Teacher pay raises defined - vape company settlement - update on accreditation - remembering Hurricane Michael

BAY COUNTY, FL - The Bay District Schools (BDS) board met at the Administration building on October 10th at 1pm.

The biggest news was the increase of teacher pay which came from the Teacher Salary Increase Allocation last February, 2023.

"Governor DeSantis is proposing a $200 million increase to the Teacher Salary Increase Allocation (TSIA) while maintaining the current $800 million teacher pay increase. The proposed $1 billion TSIA total for Fiscal Year 2023-24 would amount to over $3 billion in new funding for salary increases since 2020. In Governor DeSantis’ proposal, both new and veteran teachers will benefit as the $200 million increase will be flexible for use as the districts see fit."

-February 1, 2023 Florida Department of Education (FDOE) Press Office

Superintendent McQueen used these funds to create a scaled increase placement schedule which will reward years of experience and will be a much welcomed change to veteran teachers. Currently, entry level teachers make about $46,000 a year starting out and will not see a raise until they hit the 16 year point in the job. This new pay scale increases entry salaries to about $48,000 per year with raises of $423 per year for up to 3 years of experience, a raise of $1,200 per year for 4 -17 years of experience, $4,423 raise for 17-25 years of experience and a $600 raise for those with 25 or more years of experience. Mr. Chester and Mr. Register were concerned about the small raise scheduled for those at 25 or more years and they were assured this will be addressed at a later time. These changes can take effect after the teacher's union ratifies it.

Superintendent McQueen then noted he is in negotiations with increasing pay for the school staff (who all make $15/hour regardless of experience or credentials) with the Bay Educational Support Personnel Association (BESPA) and non- union teachers.

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Florida Safe Schools Assessment

Due to safety, the details of the safe schools assessment was not given to the pubic. We were told in the meeting that the plans look good and updates are being made. The board said they understand the need for these safety precautions after the active shooting that took place during the school board meeting in 2010.

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Vape Class Action Lawsuit Settlement

Bay District Schools will receive about $69,000 from a nationwide class action settlement with Altria Group. The first settlement was with the vape company called JUUL. After attorney’s fees are paid, the remainder will go towards fighting tobacco use in the schools, according to Chairman Steve Moss.

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Accreditation

Denise Kelley, Deputy Superintendent of Teaching and Learning gave an update on the progress of accreditation for the school district. They are confident BDS will meet the standards and it will be formally announced after February 1st.

She also reported, on another topic, that there are 50 students in the Gulf Coast State College getting their AA in Education. There are plans to have them do their internships in Bay District Schools and the district will train them on the Science of Reading. Many of the students want to be paraprofessionals and many are already substitute teachers.

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Employee Bachelor Degrees

Sharon Michalik reported that 170 employees are staring the Bay District Scholars program to get their bachelors degrees in education. This is an ongoing program to grow more teachers.

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Facility Approvals

Approval of Mechanical Proposal to Upgrade the Haney Tech College Bldg 1 Chiller Plant

Approval of the Purchase of Technology for the Tom P. Haney New Classroom Building

Approval of the Purchase of Daikin Equipment for RHS & West Bay ES

Approval of the Purchase of Sports Q-LED Lighting for JR Arnold HS Baseball Softball Fields

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Other News

Awards were given at the beginning of the meeting to National Merit Scholars. The five Bay County semi-finalists are Mubarak and Nguyen from Rutherford, Jezreel Hinson and Kayli Zimmerman from Bay High, and Dawson Asiatico from Mosley High.

The school board members reminisced about homecoming and Hurricane Michael experiences.

Hearing From The Public is not televised so cannot be viewed.

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Next Board Meeting and Bay High School celebrates 100 years

Next School Board meeting is Oct 24th at 1pm and will be at Bay High School to commemorate 100 years of being an accredited school.

Meetings can be viewed here: https://www.bay.k12.fl.us/school-board-meetings