# Board of Education Meeting Stream - October 20, 2026


**Body:** Pender County Schools
**Date:** October 19, 2026
**Jurisdiction:** SLED

**Tags:** Education, Construction & Infrastructure, Physical Infrastructure


Pender County Schools Board of Education meeting, October 20, 2026. The county provided an update on a proposed combined fleet garage for school buses, county vehicles, and emergency-services vehicles. The county selected Samet through a design-build process; prior phases were approved at $153,950 for master planning/programming and $106,150 for entitlements and rezoning. A design-and-permitting phase estimated at about $1.3 million would require County Commissioners’ approval, and the project team expects hard construction-cost figures roughly nine to ten months after design authorization. The school board took no action on the project. The board also discussed a dedicated outdoor air system for Pender High School’s food and nutrition lab: staff identified a compatible unit priced at $158,000, compared with an earlier estimate of $199,000, and plan to seek lottery funding. Approval was expected at a later meeting after documentation is completed. Change orders and pay applications for JH Lee, MVP, and Bordeaux projects were also noted as future agenda items; no amounts or approvals were stated.

The district reported a total budget of $155,740,575.11, including a $34,166,782 local budget and $15.7 million in capital outlay, which includes carryover and reimbursable project funds; the full budget was scheduled for a later approval. The board discussed child nutrition costs and asked staff to place meal pricing on the next meeting agenda. It also raised concerns about custodial contractor HES staffing and service, with a follow-up plan and a possible joint job fair involving custodial, nutrition, and transportation roles. The first read of 40 policy revisions was presented, with a second read planned for November. The agenda was adopted unanimously, but no new contract award or purchase approval was made during the meeting.

**Source:** Pender County Schools