Conroe - Montgomery Edition - May 2022

EDUCATION Conroe ISDplans for salary increases to stay competitive among area districts

ONE-TIME RAISES Conroe ISD budgeted $13.3 million in 2022-23 for raises for all employees as well as one-time stipends of $1,500 throughout that school year funded through federal relief funds.

BY VANESSA HOLT

district had planned for raises in the next school year, Rice said subse- quent raises may not immediately be possible. “It’s going to be up to our Legis- lature to vote to put more money into the system to allow us to give employee raises,” he said regard- ing the state’s funding formula for districts. In addition to the raises, the board approved a total of $1,500 in one- time stipends for each employee through the federal Elementary and Secondary School Relief Fund to be paid $500 in the fall and $1,000 in the spring. Rice said the stipends rep- resent $10 million of the $31 million available through ESSER III, the third round of awards given to districts for COVID-19-related relief in 2020-21. The board workshop included a presentation by Jennifer Barton, a representative of the Texas

Conroe ISD has approved several salary increases for the 2022-23 school year, but officials said future raises may require legislative action for the district to budget the neces- sary funds. At a special meeting of the CISD board of trustees April 5, the board unanimously approved an employee pay plan presented at a workshop earlier that afternoon. The plan includes a $1,500 pay increase for teachers, a 2% increase for nonteachers and starting pay for hourly employees beginning at $13 per hour as well as a new teacher starting salary of $60,000. Officials said the raises will help to keep the district competitive. The total of $13.3 million in salary increases will be funded through the general budget, CISD Chief Financial Officer Darrin Rice said. While the

Raises: $13.3M

Raises are funded from the general budget.

2% raises for all nonteacher employees

$60,000 starting salary for teachers

$13/hour minimum for hourly employees, an increase from $12/hour

$1,500 increase for teachers

The stipends for all employees are funded from federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds.

Stipends: $10M

$500 (fall) + $1,000 (spring) stipends for all district employees in 2022-23

SOURCE: CONROE ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER

Association of School Boards. The TASB compared CISD’s pay plans and made recommendations, including the suggestion to institute a general pay increase and continue to monitor its compensation plans. She said the district is “very competitive” within its group for

teacher pay. In the 2021-22 school year, teachers’ salaries in CISD were $700 above the local market median of $58,500. Among the group of school districts used for comparison in the region are Aldine, Cy-Fair, Klein, Montgomery, New Caney, Spring and Tomball ISDs.

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