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Duneland School board considers changing pay range for aides

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By LILY REX

The Duneland School Board held off on lowering the ceiling for pay for non-benefited classified hourly staff at its meeting Monday.

Duneland Human Resources Manager Regan Keating recommended the Board approve a raise for non-benefited classified hourly employees and consider lowering the top end of the pay range for those employees.

Non-benefited classified employees, such as aides and food service staff, are paid between $11 and $15 per hour based on experience. Keating proposed reducing the ceiling for the range from $15 per hour to $14.50 per hour because she found the maximum hourly pay Duneland offers to those employees is a bit higher than the offerings at other comparable schools.

Actual compensation for those employees trends lower at Duneland when compared to other schools, and a raise of 25 cents per hour keeps up with cost of living, per data from the Social Security Administration, according to Keating. Keating said reducing the ceiling for the pay range wouldn’t affect any current employees, most of whom are closer to the lower end.

The Board voted to approve the raise, but tabled the matter of lowering the ceiling for the pay range at the behest of member Alayna Lightfoot Pol. Pol said she wanted to further discuss changing the range when the full board was present. Board President Brandon Kroft and member John Marshall were unable to attend Monday’s meeting.

2020-2021 Calendar

Duneland Schools Superintendent Dr. Chip Pettit reported Duneland is dropping an eLearning day from the 2020-2021 calendar, so eLearning will only be used on election days (May 4, 2021 and Nov. 3, 2020) and for inclement weather closures. Board Secretary Ron Stone was happy with the change.

School will start for the 2020-2021 school year Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020 and the year will end Wednesday, May 26, 2021. In an effort to minimize student conflicts due to Memorial Day and athletic events, the class of 2021 will graduate on a Wednesday: June 2. Spring break will be March 22 to 26, 2021.

Students will have an extra day of winter break so teachers can have a professional development day Jan. 4, 2021. Teachers will also have a professional development Day Oct. 22, 2020, the day before fall break, and there will be no school. On that day parents are also invited to make appointments for parent-teacher conferences between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Pettit said he anticipates all teachers will be able to accommodate parents that day.

Athletics

The Board approved several expenses for CHS athletics, including $6,000 to get a rolling flag for the gym, $6,500 for electrical work in the gym, a new gymnastics vault table $4,600, some new electronics in the pool room for $2,665, and $500 for a new radar gun for baseball and softball. The total is approximately $20,000 to be paid from the general sports budget. Athletics Director Gary Nallenwag said the Athletics Department is also looking into buying a new set of gymnastics bars, estimated cost between $5,000 and $7,000, next year.

In other athletics business, the Board approved $2,000 annual stipends for seasonal athletic supervisors Fred Mitchell and Adam Tenbarge.

Other Approvals

The Board approved paperwork that will allow Wellness for Life, the company that runs the School wellness clinics, to pursue a joint venture partnering with Proactive MSO. The new entity will be called Proactive MD.

The joint venture doesn’t constitute any changes to the agreement in place with Wellness for Lifer or the wellness program itself, but Wellness for Life is pursuing the joint venture to hopefully expand services, Assistant Superintendent Robert McDermott said.

The Board also approved a resolution to close the accounting year; conducted a first reading on a group of policy updates, and approved another group on final reading; and approved annual travel stipends of $3,000 for Director of Support Services Greg Lindy and $1,500 for the Assistant Athletic Director. Reasons for the stipends are that Lindy was not given a district vehicle for work-related travel this year, and the assistant athletic director is a new position that requires travel, Pettit said.

PR Information

Public Relations Director Bridget Martinson reported Freshman parent night is tonight, Thursday, Dec. 12 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the CHS cafeteria.

CHS is also sponsoring their holiday food drive, as usual. Donations of both food and cash will be accepted through Dec. 12 at the CHS main office.

Martinson said parents and students should look out for a new Duneland Schools website. First the main website will change, either before or during winter break. The individual school websites will follow suit later.

Superintendent’s Comments

Pettit noted achievements by Westchester Intermediate’s Spell Bowl and Robotics teams. Pettit also said Brummitt Elementary and Chesterton Middle School were recognized as Common Sense schools for their efforts in teaching digital citizenship.

Pettit said digital media and technology are evolving at a dizzying pace, and staff at Brummitt and CMS are preparing students to both be creative with media and know the newest risks of online activity. “We commend both CMS and Brummitt for being at the forefront of teaching our students the digital citizenship skills they need,” he said.

Pettit also praised the recent madrigal dinner, an event he said is unique to the Duneland community, and wished everyone peace, health, and happiness this holiday season.

 

 

Posted 12/12/2019

 
 
 
 

 

 

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