Board shelves proposal to upgrade district administrative assistant after heated debate over pay

The Belgrade School District board extensively debated a proposal to upgrade an existing administrative assistant position to an executive administrative assistant with a higher pay rate, ultimately rescinding the approval motion and asking staff to return with a revised job description and compensation justification.

Superintendent Didi (speaker 6) explained that the district had identified nearly $166,000 in savings from prior staffing reconfigurations and proposed using a portion of those savings to fund an upgraded executive administrative assistant who would provide high-level administrative support for district leaders. "We have accumulated a savings to this point, almost a $166,000," Didi said, adding that some of that had already funded other hires.

Trustees pressed for more detail on the proposed starting rate and public messaging. One trustee said the figure "came down to... $36.06," and several trustees expressed concern that hiring at that level could be perceived as adding administrative overhead at a time when recent bond proposals failed. Questions focused on whether the district would advertise for a highly experienced candidate, whether a lower starting rate could be used, and how the public would view the change.

After extended discussion and requests for supporting data on comparable salaries, a trustee moved to rescind the motion to approve the position and the board agreed to revisit the proposal at a future meeting. No salary or final hires were approved at this meeting.

What happens next: District staff will refine the job description and provide salary comparables and other documentation for trustees before the board revisits the proposal.