How we got here
Last July, trustees also approved an average 3% increase for teachers and staff as well as upped the starting teacher pay to $62,400 for fiscal year 2023-24, Community Impact reported.
“As we look at the numbers in this current year, and in looking ahead to the next fiscal year, there is good news—part of this comes from the underspending in our budget, alongside potential student gains from enrollment,” board President Victor Perez said in a KISD news release.
The backstory
During the previous board meeting May 6, Chief Financial Officer Christopher Smith projected the district faces a $7.8 million shortfall for the FY 2024-25 budget, which didn't include staff raises.
Superintendent Ken Gregorski said staff were discussing a potential 2% increase in compensation, Community Impact reported. Smith said a 1% raise for staff would add roughly $7.3 million to the shortfall, but noted it could be paid through the district’s reserve funds.
Digging deeper
Perez said he met with Smith and other staff between the May 6 and May 13 meetings to discuss the salary increase, where officials found the budget allowed them to be flexible and provide the 3% raise. He said due to underspending in the ongoing 2023-24 budget and dipping into the district's reserve funds, staff said they believe they can potentially eliminate the projected FY 2024-25 shortfall.
"In the past, we have made recommendations of a percentage raise from the midpoint of the pay grades," Gregorski said. "I don't know if that's the intention of this board, but I want to make sure it's on the record accurately so when [Chief Human Resources Officer Brian] Schuss does the compensation plan and does those things that he will bring forward in June to the board, that he has those numbers accurate for the board."
Board members confirmed it's a midpoint pay raise.
What’s next
The next board workshop will be June 3. Trustees will approve the FY 2024-25 budget in August.
