On Thursday, April 13, the Knox County Board of Education held a special called meeting which included a discussion and action on updates to the salary schedules for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
For employees, the biggest changes are for those with 10 to 20 years of experience depending on their job. Previously, some salary schedules maxed out after 10 years, meaning that employees would not receive any annual step increases once they reached the last step of the schedule. For teachers, the last step was at 20 years. The only increase that employees would receive after reaching that step is across-the-board increases for all staff.
The Board unanimously approved amendments to the salary schedules, which amended each salary schedule to include step increases to 25 years of experience.
“The Board of Education recognizes the dedication and hard work of its employees, and this decision reflects the district’s commitment to recruit and retain the best staff,” said Superintendent Jeremy Ledford.
“I appreciate the Board for taking time to review the schedules and for providing better pay for employees based on their experience and time with the school district.”
These increases will help retain experienced staff and promote the district’s mission of providing high-quality education to its students.
It will also help in addressing the shortage of substitutes, including teachers, instructional assistants, bus monitors, food service, and custodians.
Substitute teachers will receive $120 per day if they hold teaching certification or $100 per day if they do not. Substitute instructional assistants and custodians were increased from $7.25 per hour to $10 per hour. Substitute bus and lunchroom monitors were increased from $7.25 per hour to $8.25 per hour. All substitutes will now be above federal minimum wage.
The beginning rates for other hard-to-fill positions were also amended. Instructional assistant, level one, was increased to $10 per hour for steps zero through two. Bus monitor beginning hourly rates were increased to $9.
All salary schedules were amended to include a 1% pay increase from steps 21-24 and a 2% increase at step 25.
“Thanks to the Board, all employees can look forward to step increases throughout their career in KCPS. This is an investment in our staff which will ultimately benefit our students and the schools they serve,” said Ledford.
Employees will receive a copy of their individual salary schedule with their contract for the upcoming school year.