School District 5 approves $255.7 million budget, gives teachers step increases and a 1% pay add-on

School District 5’s board voted on June 8 to approve the second and final reading of the 2026–27 general fund budget and to set tax rates intended to fund teacher pay increases and targeted program support.

The board approved the budget for the coming year after a debate about repurposed positions and tradeoffs to balance rising personnel costs. The administration presented a plan that it said would yield about $5.1 million in additional revenue and $5.4 million in additional expenses compared with the prior year; administrators told the board they are finding roughly $300,000 in efficiencies through repurposing 15 vacant certified positions and eliminating five long-unfilled positions.

“This budget reflects the hard choices we must make: people are almost 90% of our general fund expenditures, so our priorities are step increases and strategic supports for instruction,” said Heather Tucker, the district’s chief financial officer, in her presentation to the board.

Under the approved plan, all eligible employees will receive step increases. The board also approved a 1% across-the-board supplement for teachers in addition to step changes and targeted market adjustments to several supplement categories (for example, middle- and high-school band director stipends and athletics supplements). Bus drivers will receive a state-mandated pay adjustment, and the district will continue the one‑semester Tier 2 tutoring program in partnership with Midlands Technical College, funded as a one-time continuation.

Administration said the budget balances largely by repurposing existing vacant positions rather than creating net new headcount. “These are not new positions,” Tucker said; “we identified 15 vacant control-code positions to rename and refocus to district priorities.” Board members asked for and were shown the control-code list on request.

To pay for the plan without raising homeowners’ total taxes, the board approved a millage shift: lowering the debt service millage while raising the operating millage. The board set the operating millage at 266.0 and the debt service millage at 64.5 after administration said reassessment and collection-rate assumptions make the swap revenue‑neutral for many taxpayers. Board members who opposed that approach said the district is using long-term assets and future assumptions to cover current operating choices.

The budget passed by a 5–1 vote. Several board members and members of the public expressed concern about repurposing certified teaching positions into nonclassroom roles; supporters said the roles are instructional supports (instructional coaches, expectation coaches, literacy leads and special‑ed assistants) intended to help teachers and reduce classroom instruction burdens.

What happens next: administration said implementation steps (staff notifications, onboarding for supplemental positions, and finalizing the supplement schedule) will follow board approval and that the board will reevaluate resource allocations once the school year begins and enrollment and revenue actuals are known.

Speakers quoted or relied on in this report are listed in the meeting’s official speaker roster.