After heated debate, Caswell board approves bonus supplement plan with modifications for principals and APs
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Subscribe
Summary
The board approved bonus supplements after extended discussion over eligibility and funding sources; members voted to exclude elementary principals from the current fund and to pay principals and assistant principals from a separate pot, with specific amounts and a half-now/half-later payout described.
The Caswell County Board of Education approved a revised bonus-supplement plan after a prolonged debate over which employee groups should receive one-time payments and which funding sources should pay them.
What was on the table: the item (added to new business earlier in the meeting) proposed supplements for certified teachers, classified staff and other employees. Board members and staff described prior negotiations with the county commissioners and the constraints of state and local funding lines.
Key numbers and categories discussed on the record: staff said certified teachers receive a state/local supplement of about $1,000 (paid as $500 before Christmas and $500 in spring). Classified employees were discussed at a flat $550. Board staff provided a modeling scenario that removing principals and some higher-paid directors from the current funding pool would reduce the draw on fund balance by $14,762.79 and that the overall draw would be approximately $83,807.21 under the proposal discussed.
Principal/AP carve-out: multiple board members objected to including principals and higher-paid directors in the same pot as lower-paid classified staff. The board ultimately moved to exclude elementary principals (and address AP payouts) from this particular fund and to pay elementary principals and APs from a different pot that had been used in prior years. The compromise motion—approved by vote—called for elementary principals to receive $3,000 and assistant principals $1,500 (with the board offering to split payouts half now and half at year-end), and for classified staff and teachers to receive the supplements previously described.
Voices and dispute: one board member said the original public presentation blurred categories by using the broad term "all employees," while others said transparency required keeping the same charts shown to county commissioners. The superintendent and staff repeatedly said the district had shared the same numbers with county commissioners and the board earlier in budget conversations.
Next steps: staff and central office will finalize payroll mechanics and the funding line transfers needed to honor both the supplements approved by the board and the separate principal/AP payouts referenced.
Representative quote: "When we say 'classified,' that is not directors and principals," a board member said during debate, arguing the public chart could be misleading.