Chamois R-1 staff to get raise in 2022-23

By Theresa Brandt, Staff Writer
Posted 3/16/22

Chamois R-1 school board members last Wednesday approved a pay raise for all employees. Certified staff will see a $1,000 increase as well as an additional step on the salary schedule. The current …

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Chamois R-1 staff to get raise in 2022-23

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Chamois R-1 school board members last Wednesday approved a pay raise for all employees. Certified staff will see a $1,000 increase as well as an additional step on the salary schedule. The current base salary for certified staff is $30,100. Salaries for certified staff will cost the district a total of $1,415,206 per year with benefits, an increase of $36,098.

Board member Nick Schollmeyer asked if there were any budgetary concerns if the raises were approved. 

“With reserves and projected revenues, it is the right time to make that commitment,” Superintendent Lyle Best said. “My recommendation is to do as much as we can.”

Best noted that even with increased salaries, Chamois R-1 still ranks toward the bottom for salaries for teachers in the area.

The board also approved a 5% pay increase for non-certified staff, which will cost the district a total of $389,828 per year with a budget increase of $15,066.

“This one is pretty easy,” Best said. “The five percent increase will keep (non-certified staff) above the state minimum wage next year. Even though we’re not required to meet that, it does give us a target.”

School administrators will get a 2.5% increase and board members approved the extra-duty schedule with two changes. The first change was to increase the rate of pay the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) sponsor receives from 3.5% to 4.5%. 

The FBLA sponsorship was set at 3.5% last year when the program was restarted.

“The increase will align with some of the other sponsorships,” Best explained. “I believe our program has done well and so it needs an increase based on performance and the effort of the sponsor.”

A 2% base pay was also added for the yearbook sponsor. 

“This was taken out when it was considered part of the school day, but we have a sponsor doing a lot of things outside the school day, like taking pictures,” Best explained. “I do believe it is justified.”

School board members also approved the 2022-23 calendar, which will have 163 student school days and 172 total teacher days. The biggest change for the upcoming school year will be that the district will make up the first five snow days of the year in May 2023.

“I added the variation to make up the first five days of school due to weather even though we are not required to based on the hours but based on what is best for the students,” Best said. 

He explained that while the school district keeps asking teachers to show better student performance, the number of days students are in the classroom continues to decrease. 

“We don’t have to make up anything,” Best explained. “We meet the requirements. My concern is after a couple of years of doing that, what is the cumulative effect? Are we doing enough?”

Best admitted that making up snow days when it is not required is not popular with staff or students, but he worries that the missing hours do negatively impact the education of the students.

Best and school board members saw the benefit of having a spring break and having days off through the year to give students a break. The logical conclusion was to add the five days, if needed, to the end of the school year.

“It might be challenging to teach in the middle of May, but I think it can be done if teachers make it a priority,” Best said. “The students will feed off of the teachers.”

Schollmeyer was one of the first school board members to agree with Best, citing his concern over the low test scores the school district continues to see on the standardized testing.

“I’m the guy, that when the test scores come out, I have concerns,” Schollmeyer said.

The 2022-23 school year will begin with a full week of school on Aug. 22. Students will have Christmas break from Dec. 22, 2022, through Jan. 3, 2023. There will be several days off for students scattered throughout the late winter early spring months, including Jan. 15, Jan. 30, Feb. 20, March 10, and March 13. Chamois students will have a shorter spring break (April 6-10), and the last day of classes for students will be May 9. If days need to be made up due to inclement weather, the last day of school will be May 16. The snow days will not push back graduation and graduating seniors will not be expected to come back to class after their graduation date. 

* School board members also approved a budget amendment as presented. The main change was to increase the amount of federal revenue from $211,262 to $429,122 due to the influx of funds from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund. 

* Board members discussed how they would like to move forward with facilities projects and financing. Best provided them with additional information comparing leases and bonds and the cost differences of each.

If the school district wants to put a bond issue before voters in August, board members need to make that decision and be prepared to move forward at the April meeting.

Best noted that in reviewing the school’s financials, the district has been responsible in its handling of finances.

“We’ve been talking about these things for a while and if it’s the right thing to do,” Best said. “The influx of ESSER funds kinda pushed us forward because we have $500,000, we didn’t have before to use the best way possible. I think it is definitely the right time.”

Board members were less sure that now was the right time to move forward with such a big addition.  

“I was one of the biggest proponents (of the addition),” Board President Steve Cramer said. “I want to do it, but the costs of construction right now are high.”

Board member Glen Keilholz agreed, proposing that the school district consider building a smaller addition with more classroom space to eliminate the trailers and not enclose the larger area between the buildings.

“We have plenty of other high-dollar items that wouldn’t require either the bond issue or a lease,” Best agreed, noting that the heating system needed repairs or replacement and the parking lots could be paved. 

Board members will discuss the facilities plan and potential financing at the next meeting.

* The school district received an allocation of $7,000 from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) for supply-chain issues. The money must be used within the next two years. There is a limited list of items that the money can be used for, and the school district must track those expenditures. Allowable items include milk, meat, grains, fruits, and vegetables.

* Best said four different contractors came to the school and look at the boilers and the heating system and asked what their suggestions are for repairing them.

“We would like to correct some of our issues,” Best explained. “We would like to know what they believe would help us to not have an overheated room and other rooms that are cold.” 

The school has been having trouble throughout the winter regulating the temperatures in the classrooms. Their bids are due in mid-March and will be presented to the school board at the April meeting.

In other news regarding the boilers, the district has received a check from the insurance company for the heat exchanger that had needed to be replaced last year, minus the $1,000 for the deductible. 

The district is still waiting to hear back from the insurance company on the heat exchanger that needs to be replaced from this year. 

* Best updated the school board on the recent change to the school district’s Safe Return to In-Person and Continuity of Services Plan (SRCSP). The school district has received additional rapid COVID-19 tests from the state of Missouri, so staff is able to test if needed. 

Best also noted that the federal masking requirements for buses in no longer being enforced and that the order is slated to be dropped soon.

“For all intents and purposes, the order is no longer in place,” Best said.

He noted that any students or drivers that choose to wear a mask are welcome to do so.

* The school is scheduled to have an indoor air quality audit on March 22. Children’s Mercy Hospital and the Missouri School Board Association (MSBA) will be funding the audit that will take air samples and give the school suggestions on how to improve air quality.

Best noted that the service has been popular in the last several years because of COVID-19 and that he is excited to see the results and have the services provided free of charge to the school district.

* Outstanding expenses for the month were approved totaling $61,470.71.

* Chamois R-1 has the following ending balances for their accounts: general ($1,873,963), special ($179,694), and capital projects ($151,343). 

SUPERINTENDENT REPORT

Best noted that ESSER III Funds have been approved through the Missouri House and Senate and are available for school districts to request.  The funds will be available over the next several years.

* Best noted that it was a big week for education bills.

“This was a big week for them to pass bills related to education,” Best said.

He provided a quick overview of several of the bills and how they make affect the school district. 

— HB 1814 regarding open enrollment bill passed through the House by a few votes and will be going to the Senate. 

“Regardless of whether anyone thinks if it is good or bad, if it does pass the Senate, it will change the way we do things,” Best said. 

— Best described SB 681 as a reading intervention bill. He was not exactly sure of how this bill was different than what the school district is currently required to do.

— HB 2366 on gifted education would require any school to have a gifted program if 5% of their student population tested as gifted. Small schools would not have to have a staff member who is certified to teach gift students but is required to have a gifted program.

— HB 1903 deals with virtual education and would allow any request for virtual learning to be approved at the district’s expense.

— HB 1468 would require school districts to include information on vaping and vaping products into the school curriculum.

— HB 1469 is titled as a high-needs fund. Best explained that while this program exists now to help school districts with the added expense of teaching students with special needs, this bill attempts to lower the threshold so that schools can be compensated for expenses.

— HB 1881 is trying to assist areas with critical shortages of teachers by allowing more flexibility for retired teachers who wish to teach in these areas. 

— HB 2365 deals with the Early Childhood Assurance Program. Chamois R-1 is currently a part of this pilot program and this bill is working to make the program permanent. 

“They are trying to determine which program best supports the early childhood development program, it is something you want to be a part of,” Best explained. 

* Best noted that the school district will be working with Brown and Schmidt Consulting in the upcoming school year. The service was recommended to the school district and Dr. Jill Brown will start working with elementary teachers in Language Arts. The goal is to get all elementary teachers comfortable with a similar benchmark assessment and a procedure to follow up with students who require additional help. Dr. Brown will also be looking at materials the school district uses to teach reading and what materials are used in intervention services.

“I think this is going to be a good resource for us and provide quality services to all of the teachers and help them with our instruction,” Best said. “We hope to see some gains down the road.”

* Best also reviewed the rough projections for revenues for next year and sees few changes for the upcoming fiscal year.

“We don’t anticipate much change in county revenue,’ Best explained. “We may be looking at a little more money from the state for transportation. The biggest change in federal is the ESSER III money. All in all, right now, we’re not looking at a huge change in revenue.”

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Principal Jeremey McKague noted that he had a lot of good news to report, noting the sixth-grade team earned first place at the Elementary Knowledge Bowl. 

* Tyler Brandt and Carter Brandt are both finalists in the Three Rivers Electric Co-op Essay contest.

* FBLA will be taking eight students to the state contest in Springfield April 10-12.

* The junior class was scheduled to take the ACT on campus, free of charge, last week. 

* Student council members raised $250 that they will donate to the American Cancer Society.

* There will be two more lunch-and-learns for students this month, and a blood drive is scheduled for March 28.

* A basketball summer shootout will be hosted this summer. High school boys are scheduled for June 1, junior high boys on June 2, high school girls will be announced later, and junior high girls will shoot on June 3. An elementary basketball camp is scheduled for June 6-9.

* The Educator’s Rising Club has four members, and they will be attending teacher career day at the University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) on March 24.

* The school’s Media Class will be attending high school Journalism Day at MU on April 5.