Agenda - 09-30-2014 - 1-5 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Chapel Hill --- Carrboro City Schools 2014 -16 Operating Budget Message The General Assembly has approved the new state budget and it has been signed by the Governor. Now that the state budget has been finalized, we have analyzed its impact on our local operational plan. Administration is presenting budget recommendations this evening for Board approval as well as approval of the associated budget resolutions. Key highlights of the state budget include sizeable teacher raises and a modification of the state teacher salary schedule to a five -step schedule. Teacher raises range from less than 1 percent to almost 20 percent, depending on where one falls on the schedule. Teachers will no longer receive longevity; rather the new schedule includes it. The state provided for either a 1.8 percent increase or $1,000 for building administrators and a $500 increase for classified employees and central office administrators. Other budget changes included small cuts to central office and transportation. The state budget also reduces the teacher assistant allotment by 22 percent. State leaders have stated that this money has been shifted to teacher positions to lower class sizes in elementary grades. As a result our district will receive additional teacher positions this year. State leaders have also stated that local districts have the flexibility to move the money back to teacher assistants. While this is true, that flexibility is limited in that we may only exchange the new teacher positions for dollars at the lowest step on the teacher schedule. As a result, to offset the 22 percent reduction, we would need to exchange 8 more teacher positions than the extra positions received. This is clearly not desired and our recommendations in the abstract reflect this. There were small reductions to transportation and central office. Another provision in the state budget states, "Local boards of education shall submit proposals to establish a local program to provide differentiated pay for highly effective classroom teachers to the Senate Appropriations /Base Budget Committee, the House Committee on Appropriations, and the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee by January 15, 2015. As part of our strategic plan, we have been working on a local program for this purpose. Compensation work is extremely complex and will require the assistance and expertise from outside experts. We are recommending that $150,000 be included in the local operational plan to support the creation of a new compensation plan in collaboration with our teachers. 1 —1