Amid ongoing budget discussions for fiscal year 2024-25, RISD trustees and officials laid out three potential compensation proposals during an April 18 work session that leaders said they hope will make the district more competitive at attracting and retaining talent.
“We need to find space in the budget to compensate our staff, make sure that we are hiring the best teachers, keeping the best teachers in our classroom,” Superintendent Tabitha Branum said at the meeting.
In a nutshell
Chris Goodson, assistant superintendent of human resources, said the starting salary for a new teacher with no experience is $60,000, which is lower than other districts in the area, such as Garland ISD, Lewisville ISD and Arlington ISD.
Under compensation plan options A and B, new teacher salaries would start at $61,000. Based on years of experience, teaching staff—which includes nurses, counselors and librarians—would receive annual increases between 2.5%-3.75%. Options A and B also both call for increasing the pay of other staff members, such as paraprofessionals and custodial staff. Option A would cost the district an expected $11.1 million annually, while Option B would cost about $12.7 million annually, Goodson said.
Branum called Option C, which also includes increasing the starting salary for new hires to $61,000, a “completely new way of looking at compensation.” Under the proposal, the district would do away with percentage increases for years of experience among teaching staff and give those types of staff members a $500 salary increase for each year of experience below 10 years and a $1,000 salary increase for each year above that. Most other types of staff would see a 3% salary increase. Option C would cost RISD an expected $18 million annually and make it one of the highest paying districts in the region for teachers with 10 or more years of experience.
“We consider it to be a one-time reset of the new hiring salary schedule. ... We believe that this is an opportunity to be a differentiator when it comes to staffing and compensation,” Branum said at the meeting.
At the meeting, trustees signaled support of Option C. However, no decision or vote was taken.
The context
Addressing compensation packages is one of a number of proposals recommended by a Community Budget Steering Committee aimed at helping the district prioritize budget resources and addressing an up to $28 million shortfall in FY 2024-25. Other measures include consolidating certain elementary campuses, which trustees approved March 22.
The FY 2024-25 budget is expected to be the fifth consecutive budget shortfall adopted by the board. Branum previously said the district’s past and future expected budgetary issues stem from a lack of increase to public education funding from the Texas Legislature since FY 2018-19 and a decline in enrollment.
“The need to become and remain competitive for top teachers and staff was the primary driver of the work of our Community Budget Steering Committee, and is the primary reason we have had to be so aggressive in cost reductions and maximizing our operating efficiencies,” Branum said in a news release.
What’s next?
Trustees could take potential action on teacher and staff compensation at its May 2 meeting ahead of plans to adopt the FY 2024-25 budget in June.
