School system talks budget, school safety
JACKSON, Tenn. — The Jackson-Madison County School System held their work session on Monday with some important items on the agenda.
From employee raises, to student safety, and even employee well-being, there were many topics brought up at this meeting.
The biggest topic of discussion was the budget for fiscal year 2024.
“I’m excited about this budget cycle. We will see a lot of things that really speak to our staff. One of the things we’ve been doing over the past couple of years is that we’ve been investing in employees, but we have seen a return on that investment,” said JMCSS Superintendent Dr. Marlon King.
One of the things King wants to see is an insurance cost support from the county commission.
King plans to request for employees with families to pay 20% of health coverage while the county covers 80%.
As for single employees, the staff will cover 90% of their own coverage and the county covers 10%.
“What happens is when you give raises, then the insurance premium goes up and you really don’t see much of that raise. And what I want to do is for teachers to see some type of output from the raises they are receiving,” King said.
Along with raises, King plans to raise starting raises to around $45,000 to $46,000.
In addition to employee well-being, King plans to launch a “We Care” plan, which is a health and well-being plan starting at an $800 reimbursable plan for school employees.
“In this plan, we’ll offer weight management plans, gym memberships, massage, acupuncture, things like that. Mindfulness classes that we’ll pay for up to $600,” King said.
Employees have a chance to make their We Care plan, and if they stick to the plan, they’ll be given an extra $200.
The school system is also looking into getting a chief of security for school safety that’s not a school resource officer.
“The goal is for them to work together to learn one of the important things about safety, and so we will work in partnership. But our chief security will lead the Maxxguard team and internal team, but also work alongside with the supervisor who is assigned to SROs,” King said.
The next steps for the budget present to county legislative body budget committee, then the budget comes back for board approval and will then go to the full commission.
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