Administrators also receive pay or benefits increases

By MIKE NORRIS

Staff writer

The Marion-Florence USD 408 board of education approved salary and benefit increases for four administrators Monday at a regularly scheduled meeting.

Superintendent Lee Leiker received a $1,000 increase to raise his salary to $91,000, and new Marion High School principal Brenda Odgers received a $2,000 raise to bring her total to $70,000.

Leiker, Marion Middle School principal and activities director Tod Gordon, and Marion Elementary School principal Rod Garman had their single health insurance benefit programs extended to a family benefit plan.

Gordon and Garman will not receive a raise during the 2008-09 or the 2009-2010 school years, but the extended health insurance plan is worth $4,908. Their salaries remained at $63,180.

Board member Keith Collett said offering the extended insurance plan at no cost to the individuals was something new.

“It came up in lieu of a wage raise for their tax purposes,” Collett said. “It doesn’t show up as income.”

Collett said it works the same way for teachers who sign up for the extended family plan as well.

The approved motions came after the board went into a 30-minute executive session, and three, five-minute executive sessions thereafter.

Before the executive session, negotiations between the teachers and board members were approved.

USD 408 teachers received a base salary increase of $1,850. Some teachers also received a $350 or $450 raise dependent on his or her experience in the district.

Individual health insurance premiums were raised from $310 to $338, an expense that is covered by the district.

Leiker said the average raise for each teacher including base salary, health insurance premium, and experience came to roughly 7.5 percent.

In other business, the board approved a request from Art in the Park officials to use a bus and driver Sept. 20. All costs will be paid by Art in the Park.