The Nome Public Schools Board of Education last week approved a bonus schedule for employees of the district.
During the board’s March 14 regular meeting, superintendent Jamie Burgess presented them with a plan to provide bonuses to all district employees.
The board approved the plan unanimously.
The bonuses were made possible by additional funding from the state Legislature, above and beyond what the district normally receives. The additional state funding amounted to slightly more than $383,000.
“The district received a one-time funding from the legislature that was not part of the original budget (and) we would like to set aside a certain amount of that to get bonuses out to our staff for this year,” Burgess said.
The bonuses will be based on the amount of time an employee has spent with the district, and they must have been employed during the 2022-2023 school year. Certified, classified and administrative staff are eligible, and bonuses will be paid out on the last paycheck in May.
Employees of NANA Management Services, a contractor with the district, will not receive the bonus, according to Burgess.
“It is constructed in terms of a longevity bonus,” Burgess said. “So, those individuals in their first year here will receive $500, individuals between two and five years $750, and staff that’s been here more than five years will receive $1,000. Everybody across the board will qualify for the bonus except those individuals that are working for NANA Management Services.”
The bonuses will be paid out to district employees regardless of whether they are returning, retiring or otherwise for the 2023-2024 school year. Burgess added that the bonuses are a way of showing appreciation to district employees for their hard work.
“It is a small effort to say thank you for what has been a very challenging year,” Burgess added.
The total amount of funding that will be put toward the bonuses is $58,250, according to Burgess.
Nome Public School board member Nancy Mendenhall expressed her support for the plan to pay out the bonuses.
“I think it is a great idea, a very, very good use of funding,” Mendenhall said.
The remainder of the state funding, nearly $325,000, will be retained as revenue to offset the increased cost of a nearly $500,000 electricity and fuel cost bill for this fiscal year, according to Burgess.
Image at top: NPS Superintendent Jamie Burgess Presents Housing Grant Requirements to Council. Photo by Emily Hofstaedter, KNOM (2019).
