Costs to the Mount Ayr Community school district went up a bit, but a superintendent sharing agreement has tentatively been approved between the Mount Ayr Community, Bedford and Clearfield board for the 2010-11 school year.
In a special board meeting Monday night the Bedford board voted 3-2 to approve the sharing arrangement where superintendent Joe Drake will provide services to all three school districts.
Clearfield had earlier approved the agreement in principle on a 3-2 vote (see separate story).
Mount Ayr Community’s school board voted 4-0 in a special meeting Tuesday morning to go with the sharing proposal as well, capping a process of ups and downs through a series of negotiations.
The proposal that was approved by the Bedford and Mount Ayr Community boards continues the split of salaries in principle at the 42.5 percent rate for Bedford and Mount Ayr Community and 15 percent for the Clearfield district, but Bedford would end up with substantial savings over what it currently pays.
The one-year contract under the final split would see the Clearfield board spending $30,018.45 for the year, a savings to them of $13,251.55 over what they would have spent without the agreement.
The Bedford board would contribute $55,531.52 for the year, a savings of $46,761.48 over what they would have spent without the sharing.
The Mount Ayr Community school board will pay $115,774.80 of the total costs for the package, a savings of some $28,438.20 over what their costs would have been if the same salary were offered to a new superintendent. In addition the district would receive $55,000 in state sharing incentives in the 2011-12 school year.
Superintendent Drake would receive a salary of $160,000, an increase from the $114,250 he would have received with the two-way sharing between Bedford and Clearfield. The total package with employment taxes and benefits would be $201,324.77.
The final agreement is a little higher than the $110,215 Mount Ayr Community cost and the $61,021 Bedford cost in an earlier proposal for the sharing.
Mount Ayr Community board president Rod Shields told the Mount Ayr Community board that some Bedford board members had some reservations about how their community would respond to the sharing agreement.
The Bedford board had a proposed contract that it will submit to the Mount Ayr Community school board.
It is expected that the Bedford board will approve the final contract at its June 10 board meeting and the Mount Ayr Community school board would then give its final approval at their June 14 board meeting.
Shields told the board that he felt the sharing boards should meet in January to review how the sharing arrangement is going for the one-year contract.
If there are reservations about continuing to share, the Mount Ayr Community school board would have time to do a superintendent search for the next year.
If the sharing seems to be working out, the boards could begin work on renegotiating the sharing contract for the next agreed upon period.