Mt. Vernon Board of School Trustees Public Hearing

Mrs. Freeman led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance,

Mrs. Freeman called the Public Hearing to Order at 6;00 p.m.

Mrs. Walls made a motion to adopt the agenda as presented.  Mr. May seconded, and the motion carried 5-0.

Mr. Smedley informed board members that Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation had reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement with the Classroom Teachers' Association.  The goal was to pledge 60% of new money to be used for teacher salaries.  The new money was received from an increase in state funding along with an increase in enrollment (100 students).  The increase in salary reflects a 2.08% raise to all members ($1,042) plus a step on the pay scale ($1,020) for a total increase of 3.99%.  The hope is to catch teachers up that are behind on the pay scale, using  a portion of the new money up to $65,0000 to do this, focusing on those closest to retirement with the goal to eventually catching everyone up.  Mr. Smedley stated they were also able to raise the ECA (Extra-Curricular Activities) base 2.08%.  A raise in that base has not been done in a number of years.  A somewhat conservative approach was used as there is always the possibility of state funding to be froze or cut after the next ADM along with virtual student funding.  

As far as insurance benefits, a narrow network approach was used by moving to a smaller, narrower network.  A committee comprised of certified and classified staff heard presentations from I.U. Health and Hancock Health representatives and made a recommendation to transfer from Anthem to I.U. Health  with Hancock Health remaining one of the Tier I providers.  An 6% increase in insurance premiums was determined necessary based on this year's claims.  The previous three plans will continue to be offered with employees assuming a percentage of the increase as well as the corporation.  Mr. Smedley stated everyone currently on the corporation's health insurance plans will be educated on the changes so they can make informed decisions.  

Mr. Smedley asked if board members had any questions.  There were none.  He thanked the administrative team of  Dr. Parker, Greg Elkins, Scott Shipley, and Kellie Freeman along with CTA President Desiray Scalf and her team for all their hard work.  The CTA will begin the ratification process on October 28, 2020 and board members will convene on November 2, 2020 to ratify on their end.

Mrs. Freeman thanked everyone for their hard work and was glad to be able to close the gap on the teachers' salary scale.  Dr. Parker stated he was excited to be able to provide a significant raise and appreciated the board's support.

Mrs. Smith made a motion to adjourn at 6:15 p.m.  Mr. McCarty seconded, and the motion carried 5-0.