VBPS School Board grants raises to 26 non-union employees

The Van Buren Public Schools has negotiated contracts with all of its unions for 2017-18, and most have seen step increases and anywhere from a 1% to 2% increase in salaries.
Even School Supt. Pete Kudlak got a 2% raise.
On Monday, the school board unanimously approved giving raises to 26 employees who are not covered by union contracts.
School Supt. Kudlak recommended an across the board increase to most employees in the amount of $800, which averages out to a 1.1% increase for the entire unit.
This $800 increase was not applied to the part-time employees. They were given a smaller increase based on their part-time status. As with other units, they changed the retirement payout for sick days to $50 per day with a maximum of 100 days paid out or $5,000.
School Supt. Kudlak said the total cost to the district for the raises amounted to about $23,000.
Trustee Susan Featheringill abstained from the vote because her daughter Sara Cortese works for the district as an accountant.
Board President Keith Johnston said he wanted to explain that one of those on the list for getting raises was Karen Johnston, Director of Special Services, who some people have thought was his relative. He said he is not related to Karen Johnston.
In other business in the 20-minute meeting, the board:
• Heard Secretary Kevin English explain a new set of board policy changes that were being considered for the first reading. The second reading and adoption of the 36 pages of changes will be at the next meeting. Included in the changes is that students and parents can’t covertly record meetings that are not covered under the Open Meetings Acts without the permission of the superintendent. Also, removed from the Mandatory Courses “D. Optional Course,” are appropriate instruction for grades 8-12 about genocide, including the Holocaust and the Armenian Genocide;
• Heard Supt. Kudlak say as of that morning there were 67 applicants for the position of principal of Rawsonville Elementary School, with five of those being internal candidates. He, Human Resources Director Abdul Madyun, and Curriculum Director Jeff Moore have met with a group of parents and a group of teachers to find out what they wanted in a principal at Rawsonville. The field will be narrowed down to two or three candidates and Kudlak will make the final decision of who to recommend to the board by the first of August;
• Heard Board President Keith Johnston announce he will be on vacation and unavailable July 27 to Aug. 7 and Kudlak said he would be gone on a cross-country trip next week; and
• Went into closed-door session to consult with attorneys regarding pending litigation, Wayne County Circuit Court Case Number 16-cv-11805, the law suit against the district and board members by the Savage school teachers who were suspended over allegations of MSTEP cheating and later reinstated. President Johnston announced no decision on the year-old case would be made after the board came back into regular session to adjourn.