Whitfield County school board approves bonuses for new hires

Dec. 8—In order to attract workers to areas with staff shortages, Whitfield County Schools is now offering a $1,000 sign-on bonus for new hires in maintenance, school nutrition and transportation.

Current Whitfield County Schools employees can also receive a $1,000 bonus for referring new workers, said Mark Gibson, chief operations officer for the school system. The $1,000 payments would be spread over four months — $250 per month — for both current employees and new hires "so they don't get the $1,000 and leave."

The Whitfield County Board of Education approved the measure 4-0 — board member Joseph Farmer was absent due to illness — during Monday's meeting.

"We hope it's a win-win," said Superintendent Mike Ewton. "We can pay for it, because we've had (so many) of these positions open this year," so the school system hasn't been spending budgeted funds on salaries and benefits for those workers.

As of Monday, the school system had 23 openings for bus drivers and eight for school nutrition workers, Gibson said. Let's "reward someone for signing on for a full-time role (as well as) the employee who refers them."

"It's another tool in the toolbox," Gibson added. "If it doesn't work, we'll look at something else."

In other news, beginning in February, the rate charged for after-school care will rise from $5 per student per day to $8 in order to fund pay scale increases for after-school care workers. High school students working in after-school care will see pay rise from $7.25 per hour to $9 per hour starting in February, lay individuals and college students will get a raise from $9 to $12 per hour, paraprofessionals will double their rate to $20 per hour, certified staff members will rise in compensation from $12 to $20 per hour, bookkeepers will jump from $11 to $15 per hour, and directors will increase from $14 to $25 per hour, after the board members approved both measures 4-0.

"This is not something I ask lightly of our families, but I think $5 has been the cost for the last 20 years, and for us to continue to offer this service, (raising it to $8) is something we have to do," said Chris Parker, the school system's director of student services. "We can't get employees right now for what we're paying."

Charging $8 per day per child "brings us in line with neighboring districts" for after-school care, which the school system began offering in "the mid-to-late '80s," Parker said. After-school care is offered at elementary schools, and "we average 40 to 100 kids depending on the school."

The board members also approved 4-0 meeting dates for 2022, with meetings the first Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the school system's central office, with exceptions in April, July and September, when meetings will be April 11, July 11 and Sept. 12 due to spring break, Independence Day and Labor Day.

The board members also celebrated the board being named a 2021 Georgia School Boards Association (GSBA) Exemplary Board.

The recognition program is "designed to showcase best practices in school governance and leadership," recognizing "good school board governance to foster educational community cultures in order to advance student learning and achievement," according to the association. "The GSBA Governance Team Recognition Program was developed by Georgia superintendents and board members based on the state Board of Education's standards for effective governance to recognize exemplary leadership, (and) in 1998, the Georgia School Boards Association was one of the first school board associations in the nation to develop a program of standards for local boards of education."

This is the second consecutive year the Whitfield County Board of Education has received this award, and it's "a nice thing," said Ewton. This board "exceeds" all the standards set for school boards by the association and is "one of the best in the state."

Work continues by several administrators and staff members on the school system's next strategic plan, Karey Williams, deputy superintendent, told the board members. The goal is to present the newest strategic plan to the board members "in the summer of 2022."

The school system's current strategic plan focuses on six areas:

—Instruction and assessment: Provide the educational foundation and opportunities to accelerate all students to achieve expected or high academic growth.

—Highly qualified personnel: Aim to recruit, retain and develop highly-qualified employees.

—Finance: Ensure fiscal stability and increase reserves through sound financial practices.

—Community involvement: Strive to strengthen school, family and community partnerships.

—Operations: Provide safe and efficient facilities, maintenance and transportation services.

—Technology: Improve student academic achievement by strengthening technology integration.