Kennett Consolidated School District Assistant Superintendent Michael Barber will fill the administrative gap between the retirement of Superintendent Dusty Blakey and the arrival of newly hired Superintendent Kimberly Rizzo Saunders.

Barber, who earned his doctorate of education degree from Temple University, held the position of high school principal from 2007 to 2015. He then took the position of assistant superintendent for the district, which he has held since then.

Barber will hold superintendent seat for the time period that arises from the gap between Blakey departing and Saunders arriving—a period that extends from July 27 to Aug. 22.

The board approved his appointment unanimously at the June 10 meeting in Kennett Square.

Barber was congratulated by his colleagues at the meeting, but he replied that he prefers to be part of the team that keeps the school operations flowing, and that is why he did not apply for the  superintendent position when it was open.

Also at the meeting, district CFO Mark Tracy announced that the final operating budget for 2024-25 will increase by $390,000 more than the $103.7 million reported in April, but that amount will be covered by the school’s savings account.

Under the new spending plan, district property owners will pay $2.8 percent more in school property taxes than they did last year—as reported in the April meeting.

Tracy added that bids for the construction of the new Greenwood Elementary School will be opened on July 17.

In other business:

The board unanimously approve a contract with Guadalupe Meza to perform bilingual substance abuse screening at $75 an hour. According to the contract, Meza will screen students for drug abuse “in home, at school, in the community and day or night.”

Meza is instructed in the contract to follow all district policies and adhere to student confidentiality.

Tracy reported that work is proceeding on the new Kennett High School sign, which was designed by the students and will be on display at the corner of South and Union Streets. Stakes and connecting strings are visible, showing the outline of the future sign. The sign designs were already submitted to, and approved by, the Borough of Kennett Square.

Dave Brice, of the KCSD facilities department, said work will start soon on new roofs for Mary D. Lang Kindergarten and the high school as well as replacement of the gym floor.

There were two requests for student trips to France: One for detailed study of World War II and the other for in-home visits to Canada and France to enhance language understanding.

The board approved the World War trip, with board member Lenda Carrillo asking if there are any accommodations for students who cannot afford the $5,000 cost.

Blakey said there is no direct program, but the district has connections with community members who routinely help out in that capacity.

The board also approved a request by two students to form a new club to watch movies and comment on them. The board members recommended that the movies the students choose adhere to acceptable social standards of decency.