City School Board Approves Tentative Budget, Nutrition Applications

The Board of Education for the Jackson Independent School District met in regular session on Tuesday, April 28, to approve applications for food service and to approve several reports.

With three members present and one joining by video, the Board approved several applications to the Kentucky Department for Education for food services support for the upcoming 2026-2027 school year.

The Board unanimously approved a KED Community Eligibility Provision Intent to Participate statement, a School Community Nutrition Policy Statement, and a Federal Child Nutrition Direct Cost Assurance application. 

According to school officials, the three applications will help Jackson City School continue its school nutrition programs in the next school year.

Superintendent Wayne Sizemore said that the school currently has approximately 62% of its students who qualify for free or reduced breakfast and lunch.

The Board also approved an application to help fund the Summer Feeding Program, which is planned to begin on June 1 if approved.  Sizemore said that the school would continue to provide food at the same site it used last year and would continue the program if the application is approved in the next few weeks.

Sizemore discussed several anticipated changes following the recent session of the Kentucky General Assembly.  He told board members that the district would wait for guidance documents from the Kentucky School Boards Association.  He noted that changes were expected in the SEEK funding calculation and other areas, but noted that transportation assistance would be largely unchanged.

The Superintendent discussed the SAT scores, which were returned to the school system but have not been released.  Sizemore said the SAT scores were “new territory” and that the school did not currently have state standards to compare them to, since it was the first year of mandatory testing using the new exam.

The Board discussed the purchase and installation of a new book vending machine for the library with assistance from the Jackson Independent Foundation.  Officials expect the new machine to be installed in the next two weeks and will help improve literacy scores at the school.

Superintendent Sizemore told board members that the district had turned over 86 delinquent tax bills to the clerk and sheriff for sale to individuals and businesses that have failed to pay their taxes to the district.  The district hopes to recover several thousand dollars in outstanding taxes.

In other action, Sizemore announced that the school’s Site-Based Decision-Making Council had hired Cassidy “Kat” Marshall as the track and field coach and Dewey A. Mullins as the junior varsity baseball coach.

The Board also approved the 2026-2028 Family Resource Center contract, a form for parents and guardians to allow the school to share information with outside agencies, a contract with Chris Gooch of Hazard to complete the annual audit, and a tentative budget.

The members of the Board first discussed and approved the preliminary budget at the February meeting.  Sizemore told the Board that “nothing really changed” since then, but that several “unknowns” remain to be answered before the final budget is approved.

Members also discussed recent farm program events, election-day procedures, and teacher appreciation week activities at the school.

The forty-eight-minute meeting also included the approval of the minutes from the March 24 meeting and the passage of the district's financial reports.