The Fayette Board of Education granted approval for the district to pursue four new teachers and a curriculum director at the cost of around $300,000 a year. Discussion was held during the board’s most recent meeting on Wednesday, March 15.

Also approved by the board were pay hikes for bus drivers who make trips outside of regular bus routes, including those to marching band competitions, sporting events, and field trips, a budget amendment to account for inflation, inclusion in a program aimed at curbing school violence, and a middle school course list, among others. The board also set a date for its annual awards program, which includes the Citizen of the Year award, for May 3.

The board signaled its approval to hire two new middle school teachers, along with a special education instructor, an ISS (in-school suspension) teacher, and a curriculum director. Superintendent Brent Doolin projected the cost to be at least $296,000 for all five positions. If all five are hired, the district would be deficit spending by around $60,000 a year. However, Doolin said that figure would probably be less, assessed valuation rises, and as more properties are added to the county’s property tax rolls. (Local property taxes largely fund the district.)

“It would eat up all of the $280,000 we’re in the black this year,” Doolin said. 

Other adjustments made toward next year’s budget are also slated to spend portions of that $280,000 as well, Doolin explained.

The district currently holds a fund balance of 47%, far above the board’s goal of 25%, thanks to a massive influx of government cash during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“We anticipate deficit spending for a while because our goal is to get a few things like teacher compensation, school size, and facility stuff,” said board member Shauna Young.

Clark Middle School has seen increased class sizes in recent years. In September 2021, the board approved the hiring of a third fourth-grade teacher. The board has been unanimously steadfast in its determination to keep class sizes small. Adding the teachers will lower sixth-grade class sizes from 29 to 19 students and from 28 to 19 students for seventh grade.

An additional ISS teacher would be shared between the middle and high schools. The board approved a second special education teacher last year with no applicants. It is possible the district could employ three special education teachers if all proposed positions are filled.

The district also hopes to hire a full-time curriculum director, which it has not had since 2018, when former curriculum director Jill Wiseman was promoted to district superintendent. Middle school principal Brent Doolin was named assistant superintendent. Wiseman continued her duties as curriculum director even after she was promoted. She retired from the district at the conclusion of the 2022 school year, and Doolin was promoted to full-time superintendent.

“The reason we had [the curriculum director’s] position…is very obvious to us now that we don’t have that position,” Doolin explained to the board. “It is hindering the performance of the district as a whole. There is a lot [of work] of being shared right now.”

The district would use the two new teachers to bolster middle school math, science, English, and social studies, classes. Math, science, and English all scored at 50 percent, while social studies scored at 75 percent in the latest Annual Performance Report (APR) released last month by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). The report also listed the district’s “Academic Achievement Growth” in mathematics as below average. 

In the event only one is hired, the teacher would be used to create additional math and science classes.

In other business, the board gave unanimous approval to become part of the Department of Justice Stop Violence Grant, which is being run through the University of Missouri. This program supports and assists county, local, territorial, and tribal jurisdictions in improving efforts to reduce violent crime in and around schools and would assist the district with threat assessment and crisis response teams. Part of the program monitors online traffic and alerts the district’s crisis response teams and even law enforcement if deemed serious enough. 

“If a kid uses certain verbiage that would be an alert or tag, our crisis response team would be notified,” Doolin explained.

There is no cost to the district to be a part of the program.

The board also approved better pay for activities bus drivers. Previously, drivers were paid $15 per hour up to $125. Pay is then cut in half after that threshold is reached. The new proposal cancels the threshold and pays $15 per hour for the entire trip. Overnight trips are capped at 15 hours.

“Gary was having a hard time finding bus drivers for some of our longer trips,” Doolin explained.

The annual board awards will take place on Wednesday, May 3. Board members award certificates to middle and high school students who have met academic achievements. The board also bestows its annual Citizen of the Year award during the program. The time of the award program has not been announced. In the past, the board has split the high school and middle school awards into two programs.

The board regularly meets at 6:30 p.m. on the third Wednesday of every month except for July. The next meeting will take place on Monday, April 17, at 6:30 p.m. for the annual reorganizational meeting following the April 4 school board elections. Fayette will not hold a formal election since three candidates filed for the three open seats. Running are two-term incumbent Shauna Young and first-term incumbents Sarah Wies and Aaron Bentley.