Yelm School Board unanimously approves raises for administrators

After more than 40 minutes of deliberations with Yelm Community Schools Superintendent Chris Woods, the Yelm School Board unanimously approved raises for YCS classified and certificated administration employees during a school board meeting on Thursday, June 26,
The district’s administrative employees will receive a 2.5% pay increase, in addition to potential increases based on a step scale. The employees begin their tenure at step one and progress through steps two through seven based on experience. Each step increase presents a 3% pay raise. If the YCS employees are already at step seven, they would just receive the new 2.5% pay increase.

Woods said his position will receive a raise of 2%, while all other certificated and classified positions would receive 2.5% pay increases. Four other positions, which Woods said are “way out of balance” in pay while compared against similar districts such as Clover Park, Franklin Pierce, Bethel, Kelso, Longview, North Thurston, Olympia, Tumwater and University Place, will receive raises of 3.5% in addition to a potential raise if they moved up a step on the tenure scale. Those four positions were not specified during the meeting.

“We had a few positions that are way out of balance, so those ones got 1% additional, for a total of 3.5%. Those were mainly supervisor positions if you recall. We adjusted four positions from director positions down to supervisor positions,” Woods said. “Transportation is the current one we’re working on. We did that in food services. We did that in facilities. We did that in custodial. All of those were changed from a director position down to a supervisor position, but their starting place is way out of balance in comparison to the comparables.”

Woods said he understands the decision by the board to approve raises in the district office was a difficult one — especially after a recent string of stipend cuts.

The stipend cuts included:
• Ninth grade adviser – $1,254.04
• 10th grade adviser – $3,762.12
• 11th grade adviser – $3,762.12
• Honor Society – $3,135.10
• Yelm Middle School band – $3,762.12

• Ridgeline Middle
School band – $3,762.12
• High school band grades nine through 12 – $4,796.70
• Marching band grades nine through 12 – $2,580.88
• Pep band grades nine through 12 – $1881.06
• Elementary Music – $13,167.42
• Choir grades nine through 12 – $7,524.24

Additionally, YHS homecoming and prom stipends have been cut. The events could potentially still occur; however, fundraising efforts are needed and expected if the two dances are to occur during the 2025-26 school year. Those events were axed due to those duties being fulfilled by 10th and 11th grade advisers, and both of those stipends were recently cut.

“I believe very strongly that, yes, we have very difficult decisions to make,” Woods said. “Yes, we have a lot more difficult decisions to make over the next year — especially if we don’t have levy dollars. But we will lose our administrators, and it will be a revolving door. They are working very hard with less resources as far as support. I think it’s important we make sure that we’re at least trying to keep them competitive. We’re still a ways away from comparable districts. I think this is a very conservative ask for Policy 5310. I also don’t want to forget about all of the other staff that are represented in Policy 5310 who are in this building and took a 0% increase last year. I’m just going to be honest and say that these folks, not just the administrators but the people in this building, 2.5% increase is the least we could do for them. I will continue to fight for our kids and find ways for us to be able to offer programs and services to them. But we also have to fight as a community for our levy.”

Three of the longest tenured YCS board members, Bill Hauss, Denise Hendrickson and Debbie Edwards, each claimed the decision in regards to Policy 5310 was one of the toughest decisions they’ve had to make during their time on the board.

“The community thinks these are such easy decisions, and I’m telling you they are not,” Hendrickson said. “They are gut wrenching decisions for us. Do not think they are made lightly, at all.”