MANCHESTER — Mid-July meetings of the city's Board of School Committee can heat up for reasons beyond the temperature outside. Tonight could be one of those nights.

Though not specifically mentioned in the agenda for tonight's meeting (which gets under way at 7 p.m. at City Hall), Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas said Sunday night that he expects to hear from individuals who question whether city officials filed the proper paperwork to secure a partnership with the University of New Hampshire (UNH) to train and certify more teachers in English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), which was eventually awarded to the Nashua school district.

“There are people who are questioning whether we did all we could, if the proper paperwork was submitted, to put the city in the running for that grant,” said Gatsas.

In May, UNH received a $1.8 million National Professional Development grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition to increase the academic achievement of English learners in public schools, particularly in math and science. UNH then announced a partnership with Nashua. The five-year grant will be used to fund “GATE CITY: Getting All Teachers ESOL Certified in Two+ Years,” a program designed to increase the number of grade-level teachers in Nashua, with a concentration in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) content areas, who have ESOL certification.

“The Nashua school district is extremely excited to partner with UNH on the five-year grant. The district has seen a 28 percent increase in students actively receiving English language learner services in the last five years. As Nashua's diversity increases, it's imperative that our teachers have the instructional skills to educate the children in our schools,” said Bob Cioppa, coordinator of the Nashua School District English Language Learner (ELL) program, in a statement issued when the partnership was announced.

Given the cultural diversity that exists in Manchester (there are 53 languages spoken by students in the Nashua school district, compared to 80 at Manchester Central High School), Gatsas said there are some who question whether Queen City officials did enough to put local schools in the running for a partnership with UNH.

“I think once they see the paperwork, they'll understand the city did what it could,” said Gatsas.

According to project director Judy Sharkey, associate professor and associate director of teacher education at UNH, the university plans to offer an on-site program in Nashua that will allow 80 teachers and educational professionals to earn their ESOL certification, with the priority on STEM content teachers. In addition to providing this professional development to teachers and schools, UNH also will work closely with researchers at Kansas State University to examine how the professional development is affecting teacher practices and student learning.

Also on tonight's agenda are discussions on student policies regarding absenteeism and paraprofessional safety guidelines.

Gatsas said there has been no movement in recent days regarding contract talks between the city and the teachers union.

“The last sit-down we had with them was about 10 days ago,” said Gatsas. “It was a good discussion, but right now we don't have a date set for another round.”

Attempts to reach Manchester Education Association President Benjamin Dick for comment last night were unsuccessful.

pfeely@unionleader.com