March 10, 2026 at 6:00 PM - Kingsport City Schools Board of Education Regular Meeting

Description:  Dobyns-Bennett High School student Benjamin Pittman will lead the Board of Education and audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. Benjamin is in the 11th grade.
 

Description:  Dr. Brandon Fletcher, Board President, will ask for a motion to accept the agenda, which includes the consent agenda. Once the agenda is accepted, the Board mutually agrees not to discuss any item of business or take any action that has not been accepted for the agenda.

Description:  Dr. Richard Church, Vice President of Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT)-Elizabethton, will recognize Kingsport City Schools and the Dobyns-Bennett High School Career & Technical Education (CTE) Department for being TCAT-Elizabethton's Gold Level Dual Enrollment partner for Spring 2026. KCS currently has 500 students dual enrolled at TCAT campuses or in embedded programs at Dobyns-Bennett.

Description:  Melissa Woods will recognize four Dobyns-Bennett High School seniors for being named as Finalists in the 71st Annual 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program. The students are Eesha Kothari, Arrush Nagre, Aparajita Vashisth, and Laila Venzon. This program identifies and honors the top high school students in the United States. Their remarkable achievements in the classroom, commitment to co-curricular activities, and meaningful contributions in the community set them apart.

These students will compete with the top high school students in the nation for approximately 6,900 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $26 million that will be offered this spring. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.

More than half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar title. National Merit Scholarship winners for 2026 will be announced beginning in April and concluding in July.

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Dr. Brandon Flether will recognize five Dobyns-Bennett High School seniors named as candidates in the 2026 United States Presidential Scholars Program. The students are Henry Clendennen, Benjamin Culp, Emily Doyle, Eesha Kothari, and Laila Venzon.

The U.S. Presidential Scholar is a recognition-only program and no scholarship funds are associated with this award. Application is by invitation only, based on their scores on the SAT or ACT exam or their nomination by a Chief State School Officer during their year of graduation from high school. Semifinalists will be announced in April and national winners are announced in May.

Students chosen as U.S. Presidential Scholars receive an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. in June for National Recognition Weekend featuring various events, enrichment activities and culminating in the presentation of the Presidential Scholars Medallion during a White House-sponsored ceremony.

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Public Comment Guidelines:

This is the time when members of the audience are invited to comment on agenda items. If pre-approved by the Board Executive Committee, members of the community may also address the Board regarding non-agenda items. In order to speak on a topic not included on the agenda, per Board Policy 1.404, you must submit a written request to the Superintendent of Schools at least three (3) business days before the regular meeting.  

This is not the time to speak about personnel issues, as there are more appropriate ways in which these can be addressed. If you are not sure how to do this, please ask a Board member after the meeting. In your remarks, you may not refer to students by name without permission from a parent or guardian.

Speakers are requested to first state your name and limit your remarks to a maximum of three (3) minutes.

Thank you. 

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Per Board Policy 1.600 - Policy Development and Adoption, the Board is required to renew its policies biennially. The Superintendent and Policy committee are available to review adopted policies in the Kingsport Board of Education Policy Manual:

• Section 1 — Board Operations
• Section 2 — Fiscal Management
• Section 3 —  Support Services
• Section 4 — Instructional Services
• Section 5 — Personnel
• Section 6 — Students

Link to the online Policy Manual: https://tsba.net/kingsport-city-board-of-education-policy-manual/

Description:  David Frye, Chief Finance Officer, will present FY 2026 Budget Amendment #5 for Board consideration.

Description:  Andy Arnold, Chief Technology Officer, and David Frye will present a recommendation to change from the current internet provider, Zayo Education LLC, to United Data Technologies, Inc. (UDT) using the Anderson County Schools agreement dated February 25, 2025. The estimate provided by UDT shows a monthly cost of $3,480 for the same services, which would result in a monthly cost savings of $2,365.50 and annual cost savings of approximately $28,386.00. Funding will be from the School General Purpose funds.