First pay raise in a quarter century for Dare school board members approved
Members of the Dare County Board of Education will receive their first increase in compensation in over 25 years, after a request was approved Monday by the Board of Commissioners.
The request called for regular school board members to see a pay increase from the current $4,200 to $13,000 per year, and the chairperson’s compensation rise from $5,400 to $14,200 a year.
The request also called for an annual increase beginning in July 2025 that is based on the Consumer Price Index in the previous February which is used in the current Dare County Schools funding formula, according to a letter to commissioners from schools Superintendent Steve Basnight.
“I feel that this amount is appropriately proportionate to the Board of Commissioners’ compensation of $18,000 annually,” Basnight said in his letter.
“I also have in my (agenda) packet a letter that says those numbers are even lower than what’s being paid in Currituck currently, so it’s on par with surrounding communities,” said County Manager Bobby Outten.
The Board of Commissioners approved the motion for the increase unanimously and without discussion.
Okay, let’s recap. The two biggest stories involving the BOE last year were their push to build a shiny new Early College building without adequately surveying the need or desire for it (while simultaneously delaying needed capital improvements at every school in the district), and the school lunch fiasco, when they voted to deny lunch to students with an outstanding bill of $10, which the Board of Commissioners had to rescue them from. Does this “leadership” warrant an increase in their part-time salary?
Meanwhile, we can’t attract teachers and desperately needed mental health professionals for our schools, and we also can’t seem to find housing for them. Does this “leadership” warrant an increase in their part-time salary?