Habersham’s Board of Education voted this week to accept Chief Financial Officer Staci Newsome’s recommendation that the package of benefits for all school system employees be increased. Effective January 1, 2016, system employees will have added to their pay package – at no cost to the employee – an additional $10,000 life insurance policy and also a permanent whole life insurance plan with cash value.
The additions to the employee pay package will be made from a fund that employees have already paid into for dental services that are a part of the medical insurance package. The fund now exceeds the amount needed to pay for employees’ dental services to date, said Newsome. The benefit increases are not temporary, she said.
Recently, the school board also voted to increase teacher pay this year by changing one “furlough” day (a day of work with no pay) to a paid day. Teachers will receive pay for one additional day this school year. “Furlough” days became a part of Georgia school systems’ budgets, including Habersham’s, in lean economic times.
The addition of two types of insurance are a part of “some really good (budget management) practices,” for which Newsome thanked the Board of Education Monday. In the same meeting, Superintendent Matthew Cooper told the board that many teachers have told him that this school year “was one of the best starts ever.” He told the board that he thanked all who have contributed to “a super start” for the school year.
