BOE members say they are confident teachers will get their stipends. County says it hasn’t said ‘yes’ on bailout. And 11- and 12-month employees say they have been told they might not get paid this summer.

Members of the Wayne County Board of Education say they believe the county will be a part of helping the school district out of its money troubles, and its vice chairman says that one of the most immediate priorities is making sure teachers get their stipends.

A county spokesperson says while the two boards are talking, there is no deal yet.

Earlier this month, then-Superintendent Dr. Michael Dunsmore said that the county schools would not be able to cover the stipends “without some help.”

Those stipends are paid out of local funds that come from the money provided to the schools by the county.

The comments came as a result of revelations that the district is facing a $5 million shortfall — including a negative fund balance.

The findings, which were released in an audit report and have been part of discussions at a series of meetings on the district’s 2020-21 budget plan, included overpayment of central office staff and more than 100 teaching positions over the state-funded allotment.

As a result, the board accepted the resignations of Finance Officer Michael Hayes and, several days later, Dunsmore.

School Board Vice Chairman Jennifer Strickland said Tuesday that she believes discussions are under way between schools and county officials about what to do about the stipends.

“I think they will be fine,” she said. “I cannot speak for the whole board, but that is my priority as a board member —that the teachers get (the stipends) and get them on time.”

Board member Dr. Joe Democko said board chairman Chris West met preliminarily with the county commissioners to discuss the budget situation.

“They have been pretty gracious to us through this mess,” Democko said. “They realize the situation we are in, that it extends way back.”

He added that the county commissioners and the school board have the same goals — making the county strong — and that education is a key part of that.

“These two boards need to spend more time together,” he said. “The future of the county depends on our education system.”

Fellow board member Ven Faulk also mentioned that the county is working with the school district and praised the commissioners for working to prioritize the needs of teachers.

“We are going to get out of this mess,” Faulk said. “It is not going to just be the school board. It is going to be the county, too.”

But when contacted Tuesday evening, county public information officer Joel Gillie said there has been “no action taken by the board” — and stressed that until a vote is conducted, there are no guarantees that Wayne coffers will be used to bail out the district.

“That’s probably a little premature for the school board to say, ‘Yeah. They’re going to do it,’” he said.

Gillie added that a special meeting will be held at 1 p.m. Friday to take up the issue, as commissioners were caught off guard by the findings reported by Rives & Associates at the June 3 Board of Education meeting.

“It came as just as much of a shock to us as it did everyone else,” he said.

So, while commissioners are prepared to continue to practice what Gillie says they preach — that “education is always a priority” — the county is not prepared to say “yes” to providing money for the stipends at this time.

Teacher stipends, and whether or not they will be paid, are not the only financial concerns on the minds of local educators and WCPS staff.

Several 11- and 12-month WCPS employees have contacted the New Old North this week and said they have been told by staff at Central Office and their respective schools that they might not get their summer paychecks.

The teachers and staff members, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, said from school bookkeepers to payroll staff, those in charge of dollars and cents have said the same thing — they don’t know how the district will be able to cover summer salaries.

There has been no response to the NON’s request for comment from the district regarding whether or not 11- and 12-month employees will get their summer checks.

West has still not responded to calls from the New Old North for comment on the budget crisis.

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