News
SUSD adds 69 positions, board approves raises, bonuses
By Philip Franchine, Sahuarita Sun
The Sahuarita school board Feb. 13 approved an increase in 69 new positions for next year, including 40 teachers and 29 other positions. The move is intended to keep pace with expected enrollment growth of five percent and to reduce class sizes in the primary school.
In other action, the board:
Approved $250 salary increases for all district employees, and heard that a one-time $200 bonus will be coming to all employees from a federal grant;
Voted to keep Sopori Elementary School as a K-6 building, rather than add seventh and eighth grade classes as previously promised. The move was done for economic reasons and to provide academic opportunity for seventh- and eighth-graders who need access to advanced high school classes.
Approved a two-year contract extension for Superintendent Jay St. John, who said it would be his last contract.
Heard that the first $9 million in bond money authorized by voters in November will be in the district by the end of the month, which will fund work an air-conditioning system at the Intermediate School gymnasium and playground equipment and shade structures; and
Approved special raises for four administrators intended to make up for past inequities.
The new positions will be added by using $998,000 in money from the K3 override approved by voters in November 2007, and $1.4 million from the district’s maintenance and operations budget.St. John noted that the increase in staff positions is about the total number of positions in the Continental School District.
Though enrollment growth could change the figures, the added positions are intended to reduce class sizes in the primary school, the goal of the K3 budget override.
St. John told the board that class sizes would be reduced considerably. The average kindergarten class size at the primary school would drop from 23 students to about 17 next year and first grade class sizes would go from about 28 to less than 22, St. John said. The average third grade class in the intermediate school would drop from 28.5 down to 19.5, he said.
The class sizes likely will change in future years with enrollment growth, but the goals are to have kindergarten classes no larger than 20 students in a class and to have classes in grades 1 to 3 that do not exceed 25 students per class.
The board approved the $250 salary increase that will cost the district a total of $175.362.45, including benefits. The raises cover 594 total employees, about two-thirds of whom are teachers, and St. John told the Governing Board that the money became available after the regular budgeting process for the current school year was completed.
The district last year approved increases that included a flat $250 increase plus a percentage of salary increase that combined produced an average 2.88 percent increase for district employees. The $250 averages out to about a 0.75 percent increase, depending on an employee’s years of service and salary, bringing the total to about 3.63 percent.
The money came from $500,000 in growth funds, an amount that was not known when the district budgeted salaries at the start of the school year in July.
“We looked at growth money, it’s just over $500,000. We need to keep a significant amount in reserve in case there are problems. My recommendation is to give a $250 flat increase to each staff. That treats beginning teachers a bit better percentage-wise than veteran teachers. We will do it in one check, adding about three/quarters of a percent. The 2.88 (percent increase announced previously) goes to about 3.5 percent,” St. John said.
St. John told the Governing Board a possible use for the growth funds would be to try to hire additional teaches to reduce class size, but said “there is no one to hire now — we can try but there is nobody to hire.”
In addition, all staff who started the school year in the district will receive $200 one-time bonuses as a result of a Title IV, Part B grant proposal written by Assistant Superintendent Manny Valenzuela under the Rural and Low Income Schools program.
That will not be a permanent salary increase, but may be renewed at the discretion of the federal Department of Education. St. John said the grant proposal noted that the district has lost employees because of low salaries, and Valenzuela said the goal of the program is to provide support to rural schools in teacher recruitment, retention, and professional development.
pfranchine@sahuaritasun.com | 547-9738
In other action, the board:
The new positions will be added by using $998,000 in money from the K3 override approved by voters in November 2007, and $1.4 million from the district’s maintenance and operations budget.St. John noted that the increase in staff positions is about the total number of positions in the Continental School District.
Though enrollment growth could change the figures, the added positions are intended to reduce class sizes in the primary school, the goal of the K3 budget override.
St. John told the board that class sizes would be reduced considerably. The average kindergarten class size at the primary school would drop from 23 students to about 17 next year and first grade class sizes would go from about 28 to less than 22, St. John said. The average third grade class in the intermediate school would drop from 28.5 down to 19.5, he said.
The class sizes likely will change in future years with enrollment growth, but the goals are to have kindergarten classes no larger than 20 students in a class and to have classes in grades 1 to 3 that do not exceed 25 students per class.
The board approved the $250 salary increase that will cost the district a total of $175.362.45, including benefits. The raises cover 594 total employees, about two-thirds of whom are teachers, and St. John told the Governing Board that the money became available after the regular budgeting process for the current school year was completed.
The district last year approved increases that included a flat $250 increase plus a percentage of salary increase that combined produced an average 2.88 percent increase for district employees. The $250 averages out to about a 0.75 percent increase, depending on an employee’s years of service and salary, bringing the total to about 3.63 percent.
The money came from $500,000 in growth funds, an amount that was not known when the district budgeted salaries at the start of the school year in July.
“We looked at growth money, it’s just over $500,000. We need to keep a significant amount in reserve in case there are problems. My recommendation is to give a $250 flat increase to each staff. That treats beginning teachers a bit better percentage-wise than veteran teachers. We will do it in one check, adding about three/quarters of a percent. The 2.88 (percent increase announced previously) goes to about 3.5 percent,” St. John said.
St. John told the Governing Board a possible use for the growth funds would be to try to hire additional teaches to reduce class size, but said “there is no one to hire now — we can try but there is nobody to hire.”
In addition, all staff who started the school year in the district will receive $200 one-time bonuses as a result of a Title IV, Part B grant proposal written by Assistant Superintendent Manny Valenzuela under the Rural and Low Income Schools program.
That will not be a permanent salary increase, but may be renewed at the discretion of the federal Department of Education. St. John said the grant proposal noted that the district has lost employees because of low salaries, and Valenzuela said the goal of the program is to provide support to rural schools in teacher recruitment, retention, and professional development.
pfranchine@sahuaritasun.com | 547-9738
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