Maries R-2 allocates DVM funds to salary increases

By Roxie Murphy, Staff Writer
Posted 7/6/22

BELLE — The Maries County R-2 School District plans to use an additional $100,000 annual budget increase from the dollar value modifier (DVM) bill Gov. Mike L. Parson signed Friday to increase …

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Maries R-2 allocates DVM funds to salary increases

Posted

BELLE — The Maries County R-2 School District plans to use an additional $100,000 annual budget increase from the dollar value modifier (DVM) bill Gov. Mike L. Parson signed Friday to increase teacher and staff salaries.

Superintendent Dr. Lenice Basham commented Tuesday morning on SB 681 which passed on July 1, just before the holiday weekend. The bill will allow school districts that have campuses in a neighboring county with a higher dollar value modifier to receive funding at the higher rate.

“Funds will go into the general fund and will assist in the increase in the minimum salaries that we introduced at the last meeting,” Basham said.

Basham told the board of education during the June 28 meeting that the district is struggling to hire paraprofessionals because starting pay is under minimum wage.

“We can’t get anyone to apply for the para positions,” she began. “We need employees.”

Basham recommended moving anyone below minimum wage up to $13 an hour. To help prevent salary compression, anyone making close to $13 will receive a 50-cent raise.

The board has also recently passed a substantial salary increase for teachers and staff and a bus driver hourly increase. 

“We are incredibly grateful for Rep. Bruce Sassmann for all his efforts to assist the school with additional financial contributions from the state,” Basham said.”We are thankful he was our representative and we will miss him.”

Sassmann, who represents portions of Gasconade and Maries counties, was asked by Gasconade County R-2 Superintendent Dr. Jeri Kay Hardy last year to sponsor the bill that affects the formula that determines how much the school district is eligible to receive from the state. Through his research, Sassmann discovered that two other school districts, including Maries County R-2, were negatively affected by the lack of DVM.

DVM will allow Maries County R-2 to use the same formula as Osage County, as the city is located in both counties. There are also students who attend the school district who live in and pay taxes to Osage County who should benefit from the tax dollars.

It will also allow the Gasconade County R-2 School District to use the same formula as Franklin County to receive state funding — an estimated $1 million annual increase.

The Gasconade County R-2 Board of Education on June 27 allocated the funds, if they passed, to help absorb the teacher salary increase.  

“We are grateful and we appreciate every dollar that helps the district,” Basham said.

Sassmann is up for re-election in the House in August. However, in the process of redistricting, he has lost Maries County and taken on the whole of Gasconade County.