The Opp City Board of Education met in closed session for approximately 20 minutes Tuesday before approving its personnel changes.

The board accepted the retirement or resignations of:

• Jeff Rhodes as cooperative education teacher;

• Chris Dunbar as teacher at Opp Middle School;

• Todd Fleming as bus driver; and,

• Kenya Martin as counselor at Opp Elementary School.

The board did not renew contracts for:

• Britney Farmer as teacher at OMS (emergency hire);

• Jim Larson as teacher/coach at OMS;

• Lynn Freeney as teacher at OES;

• Jody Adams as teacher at OMS;

• Adrian Horstead as teacher at OHS; and,

• Connie Qualls as LPN at OES.

The board transferred Tonya McCurley from secretary at the board of education to secretary at OHS.

The board approved employment offers for:

• Willie Edwards as the head boys basketball coach (non faculty);

• Chris Caldwell as agriscience/cooperative ed teacher and career tech director; and,

• Erika Rhodes as English teacher at OHS.

In unrelated business, it approved an amendment to its 2015 budget which includes a one-time discretionary state special education grant of $58,000.

OCS Special Education Coordinator Sharon Spurlin said the system applied for a grant to purchase software programs.

“This will help close the gap between special education and regular education test scores,” Spurlin said. “It will also provide teacher training to have a better rapport between teachers and students with education.”

Spurlin said that representatives from OCS recently traveled to Mobile to observe the Champs program.

“It’s a really good program,” she said.

Additionally, the budget amendment included budgeting stipends for summer professional development at $20,897, budgeted advanced placement grant of $20,190, budgeted part time summer labor workers at $10,266, budgeted for summer school at $5,100 and other miscellaneous line item adjustments.

In other business, the board:

• approved the April financials with bank reconciliations;

• approved the low bid of $38,703.80 for weight equipment at Opp High School from ProMaxima Company;

• approved the city schools to become a summer feeding program, which would make all three lunchrooms available Monday through Thursday for lunch and breakfast beginning June 1 through July 16. (Meals are provided at no cost to any person age 18 and under. Anyone over 18 wishing to purchase a meal can do so for $1.50 for breakfast, and $2.50 for lunch.)