JACKSON RETAINS TAX LEVY; ADOPTS FRINGE PACKAGE

JACKSON -- The Jackson School District's 1992-93 operating tax levy won't increase, nor will school lunch prices in the coming school year.

The Jackson School District Board of Education Tuesday approved the tax levy, which will remain at $2.85 per $100 assessed valuation. The levy includes $1 for the general fund, $1.21 for the special revenue (teacher) fund, 22 cents for debt service and 42 cents for the capital project fund.

The levy is expected to generate slightly more than $3.6 million in local funds for the district. There was no public comment at Tuesday night's hearing on the tax levy.

Business Manager Howard Alexander said the district could have increased the debt service levy to 24 cents, according to the state auditor's office.

"We do not need the extra two cents that was allowed by the auditor," he added. "The 22-cent levy will allow us to service our debt obligations."

Alexander said the district may only use the debt service funds to pay off general obligation bonds.

School cafeteria lunches will remain $1.20 for junior and senior high school students and $1.25 for adult lunches. A weekly meal ticket for students is $6, and the monthly, 20-meal ticket is $24.

The price for a half-pint of milk also will remain at 20 cents per carton.

Alexander said the school administration has reversed the deficit trend of the past several years in the food service account.

"During the past two to three years, we have had to increase lunch prices," he said. "We are now back at the break-even point, and even making a slight profit.

"At this rate, we will be able to keep the same cafeteria prices."

Alexander said the deficit was erased by a reduction in cafeteria staff and improved efficiency in the food service system.

He also reported a slight increase in student lunch participation, although senior high school participation the worst in the district is only 28 percent.

While the district will be able to maintain the tax rate and the price of school lunches, insurance benefits for employees will cost "significantly" less than last year, the board reported.

The board Tuesday accepted a school district employee group life, health and dental insurance plan recommended by the insurance committee. The monthly cost of the plan will be $182.72 per employee.

The combined Mutual of Omaha package from Ken Swinford and Associates was the lowest of five bids received by the district.

The package includes a monthly, per-employee insurance premium of $171.42 for health, $10.18 for dental and $1.12 for $5,000 of life insurance.

The district pays each employee's premium, and employees pay for coverage of any dependents.

Alexander said the overall cost of the Mutual of Omaha package is "significantly" lower than the plan now in effect. The new insurance package has a $100 health and dental co-deductible with a stop loss of $2,500. The 80-20 plan will pay up to $1.5 million.

In other business, the board renewed its property/casualty insurance policy with Public Entity Risk Managers for the 1992-93 school year. Alexander said the premiums for the policy also have gone down in the past few years.

The board also adopted goals for the coming school year. They include:

A study to determine the feasibility of installing air conditioning in the primary annex building.

20A review of the teachers salary schedule and increments above the schedule.

Review of a teacher summer employment schedule, which Superintendent Wayne Maupin said now contains inequities.

20A plan to address concerns found in the Missouri School Improvement Program review of the district.

A review of language development in the primary grades and mathematics and instructional techniques in grades Kindergarten-2 and 7-8.

The administration will report to the board on each goal throughout the school year.

The board also approved admission of two non-resident students, since for the first time this year the district will receive state aid for non-resident students.

In his superintendents report, Maupin said the Citizen's Advisory Committee has completed its work and will present an informational report to the board at the Aug. 25 meeting. The committee is studying ways to relieve overcrowding at the R.O. Hawkins Junior High School and Westlane Elementary School.

Maupin said all of the interior work in the district's school buildings will be completed by the start of school, but outside work is a different story.

"We have bitten off more than we can chew, and some of the outside building work will not be completed until after school starts," he said.