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28 <br /> <br />The District has identified the need to create an additional thirteen classes in the kindergarten to <br />third-grade levels to meet the requirements of North Carolina House Bill 90. Chapel Hill – <br />Carrboro City Schools has historically maintained a teacher assistant per classroom in the <br />kindergarten to third-grade levels. It is recommended to hire an additional thirteen teacher <br />assistants to serve with the new classes. By using an average teacher assistant salary and <br />matching benefits cost, the estimated cost incurred will be about $488,000. <br /> <br />Remove Supplement Cap on Certified Employees <br />(Strategic Plan Goal: Employee Experience) <br />Certified staff hired after July 1, 2016, who had several years of teaching experience, were no <br />longer eligible to earn a higher supplement percentage, 20% or 25%. We have identified the <br />employees who are part of that cohort of employees and determined that it would cost the <br />District about $166,000 in additional local funds to provide the higher supplement rate to those <br />certified staff members. <br /> <br />Parental Leave and/or FMLA <br />(Strategic Plan Goal: Employee Experience) <br />Parental leave would provide multiple important benefits for our employees, their families, and <br />children. Providing paid parental leave will assist the District in enhancing the employee <br />experience. Parental leave supports parent-child bonding, improves children's outcomes, and <br />may increase gender equity in the workplace. Historical data was used to determine an average <br />of 75 employees annually were on FLMA for the birth of a child or adoption. We recommend <br />providing parental leave supplemental income for up to six weeks at 100%. This will help the <br />District provide a competitive benefit to attract and retain our teaching staff. Using the historical <br />data, the estimated cost incurred from this benefit would be $568,000. <br /> <br />2 Days Paid Salary for Inclement Weather <br />(Strategic Plan Goal: Employee Experience) <br />In the last few years, the District has repeatedly encountered closings due to inclement weather <br />such as hurricanes, snow, and flooding. This request would fund two full days of salaries for all <br />10-month employed staff (teachers, teacher assistants, child nutrition, and transportation) in the <br />event of future closures. The cost incurred would be $360,000. <br /> <br />Expansion Summary <br />The total of these Expansion Request items is $4,642,500, which is about $377 per pupil. <br />Through our work with strategic plan alignment, along with a focus on providing some flexibility <br />in resource allocation, we feel we can further maximize the District's resources in more targeted <br />efforts. This will allow for each school to meet their unique needs and align with their school <br />improvement plans. Supporting our student's needs, and fostering an improved employee <br />experience through additional benefits, the CHCCS Board of Education respectively ask the <br />county for funding related to the above expansion items. <br /> <br />Fund Balance <br />We currently estimate our fiscal year end unassigned fund balance at $12.1 million. This is <br />approximately $7.9 million above our minimum target of 5.5% or $4.2 million. The District <br />historically has assigned $1 million to balance the current local operating budget. Over the past <br />few years, that amount has varied as the Board and District has appropriated funds for capital <br />projects as well as dealing with compression in the classified salary schedules. We recommend <br />appropriating $1,968,500. <br /> <br />Summary FY 2020-21 Budget Request