Clinton City Schools board approves January finances, opts into $2,000 teacher stipend and expands investment banks

Clinton City — The Clinton City Schools Board of Education on an unanimous roll-call vote approved the district’s January financial report, adopted a resolution to opt into section 4 of the recently enacted Educational Freedom Act to provide a $2,000 one-time stipend to certified teachers, and authorized increasing the number of financial institutions the district may use for certificates of deposit from four to six.

The board’s finance presentation noted state funding under the TISA formula is expected to remain comparable to last year, and the district’s collections timing put it at about 45 days in arrears for the general-purpose school fund. Scott Ray, a district finance staff member who presented the report, described the month as largely routine: “Boring is good sometimes in the finance world.” He told the board the school nutrition program is in surplus by about $18,000 now and that figure should grow toward roughly $36,000 when the value of USDA commodities is included.

The stipend resolution responds to legislation passed in the special session this year that created a one-time $2,000 payment for certified teachers who “work directly with students,” the board was told. A district official identified in the meeting as the superintendent (name not specified in the transcript) said the law requires teachers be employed in the 2024–25 school year but that state disbursement timing means the funds will not be available until the next fiscal year; the superintendent said the district plans to pay eligible teachers in July and seek state reimbursement when the funding is released. The superintendent said the district’s intent is to exclude instructional coaches (who “do not touch children a percentage of the time”), administrators and noncertified classified staff from this particular stipend. The superintendent also said she will return in August with a proposal to recognize classified staff, with a likely September payout if the board approves the later plan.

On investment policy, the board approved expanding the number of banks the district may use for certificates of deposit from four to six. The district currently has funds distributed among three banks and plans to use the additional authorized banks to spread investments and to take advantage of timing after spring break.

Votes at a glance: - January financial report — Motion to approve the January financial report as presented; roll-call vote: Curtis Isabel, Lori Wilson, Tim (last name not specified), Merle Price, Joey Smith, Debbie Heaton — Yes. Outcome: approved. - Resolution to opt into section 4 of the Educational Freedom Act to provide a $2,000 one-time stipend to certified teachers — Motion to approve; roll-call vote: Curtis Isabel, Lori Wilson, Tim (last name not specified), Merle Price, Joey Smith, David/Debbie Heaton (transcript contains both forms) — Yes. Outcome: approved. - Increase number of permitted financial institutions from 4 to 6 for deposit/investment purposes — Motion to approve; roll-call vote: Curtis Isabel, Lori Wilson, Tim (last name not specified), Merle Price, Joey Smith, Debbie Heaton — Yes. Outcome: approved.

Board members conducted roll-call votes for each motion; the clerk (identified as Kim in the record) read each name and recorded the votes. No dissenting votes or abstentions were recorded on the three items.

The board’s discussion separated factual reporting (the finance presentation and the timing of state funds) from the formal actions. The superintendent emphasized timing constraints caused by the state budget calendar and explained the district’s plan to pay stipends in July and to seek reimbursement. The board did not modify the stipend eligibility language in the resolution during the meeting.

The meeting record includes repeated references to the TISA funding formula and to USDA commodities credited to the district’s food-service account. The board also heard staff explanations of investment strategy and timing but took no additional changes to its investment policy beyond increasing the number of allowed financial institutions.

The board moved on to informational reports and principal presentations after these items.