PB R-I reviews massive athletic equipment purchase, renews insurance at meeting

During its February meeting, the Poplar Bluff R-I School Board approved the renewal of insurance benefits to district employees and reviewed financial report items, including over $80,000 of athletic equipment.

The district will maintain its membership in the Ozark School Benefits Association with a 4% increase in health coverage, which translates to an increase of $24 per month for those covered in the PB R-I school district.

In addition, the board approved switching from the existing Sunlife Dental coverage to OSBA’s Delta Dental coverage. Dental coverage will increase by $3.51 per month per member for the basic plan, but annual coverage will increase from $1,000 to $1,750 for each person covered by the plan.

Included in the monthly financial report was the purchase of $83,500 of new athletic equipment, which includes baseball/softball backstop padding, a start and timer system for the swim team, pole vault and high jump equipment, a scoreboard for junior high baseball to be installed at the First Baptist Church field, and 40 new football helmets. The board approved the request as part of the overall financial report.

Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Business Charles Kinsey advised the board that he would have a number of 2026 budget considerations to discuss in the March meeting. Included in this discussion will be a pay increase that includes a step plus $2,000 on the faculty base salary and commensurate raises for classified employees for fiscal year 2026.

Part of the reason for the proposed increase is to meet Missouri state law that requires teachers to earn a minimum of $40,000 a year; the other justification is to remain competitive in attracting the top teachers to join the Poplar Bluff school district.

Other financial considerations include an increase in rates for substitute teachers, an expansion of free school meals, and an expected insurance increase of more than 20%. All told, these could raise the FY26 budget by an additional $4.39 million.

The board received the program evaluation for the district’s A+ college scholarship program. The report stated that 87 seniors were on track to receive the scholarship this year, which can be applied to attendance at a two-year college or technical school.

Superintendent Dr. Aaron Cornman reported that two bills under consideration in the state legislature would count school days missed for snow toward the 169 minimum attendance days in the annual formula. If passed, the district would not need to make up any days missed due to winter weather.

March 10-14 is Spring Break for the district; all schools will be out of session during that week.

The next scheduled Board of Education meeting is at 6 p.m March 20.