School Board approves contract with secretaries with 1.25% increase

A 1.25% increase in the salary schedule for the 2016-17 school year was approved for the 15 educational secretaries by the Van Buren Public Schools Board of Education at a special meeting July 25.
School Supt. Peter Kudlak said it was agreed to change the current MESSA health insurance to a higher deductible MESSA plan, with an agreement to look at other providers in the fall.
Because of the switch to the higher deductible MESSA insurance, which saves both the secretaries and the district money, it allowed the district to agree to the 1.25% increase in the salary schedule, he said.
The Van Buren Association of Educational Secretaries ratified the one-year contract agreement on July 21.
The parties agreed to continue negotiations on all provisions of the current collective bargaining agreement prior to Sept. 30.
Supt. Kudlak said this salary increase does not yet boost their pay to where it was a few years ago when employees took “the big hit.”
Trustee Kathy Kovach, a former school secretary, said she was glad to see this pay boost because secretaries work hard in the district.
“They are the first face you see when you come into a school,” she said. “They are the district’s ambassadors. And, they all live in this district.”
President Brent Mikulski was the only board member absent at Monday’s meeting, so vice president Martha Toth presided and added another item to the agenda: the resignation of Financial Director Shareen Barker.
Supt. Kudlak said Barker’s resignation, as of Aug. 5, had been accepted by the board and she now has asked to stay in the job.
He said board secretary Kevin English pointed out Board Policy 3140 says once accepted the board can’t rescind.
“I thought about it,” Supt. Kudlak said. “She doesn’t have another job lined up … I was thinking about rescinding … we don’t want to rescind or go around the policy. We could go through the hiring process.”
He said two or three people have shown interest in the position and, “She could be one of them. She could come out of the pile …”
Trustee Sherry Frazier said she thought it was important to keep continuity and consistency. She said with a new HR director, new superintendent, a new business director would be a lot.
“She has been with us for two years,” Trustee Frazier said. “If she applies for the job…”
Kovach agreed that continuity is important, if the superintendent thinks she is right for the job. Kovach said she really was impressed with the explanation Barker recently gave the board on the non-homestead tax proposal.
“We have this policy for board reasons,” Secretary English said. “I would be open to having her reapply.”
“If she was the best to apply, hire her,” Toth said.
Supt. Kudlak said the board needs to stay with its policy.
After that discussion, David Peer asked from the audience about the district’s curriculum and the new textbooks purchased.
“A lot of kids can’t read,” said Peer, who served as school board president for many years. He said in the past they have been told that’s because there are too many poor kids in the district, but kids who are not poor can’t read, either. He said about 40% of the kids aren’t proficient in reading.
He suggested the district ask the teachers what they think would help, saying they might find ways to help them teach.
Frazier said the district continually compiles big reports with lots of pages on what to do, “but we need to ask the teachers. Nobody is as close to the students as the teachers.”
“If the teachers knew how to do it, we wouldn’t have so many that couldn’t read,” Peer said. He said at a recent meeting a parent said an advanced class was eliminated at one of the schools and nobody knew about it.
“Financing is always going to be an issue,” Peer said. “We never will have a finance officer say, ‘Hey, we’ve got enough to do whatever you want.’”
He said it is amazing that it’s always a surprise when the board gets the MEAP scores, or whatever other scores.
He said Van Buren is near the state average in demographics, yet the state is doing better than the district in scores.
Frazier moved her comments to the Savage school teacher issue, noting after the last regular school board meeting as she was on her way to her car she saw two individuals in the meeting.
They were two of the original Savage Five that had been taken from their classes in January. She said she told them they shouldn’t be on school grounds and they said now they can be on school grounds and they got their places back at Savage.
Frazier said she asked at a board meeting for an update on the Savage situation and didn’t get it and now the teachers tell her they’ve had their 14-day suspension and they are to report for classes this fall.
Kovach said following the 14-day suspension everything is settled.
Peer added that technically they never lost their jobs and the end report recommended 14 days suspension and this fall they can grieve the 14 days.
“They sued,” Frazier reminded the board. “They got their pay. They never missed a paycheck.”
“I never rescinded anything,” said Supt. Kudlak. “Kullis did it before I got here.” He referred to Diane Kullis who was interim superintendent.
There was resolution to the entire thing, Toth said.
“We decided to go to arbitration and Shonta (Green) had already drawn up the tenure charges,” Frazier said.
English said he was uncomfortable with discussing this in public and Frazier accused him of wanting to hold his head in the sand.
Trustee Kelly Owen made a motion to adjourn.
Frazier said she’d like Supt. Kudlak to report on the resolution to the Savage situation. “It does make us look ignorant,” she said.
[Supt. Kudlak was wearing his arm in a sling at the meeting. He explained that he had been playing softball and slid head-first into a base instead of feet-first. He was safe but his team lost the game. He then took his son to a Tiger game before going to emergency to get his arm set.] Civil Rights Law Suit
The federal Civil Rights law suit against the school district, board members (except Frazier) and others brought by four of the Savage Five teachers is wending its way through federal court. A scheduling conference is ordered for Aug. 4 at 10 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Robert H. Cleland.
Judge Cleland has ordered the plaintiffs to meet with the defendant and to file a plan seven days before the conference, with the likelihood of a settlement shown, along with consideration of a district court bench trial instead of the jury trial demanded, among other options.
Judge Cleland’s July 22 order notes: “All commitments, representation, and deadlines decided and announced at the conference, including trial and other dates, will be binding.”