It’s hard to believe that nearly a year ago our Board of Education was considering the placement of a Mill Levy Override (MLO) question on the general election ballot. Now, thanks to the hard fought approval of 27J voters and with an additional $17.7 million in operational funding, we’re moving ahead with the use of this money as outlined to our community.
Teacher and Support Staff Pay
New mill levy funds have improved 27J’s ability to attract and retain quality staff. Previously, 27J had the lowest starting teacher wages in Adams County and was rapidly losing staff to other, better paying districts. Soon after the MLO passed, teachers received the first of two pay increases, ultimately boosting overall teacher pay by about 16 percent. In general, support staff received an overall 11 percent increase in pay. Thanks to the boost, more teachers opted to stay with 27J as compared to previous years while the district’s recruiting efforts are netting more candidates.
Student Safety
Thanks to mill funds dedicated to student safety, 27J is developing a full district safety department with increased school safety staff and district safety personnel to address the needs of more than 23,000 students. As outlined in its plan, 27J is adding safety staff so schools have at least:
High Schools
- 4 Campus Security Supervisors
- 1 School Resource Officer per 900 students
Middle Schools
- 2 Campus Security Supervisors
- 1 School Resource Officer
Elementary Schools
- 1 Campus Security Supervisor
- 1 School Security Officer
District, Community Safety
Three safety specialists will support schools with planning, safety drills, training and collaboration with public safety partners within the schools’ municipalities. Next, staff will be trained in safety protocols and buildings will have additional safety structures and equipment designed to protect against potential threats to the school facility. Also, emergency system audits will be conducted regularly to continuously improve the district’s safety operations.
CTE Center Staffing/Programming
While voters passed a 2021 bond issue that built new STEM/CTE centers at each high school, it didn’t fund staffing to operate the new buildings. But with the new MLO, voters approved funds for enough staff to open the new buildings starting this fall. Each school is getting 3 additional STEM/CTE teachers and a custodian to support students getting hands-on job skills for in-demand jobs. Materials and resources to support the new centers and student learning will be provided from MLO funds, too.