MUSD starts override talks

The Maricopa Unified School District plans to consider holding an override election in the wake of Monday’s vote by the Legislature to cut next year’s public-charter school funding by about one quarter and then stop funding it all together.

The district will now receive $2.7 million from the state to operate its charters – less than the $3.7 million it had expected prior to the budget cut.

Rick Neilson, co-chairman of MUSD’s budget committee, said during Wednesday’s governing board meeting the committee is recommending the district look at the override option to replace the cuts to the charter funding and a $1.3 million Ak-Chin grant that “runs its course” at the end of fiscal year 2015.

The budget committee’s vote to recommend starting override talks was unanimous, Neilson said. The district also has formed an override recommendation committee composed of 20 community members and 10 to 15 district employees.

The override committee will make a recommendation to the superintendent and central office administrators who will then decide what to take to the school board, said Superintendent Steve Chestnut.

Arizona law allows school districts to get voter approval to override the state’s approved funding limit by up to 15 percent, if the district’s budget exceeds its operating limit.

The recommendation committee’s first meeting will be 5 p.m. April 16.

The district failed to pass its last five overrides, according to a district document. In 2005, the district passed a 10 percent override.

Also on Wednesday, the school board unanimously approved salary schedules for the 2014-15 school year, which include pay increases based on experience.

Board President Torri Anderson said she favored the pay increase.

Board member Scott Bartle said he would also like to approve the pay increases “but I don’t have a good grasp of our budget situation now” that the Legislature voted to reduce public-charter school funding for next year.

Board Vice President Patti Coutre said the board has been hearing the district needs to increase its teacher salaries. “This would be a great step forward,” she said.

Board member AnnaMarie Knorr said a pay increase would reward the teachers who have stayed in the district and “stuck it out” through years when they didn’t get pay increases for experience.

Anderson said the district is planning next year to look at restructuring the salary schedules.

Bartle said the district’s cap on pay increases for experience beyond 10 years is “counterproductive” and could prevent more experienced teachers from applying to work in the district.

He asked if the board can do anything short-term to help the district hire the “best teachers.”

Tom Beckett, the district’s director of the district’s human resources, said the district is offering $2,000 “signing bonuses” to math and special education teachers.

On another matter, the board approved hiring nine additional certified staff for the next school year.

Three of the approved positions are for kindergarten teachers for the free, all-day kindergarten at all six elementary schools, Chestnut said Thursday. The positions will be funded with the state program Move on When Reading.

Two of the positions are for Career and Technical Education teachers to comply with an agreement between the district and the Central Arizona Vocational Institute of Technology that requires the high school to employ a certain number of CTE teachers.

The other four positions were special education teachers, Chestnut said. The population of special education students is growing in the district. 

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