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Parents and students urge Williamson County board to match theater supplements to athletic pay
Summary
Multiple public commenters, including students from Mill Creek schools and parents, asked the Williamson County Schools Board to grant middle school theater directors supplements comparable to athletic coaches, citing long out-of-school hours and inequity between fine arts and athletics.
Multiple parents and students addressed the Williamson County Schools Board during public comment to ask that middle school theater directors receive supplemental pay equivalent to athletic coaches.
The request focused on Mill Creek Middle School’s theater program and the workload of director Miss Isom. Amy Cook, a parent, described the hours her children spend in theater rehearsals and performances and said the current pay structure is unequal. "She's still only getting 1 supplement," Cook said, contrasting theater pay with athletics where some coaches receive multiple supplements.
The concern was echoed by Eden Cook, a Mill Creek Middle School student, who said she spends two hours every school day after class for most of the year and urged the board to adopt a pay structure that treats each production as a season. "I believe they should receive the equivalent payment that the athletic supplements get," Eden Cook said. Younger student Vivian Cook, a fourth grader at Mill Creek Elementary School, said her experience in elementary theater reinforced the importance of fair pay: "I want to make sure that our theater directors are getting paid fairly for the amount of time they spend with me and my siblings."
Supporters gave specific time estimates to illustrate their case. Amy Cook said her son has logged about 256 hours with Miss Isom this school year when combining Junior Theater Festival and a school production; she said her daughter will log about 362 hours this year with the same director. Eden Cook said she attended two hours after school on 102 of 117 school days. Commenters requested that the board consider each theater production a separate season so directors receive supplemental compensation comparable to athletic staff.
Superintendent Golden acknowledged the public comments in his remarks and thanked families for their engagement. No board action on theater supplements was taken during the meeting; the remarks appeared during the public comment portion of the agenda.
The board did not vote on changes to supplement policy at the meeting. The discussion will need to be taken up through the appropriate policy and budget processes if the board or administration chooses to pursue pay adjustments.
The public comment period also included speakers who praised civil discourse and urged the board to address disciplinary equity and other broader issues, but the theater-pay requests were the most detailed set of public comments on staffing compensation that evening.
The board’s formal agenda proceeded to its scheduled business after public comment.
