Staffing is Sheboygan school district’s ‘biggest concern,’ but teacher salary raises will not keep pace with inflation this year
SHEBOYGAN - From bus drivers to educational assistants, the Sheboygan Area School District has a lot unfilled positions, assistant superintendent of business and operational services Mark Boehlke said.
Although staff shortages are the district’s “biggest concern right now,” teacher and staff salary raises this year will not keep pace with inflation as declining revenue stretches the district’s budget, he said.
The school board approved a preliminary budget in June that will increase teacher and staff salaries by about 3% and introduce a $2,000 retention bonus for full-time employees, among other changes.
School districts pass a preliminary budget during the summer to continue operating and implement staff raises, but the final budget is not set until October, after revenue has been determined from student counts and state aid.
High inflation and declining revenue pose challenges for Sheboygan Area School District
The state budget usually includes some inflationary increase in per-pupil state aid that raises school districts’ revenue limit, Boehlke said.
School districts have a revenue limit determined by multiplying the three-year average district enrollment by an amount of revenue allowed per student.
But for the past two years, there have been $0 increases in per-pupil state aid, Boehlke said.
Because the Sheboygan Area School District has had declining enrollment for the last few years, the district’s revenue limit is actually decreasing: The district’s three-year average enrollment is projected to decrease by 152 students for the 2022-2023 year, reducing its revenue cap by more than $1.3 million, Boehlke presented to the school board.
“That, in combination with the high inflation rate, really creates some problems in our budget,” he said.
The cost to go forward with no changes to salaries would still result in more than a half a million-dollar deficit, he said.
The district will use a portion of federal COVID-19 relief money to balance the budget this year.
Since the spring of 2020, the district has received four rounds of COVID-relief grants totaling $21.5 million that can be used through the 2023-2024 school year, Boehlke said.
SASD — which has a nearly $132 million annual budget — has about $12 million remaining from the grants, but administrators are wary of using that money to increase salaries and benefits, Boehlke said.
“That money was really useful, but it was one-time money," he said. "It’s really hard to use that money for ongoing costs, because that money is going to go away and then you’re really going to have a problem with salaries and benefits moving forward."
The preliminary budget allocates more than $1.8 million of COVID-19 relief money to fund salaries for teachers and educational assistants this year.
Much of the remaining relief money is helping the district replace old heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems and address learning loss during the pandemic, Boehlke said.
For instance, the district is maintaining 11 teachers above and beyond normal staffing levels to help mitigate learning disruptions during the pandemic.
Salary raises for Sheboygan teachers will not keep pace with inflation
At the time Sheboygan district administrators were creating the budget this spring, consumer prices were up about 4.7%, so other districts around the state planned to give employees a 4.7% salary increase using COVID-19 relief money, Boehlke said.
Sheboygan administrators agreed on a lower 3% salary increase to prevent any “fiscal cliffs” down the road, he said.
“We worked with our employee groups, and I think they were extremely understanding of why we could only do a 3% increase while other districts are doing the 4.7%,” he said. “Our thought was we can afford a 3% increase and then use some of that one-time money for a bonus to help them out.”
Sheboygan teachers will receive an average 3% total pay increase taking into account step movement on the salary schedule, with between $670 to $1,000 added to each cell on the schedule.
Last year, salaries for teachers in the district ranged from about $43,000 for entry-level teachers to about $81,000 for the longest serving teachers.
Administrative staff and support staff will also receive a 3% salary increase, and the district will maintain salary increases for educational assistants that were introduced last year to help fill unfilled positions throughout the district.
The district will introduce a one-time $2,000 retention bonus for each full-time employee and pro-rated bonus for part-time employees to help retain employees, Boehlke said.
Other changes to the budget include funding free meals, more spent on special education
• Free meals: As a result of a surplus of money in the district’s food service fund, Sheboygan schools will fund continued free breakfast and lunch to all students.
The fund reached a point at which the district is required to spend it down because federal programs lowered meal costs during the past two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, Boehlke said.
“We are using some of that money for kitchen improvements, but we decided that, especially with inflation the way it is now, maybe the best way to use that money is to serve families by offering another year of free lunch,” he said. “At the end of this year, we’ll reevaluate and see if we’re able to do that again or if we have to go back to the normal program of free and reduced lunch (where) some kids pay in full.”
• Special education funding: The cost of special education instruction and support services is increasing, with a 6% — or nearly $1.4 million — increase in costs from last school year to the upcoming year.
“Funding increases to special education are needed from the state level because that’s hitting districts hard right now,” Boehlke said.
The state reimburses about 30% of school expenses for special education, while about 70% is paid by the district, he said.
A new contract for school liaison police officers
Unrelated to the budget changes, in June, the school board also renewed a five-year contract with the City of Sheboygan to provide five school liaison police officers.
The school district and city both pay for half of the cost of the officers.
Last year, the district paid about $270,000 for the resource officers, Boehlke said.
Reach Maya Hilty at 920-400-7485 or MHilty@sheboygan.gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @maya_hilty.
This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Inflation, declining revenue stretch Sheboygan school district budget
