The Lauderdale County School District Board of Education approved a $246,244 grant from the Phil Hardin Foundation during a school board meeting Thursday evening.

The grant money will be used to purchase 156 digital screens, Apple TVs and iPads, which will be used by teachers during classroom instruction. The Phil Hardin Foundation will distribute the grant between 2020 and 2021.

Superintendent John-Mark Cain said updating technology has been a goal and is part of the district’s strategic plan. Cain said the elementary and middle schools have access to technology but the high schools are still lacking. 

“We have classrooms that don’t have the technology,” Cain said.

The district tested some technology last year through a pilot program in several classrooms and received positive feedback from teachers, Cain said. He also spoke with students who are part of the state superintendent’s advisory council about concerns of not having technology in the classroom.

The district wants to make sure teachers are trained in the technology before expanding it to other grades and students, Cain said. The goal is to have students use the technology inside and outside the classroom as a tool in preparing them for the future, he said.

Cain said he is thankful the Phil Hardin Foundation is helping the district with the endeavor.

In other business, the board voted 3-2 in approving GradeResults’ service contract, pending a financial contract from the board attorney. The online program is intended to decrease the district’s dropout rate. GradeResults is an online resource that will help students get a high school diploma.

The program is geared for individuals ages 15-21 who dropped out of high school, home-schooled students, students who have been adjudicated and students struggling to meet graduation requirements.

The district’s graduation rate for the school year 2018-19 was 84 percent, according to The Mississippi Department of Education.

The plan is to have participants graduate with a high school diploma from the Lauderdale County School District.

Eighty percent of the classes will be online and students will be provided a laptop with internet access. The program will also provide one-on-one instruction and will offer an on-site project manager to meet with students to discuss test results.

Chris Lee a representative from GradeResults said a plan is in the works of getting around 200 students back in school to graduate and working with Camp Shelby. Lee said students who are from the district will get a high school diploma from the district and if a student transfers to a program in another state, they will receive a diploma in that state.

“A lot of students don’t have a chance so we would like to bring them back and get a high school diploma,’ Lee said.

Lauderdale County is the second school district in Mississippi after Vicksburg that will use GradeResults.

During an Oct.10 meeting board members raised concerns about how students in another district used the program and if the program meets state graduation requirements. Board members decided more time was needed to review the proposal before making a decision.

During Thursday’s meeting, the board raised concerns about certain criteria for students to be part of GradePlus so people will not take advantage of the program. Cain said the board will work together to make sure students not meeting the criteria will be severed. The board will meet at another date to approve the financial side of the contract.

The board also approved a bid to replace Chromebooks in the district. The district plans to replace around 1,000 Chromebooks at a cost of $169 per Chromebook. The Chromebooks should last for six years and will come with software.