During Monday night’s meeting, the Brownwood ISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved the 2024-25 teacher salary recommendations.
Superintendent Dr. Joe Young told the Board, “Money is tight. We’ve received no new funding from the state over the past few years, so we have to make sure we’re good stewards of that at a time where inflation is causing everybody, including our teachers, to pay more at the grocery store and the gas pump and pay more for their insurance. It’s tough, but we will do as much as we’re able to do with the funding that we are given by the state.”
BISD will continue to fully fund employee-only insurance coverage, which Young stated increased by more than $344,000 for the school district for the 2024-25 school year.
“In keeping the teacher salary schedule the same, and paying teachers for step raises, so those teachers who move up a year in experience are paid for those increases, will cost approximately another $121,000 in additional money,” Young told the Board. “Just with those two things, teacher step raises and fully funded insurance, it’s almost a $500,000 payment that we’re going to have to find money for in the budget with no new funding into the district. We’re going to tighten the belt and figure out what we need to do. Without those two things I think our employees would feel it’s a cut in pay. We have to do those two things at minimum to keep up, and then anything that comes along the lines of increased funding in the future, we revisit this and see if we can improve and give even more.”
Also Monday, the Board unanimously approved a contract with Teinert Construction Company of Abilene to serve as the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) for the Gym/Locker Room remodel project in conjunction with the 2023 Bond Program.
The project will include the renovation of athletic locker facilities at Brownwood Middle School, and the renovation and addition to athletic locker facilities, along with ADA improvements for spectator gym seating at Brownwood High School.
Young also gave up an update on other bond projects, including safety and security.
“All the original cameras we ordered are in place,” Young said. “New maps are in progress and as soon as those maps are finished we’ll have additional cameras installed there. All of our speakers and call buttons that are in every classroom in the district are complete. Our portable radios have also been received, so we’re glad for that.”
Young also provided a Special Education Report as well as a Teacher Incentive Allotment Report.
Regarding the TIA Report, Young told the Board, “We did get our final numbers as far as what the state has allocated for our teachers, and we have 34 teachers who will receive over $309,000 for their teacher incentive allotments this year, which is fantastic. Our teacher incentive allotment program is going to expand this upcoming school year to include all teachers, Pre-K through 12th grade, that teach a core subject area – English, Math, Science or Social Studies. We’re excited about that program and the money that goes back into our teachers’ hands in a time when the state is not giving us any new funding.”
During the comments portion of the meeting, parents Sherri Land, Yasmine Chavez and Teresa Brandstetter voiced concerns about impending changes to the Gift and Talented program for the 2024-25 school year.
Also, student Kenley Land made a presentation to the Board regarding the environmental hazards of Styrofoam plates Brownwood ISD uses in its lunch rooms throughout the district.