Beauregard Parish board keeps maintenance stipends after extended debate over accountability

The Beauregard Parish School Board voted June 10 to continue the maintenance stipends for the 2025–26 year after an extended public discussion about program effectiveness and accountability.

Board members debated whether the stipend — intended to close the gap between market wages and school-system pay for maintenance tradespeople — produces measurable savings or should become a permanent raise. Supporters said the stipend helped the district hire and keep certified staff who perform repairs in-house; critics asked for clearer metrics tying the payments to saved contractor costs.

“Show me the benefit. Show me the value, and then I’m all for it,” Board member Mister Redler said during the discussion, pressing for hard numbers linking stipends to contractor-cost savings. Maintenance Director Mike Green described specific tasks his staff performs — mini-split installations, air-handler repairs and routine charging of refrigeration systems — and said those in-house repairs reduce outside vendor work. Green also said he would provide a list of certified work and local savings for the board.

Board members asked for regular reporting and stronger documentation. Several members said they wanted administrators’ evaluations, certifications held by technicians and examples of contractor costs avoided. Board members described the existing accountability system: maintenance staff receive biannual evaluations tied to stipend eligibility, and staff who fall below the required score do not receive stipends. The transcript records a 75% performance threshold mentioned as part of that evaluation process.

A motion to table the item for additional information resulted in a roll-call showing a 4–4 tie and failed to postpone. The board then voted to continue the maintenance stipends for 2025–26; the motion carried.

Supporters stressed the wider personnel and operational context: the district’s maintenance workforce is small, and certified technicians can be expensive to replace on the open market. Several board members said the stipend has prompted improvements in productivity among lower-performing employees when it was withheld in past cycles. Opponents warned that converting the stipend into a permanent pay increase would remove an annual accountability check and urged the board to receive the requested documentation before considering permanence.

The board directed staff to produce the requested documentation — a list of certifications, counts of in-house repairs (mini-splits and similar), and examples of contractor costs avoided — for review at a future meeting.

The vote keeps the stipend in place for the coming fiscal year while leaving open the possibility of revisiting the program with the requested evidence and administrator feedback.