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Radford board approves calendar, personnel policies, microgrant and admin pay scale; budget proposals presented
Summary
On March 4 the Radford City School Board approved the 2025–26 calendar, moved and approved a small federal/state-funded microgrant, adopted an administrator salary scale and a tuition-reimbursement policy, and directed continued budget work including a proposed 3% raise for staff and several new positions.
The Radford City School Board on March 4 approved several action items and received a division budget briefing that proposed compensation increases, new positions and facility upgrades.
Votes at the meeting (voice votes unless otherwise noted): the board approved the 2025–26 school calendar as presented; approved a $10,625 microgrant (grant title: "Removing Barriers Related to Academic Achievement") to fund family engagement events and take-home resources; adopted a 2024–25 administrator salary scale to standardize administrator pay ranges; and approved a tuition-reimbursement policy that includes a three-year service agreement for employees who accept reimbursement. The board also voted in open session to approve personnel items and tuition students, and later approved a contract amendment for Superintendent Dr. Joyce by roll-call vote.
Superintendent Dr. Joyce and staff presented a draft 2025–26 budget request that prioritizes compensation, student supports and retention. Key budget items presented include a proposed 3 percent parity raise for all employees tied to the state's proposed 3 percent SOQ increase, an expected 8 percent increase in health insurance costs the division seeks to absorb, and requests for new positions: two special-education teachers (elementary and high school), an instructional coach, an additional month on contract for the literacy coordinator (11 to 12 months), a part-time speech-language pathologist, an English-learner aide, a school social worker, and a payroll/benefits specialist. Dr. Joyce said the state’s Local Composite Index has lowered Radford’s relative local share (reported LCI 0.1658), and the division plans to seek city approval in April after board action.
Other budget requests include: splitting a long special-education bus route into two shorter routes to reduce student ride time, stipends for school leadership and Lehi League coaches, a paraprofessional retirement-contribution option (non-VRS), division facility upgrades (budgeted line item cited at $600,000 for study and repairs), and technology/security upgrades such as updated fencing at McCargue Elementary and the high school stadium, and software and special-education equipment updates.
Roll-call: The board unanimously approved a renegotiated contract for Dr. Joyce in closed session and then certified that action in public session; the roll-call recorded "Yes" votes from board members present. (Transcript documents named-board votes as "Yes" from individual members during the certification sequence.)
The board moved several items to the action agenda earlier in the meeting (administrator scale, tuition-reimbursement policy, microgrant, high-school schedule) and adopted them in open session. Several motions were made and approved by voice vote; the administration will send the proposed budget to the city on April 1 and present the division’s budget for the city’s review on April 14.
Provenance: Budget presentation and related motions begin at transcript block 5428.7397 (Dr. Joyce budget remarks) and end with final recorded action on policy and personnel at transcript block 7775.185.
