Spring sets budget
The Spring ISD board has approved a budget of $378 million for 2015-16.
The Spring ISD board of trustees unanimously approved its fiscal year 2015-16 budget, which will include salary increases for teachers, fund a new alternative education program, strengthen curriculum and upgrade technology infrastructure across the district.
The $378 million operating budget, which went into effect July 1, includes $298 million in the general fund, $54 million in the debt service fund and $25.6 million in the child nutrition fund. It will be supported by a proposed tax rate of $1.51 per $100 valuation, the same as last year’s tax rate.
The board of trustees took a different approach to developing its budget this year, relying on a “priority-focused” approach, which allows it to better evaluate the effectiveness of how it spends its money and how it can best shift funds to areas of greater need.
The district was able to cut $2.4 million from existing departmental budgets using the new process to fund district priorities.
“By looking at each item in the existing budget and weighing its effectiveness, the district has been able to accommodate initiatives that our district and community have identified as important,” said Ann Westbrooks, Spring ISD’s chief financial officer.
Westbrooks provided a budget review to the board of trustees during a June work session, and said last year’s budget ushered a financial shift with the addition of the Exxon Mobil campus to the tax roll, which amounted to a 20 percent increase in property values.
“We were very hesitant with how we budgeted,” she said. At the same time, Exxon Mobil increased taxable values by more than $500 million, Westbrook said.
Many of the items within the budget supported the district’s commitment to compensating and retaining staff.
Last year, Spring ISD raised starting teacher salaries to $48,500 from $45,537 and approved a 5 percent pay increase for staff; added more officers to the Spring ISD police department, purchased new curriculum to ensure more consistent instruction district-wide and addressed other positions in the district related to ESL/ bilingual instruction and special education.
This year, first-year teacher salaries will increase to $51,500 — a 6.2 percent increase from last year. And, current teacher salaries will go up an average of $3,260, which is a 6 percent increase from last year. Crossing guards will see their pay increase to $12 per hour from $10 per hour, which represents a 20 percent increase. Bus drivers, one of the greatest needs in the way of district staffing for 2015-16, will see a pay increase from $13.80 per hour to $15.05 per hour.
With the change in pay, the district is looking to add 40 new bus drivers to compensate for the changes made April 14 to expand bus routes to 1.5 miles from campuses.
“When the 2015-16 school year starts in August, about 2,000 more students will have the option of riding a bus to school,” said Sheleah Reed, executive communications director for Spring ISD.
The change from the current two-mile state limit will provide bus service to more than 900 elementary students, 800 middle school students and 250 high school students in addition to the 13,800 students currently being served, Reed said.
The board also approved a 2 percent pay increase for other nonteaching staff, such as para-professionals, cafeteria workers and custodial staff. It also launched an in-house Disciplinary Alternative Education Program to provide an accelerated effort to serve high school and middle school students with behavioral issues who are not succeeding academically in a traditional school setting.
Spring ISD Superintendent Rodney Watson said the move to increase pay across the board was to ensure that Spring ISD keeps its staff intact.
“Some of our employees are making less than in other districts, and right now it’s an all-out battle with districts around us. Everyone’s recruiting and we are getting calls every single day from people trying to recruit our individuals, just as we are trying to recruit theirs,” he said.