On Monday, during the Mancos RE-6 school district’s monthly board meeting, the board announced raises for staff as well as discussing their preliminary budget for the 2023-2024 school year.
“We don’t pay our staff what we’d like to pay them. We have made compensation a top priority,” the board said.
According to a memo provided by Superintendent Todd Cordrey, the district will be giving classified staff a raise of 16.91% at the base to ensure all employees in the district start at $15 an hour.
The raise will allow the district to stay ahead of any minimum wage increases by the state in the near future.
Certified teaching staff will have an 8.82% raise at their base, which equates to an extra $3,000, plus $525 for each extra year of experience on the district’s salary schedule.
The increase will put starting pay for new teachers in the district at $37,000 per year.
Additionally, administrative staff will also receive a 5% raise on their base.
More upcoming budget meetings are scheduled in order to fully finalize the preliminary budget before the cutoff date at the end of June.
They also announced that they will be adding additional benefits for maternity and paternity leave, giving mothers six-week maternity leave and fathers or partners three weeks.
They also will add a few new positions for their staff in the next school year. One new staff member, who was hired at the meeting, is Mancos’ new elementary principal. He will replace Cathy Epps, who was the elementary principal for nine years before deciding to become a third-grade teacher.
“Furthermore, other positions will be added to the district for the 2023-2024 school year to directly support student needs. In addition, the school district has invested in small class sizes and direct behavior and academic student support,” the memo said.
Now, the district will employ 29 teachers and 21 support teachers. This includes four ESS, 13 secondary teachers, six paraprofessionals, two art and music teachers, four school counselors, one health care instructor, six secondary deans, a social worker and an elementary math interventionist.
Cordrey expressed his gratitude for the board and other school staff, saying that they did “exceptional” work this school year.
In November, the current board members will be replaced by a new board. Cordrey thanked board members for their commitment to education in Mancos.
“We’ve seen a board that really poured themselves into their board work,” he said. “You set a high standard.”
The next Mancos board meeting will take place Monday, June 19, at 6 p.m.
