School construction was completed in Meyersville just in time for junior high students to start the year in their new classrooms, according to Superintendent Kelly Dunn.
“It’s amazing what they got done in a month,” Dunn said.
Dunn showed the Meyersville ISD School Board around the completed classrooms and cafeteria during the regular board meeting on August 6. The Pre-K through 5th grades will stay in their previous classrooms until that portion of the campus is complete as well.
The new facility has two courtyards with classrooms surrounding them, so all activities are in a secure environment.
Unlike many schools that need a bond election to build a new campus, Meyersville used capital from their Fund Balance that they had put aside for many years, said Assistant Principal and Business Manager Beth Howell.
“We knew that this day would come,” she said. “It was not easy. We had to decide the most important things and make the best use of our resources.”
However, the district did receive grant funding for the construction related to school safety, Howell said.
Also during the meeting, Trustee Robert Moore was congratulated and recognized with a plaque for his 30 years of service to the district. New board member Brent Coates was sworn in to the seat that Stephanie Egg vacated when she moved out of the district.
Other major business included the coming year’s budget and tax rate as well as the teacher pay raises and student handbooks.
Approximately 40% of Meyersville’s students transfer in from out of district, which makes it possible for the school to exist, Dunn said. The state pays schools per student enrollment. The proposed 2024/25 budget conservatively estimated enrollment at 150, but Dunn said it looks like the figure might be 170.
“We won’t know until Day 1,” he said.
The proposed budget had a $19,000 deficit, but just a few more students over the 150 estimate will make up that amount, Dunn told board members.
Howell said that there was no cushion in the budget. Included in the proposed budget was a 5% raise for teachers.
“We want to reward those things that make us successful,” Board President Johnny Jank said, “and that’s largely teachers.”
Dunn said the district was not competitive with larger districts in new teacher salaries, but it was competitive on the salaries of more experienced teachers.
“Since each class only has one teacher here, it would be hard for a beginner teacher to go through that first year without another teacher in the same grade,” Dunn said.
The board insisted on and approved the 5% pay increase for teachers, saying they would find a way to make up the deficit. That also approved the proposed budget.
After a discussion of their district’s higher certified appraisal values, the board approved a proposed tax rate of .66690, which is a decrease of .00230 from last year. The public hearing on the proposed tax rate and budget was set for Thursday, Aug. 29 at 6 p.m.
