Gonzales ISD approves new salary compensation package for employees

Gonzales ISD trustees voted to approve a new salary compensation program Monday, July 14, which increases salaries for longtime teachers by $8,000 per year and ups the starting teacher salary to $52,050 per year while giving raises to other positions as well.

The board also voted to increase the medical insurance contribution for employees by $40 to $390 per month and increased the stipends being paid for specialty roles, educational support professionals, life skills, ESL providers and mentors.

Teachers with five or more years of experience will receive a $8,000 raise, while teachers with three to four years of experience will get an additional $4,000. Teachers with one to two years of experience will receive $1,700 extra in salary.  Other positions will receive an additional two percent of whatever the midpoint salary is for their job category.

The new starting salary for teachers in Gonzales ISD will be $52,050 per year, which is an increase of $2,050 or $205 per month for a 10-month contract, above the previous starting salary of $50,000 per year.

Occupational therapists, speech language pathologists, school psychologists, diagnosticians, auditory impairment aides, dyslexia teachers and gifted & talented teachers will get $5,000 per year, while educational support professionals like counselors, instructional coaches, librarians and nurses will get $2,000 per year.

The life skills stipend will increase from $2,000 to $2,500, while the district reinstates the ESL stipend at $1,200 and increases the mentor stipend from $500 to $1,000.

The moves were made following the revelation of the results of a Texas Association of School Boards salary study performed last year. The fiscal impact to the district is expected to be $188,722 per year. 

School district employees will receive a $40 per month increase in the district’s contribution for employee health insurance. Gonzales ISD was paying $350 per month per employee for health insurance.

The Internal Revenue Service allows a maximum out-of-pocket cost for employee-only health insurance of $113.20 per month under the Affordable Care Act. Since the cost of premiums has increases to $484 per month, that would have put the district out of compliance and required an increase of at least $20.80 per month to bring the district into compliance with federal law.

Administration brought forward three options: increase $25 per month, increase $40 per month or increase $134 per month to fully absorb the cost increase. Board member chose the middle option so the district will now contribute $390 per month for employee health insurance.

The board also voted to approve the guaranteed maximum price of $8,204,017 for the Maintenance project portion of the 2023 bond program from the construction manager-at-risk, Weaver & Jacobs.

This work includes districtwide the following:

• Card Access Systems at all exteriors doors (of the total 250 exterior doors, 78 require full replacement and 90 require modification to accept Card Access Systems);
• Entry Vestibule upgrades to meet District Safety & Security Standards;

• Emergency Responder Radio Coverage boosters to comply with Fire Code;

• Upgraded Intercom systems and digital clocks (Networked clocks in corridors and classrooms can display emergency messaging);
• Security film on windows to meet/exceed State requirements
• Allowance for North Ave campus HVAC controls and ductwork to optimize new AC unit at Cafeteria • Allowance for phasing and temporary access to minimize disruptions

Casey Sledge of Sledge Engineering/ESC 13 said the bids for the project were opened by Weaver & Jacobs on May 29 and they believe the quality and experience of the trade contractors to be high. Sledge said “in order to minimize student and staff disruption, the work will be carefully phased with temporary access modification as needed per campus.”

“We anticipate a significant amount of on-site work to occur in Summer 2026 with hopes to complete at that time. Due to the priority on minimizing disruption, Weaver & Jacobs may need to extend the completion to December 2026,” Sledge said.

Of the $8.2 million amount, which is all expected to be covered by bond proceeds, it includes 200,000 in Owner and Contractor contingencies for unforeseen items, $100,000 for North Ave HVAC optimization, and $525,000 for phasing and temporary structures. Any unused funds remain with the district.