeting agenda and contracts, visit manateeschools.net, hover over the “District” tab and click “School Board.” From there, click “Minutes and Agendas” in the sidebar, navigate to the April 14 meeting and click on “Agenda Packet.”
Public comments can be emailed to public_comment@manateeschools.net. Residents can also contact the board by calling (941) 708-8770, extension 41155, or sending a fax to (941) 708-8653.
Individual board members can be reached by email:
- Gina Messenger, board chair: messengerg@manateeschools.net.
- Charlie Kennedy, vice chair: kennedy2c@manateeschools.net.
- Dave Miner: minerd@manateeschools.net.
- Scott Hopes: hopess@manateeschools.net.
- James Golden: golden2j@manateeschools.net.
“Written comments should be typed and include the agenda topic, name and address of the person making the comment,” the district said on its website. “The board members, superintendent, staff and legal counsel will be provided all comments in advance of the meetings.”
Tuesday’s agenda includes several purchases related to COVID-19, a respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus. It also includes dozens of agreements linked to technology, construction, food, classroom supplies and other purchases.
Contracts related to COVID-19
The school district is requesting up to $135,000 for WiFi routers. Similar devices were installed on 25 school buses, creating a fleet of mobile internet hotspots for the community.
If approved, the district would equip another 25 school buses with internet, bringing the total to 50, and it could expand to 75 buses over time, according to the agenda.
The buses are parked throughout Manatee County, providing internet and allowing students to complete online lessons, which are scheduled through at least April 15, during the statewide closure of schools.
The district also requested nearly $130,000 to purchase a one-year subscription to LightSpeed Relay Filter, a tool that would filter content on the laptops provided to students.
A filter is needed to address “offensive content over the internet on school and library computers,” a requirement of the Children’s Internet Protection Act, the agenda states.
Meals, computers and more
The largest contract on Tuesday’s agenda is a $14.8 million request for food supplies and distributions services in the upcoming school year.
“The fixed fee of $1.39 per case includes all costs for shipping, handling, and delivery of main line foods, supplies, and commodity items for our schools,” the agenda states. “The awarded vendor will deliver an estimated 525,000 cases during an estimated 2,000 regular deliveries annually.”
District leaders also requested up to $5 million for textbooks and instructional materials, which are bought directly from publishers and the Florida School Book Depository.
Manatee spent more than $3.7 million between July 1, 2019, and March 6, according to the agenda.
“District purchases for instructional materials align with the state requirement that at least 50% of the purchases are for digital resources,” it states. “All district purchased, state-adopted materials are available in digital format as well as hard copy.”
Another $5.25 million was requested for computer equipment, along with the related services and “peripherals,” a word for external devices, such as a mouse and keyboard, for example.
Manatee spent a nearly identical amount on computer equipment, services and peripherals in the previous fiscal year.
The district also requested $1 million to replace aging technology, including “telephone systems throughout the district,” along with $1 million to purchase school supplies and furniture, and $1 million for roof installations and repairs.
In several cases, the district was requesting the ability to spend a certain amount, if needed.
“Approval of this bid does not indicate immediate or complete expenditure of approved funds,” the agenda states. “Approved funds will only be expended on an as-needed basis throughout the contract period.”
At least one item relied is linked to the one-mill increase on property taxes, approved by voters in March 2018. The referendum set aside revenue for STEM: science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
If approved, the district would spend up to $713,560 of that revenue on nine “virtual dissection tables.”
“Anatomage is offering the District a significant discount of 30%,” the agenda states. “The Anatomage table is an interactive 8-foot digital table with ultra-high quality imaging software for learning about real human anatomy.”
The board is also scheduled to approve a “guaranteed maximum price” for several construction projects.
They include $1.64 million for security fencing at nearly two dozen schools, along with $852,000 for exterior renovations at Lakewood Ranch High School and $607,000 for office repairs at Manatee Elementary School.
The board’s virtual meetings will continue “until the emergency conditions are deemed over in Manatee County by governmental authorities,” the school district said on its website.
“The agenda will be as limited as possible (matters and actions that need to be decided at this time and cannot be postponed),” the website states.