Nashville Schools Chief Wants $23M For Staff Raises

NASHVILLE, TN — Metro Nashville Public Schools Director Shawn Joseph is asking for a $59 million budget increase with $23 million set aside for pay increases.

Overall, Joseph is proposing a $902.8 million budget, an increase of around 7 percent. The $23 million for raises includes increases in both step pay and cost-of-living, plus an undisclosed amount to raise the pay rate for substitute teachers.

In addition, Joseph included $4 million to re-align the district's middle school into a STEAM — science, technology, engineering, arts and math — program. Joseph has said he wants to make Nashville "the STEAM capital."

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Fifty-five percent of the budget is set aside for traditional schools with another third going to central office administration and the remainder — some $111.5 million, $18.7 million more than last year — will go to charter schools.

Joseph, echoing budget increases proposed to the state spending plan by Gov. Bill Haslam, also calls for a big boost to MNPS's English Language Learner program, which he expects to add at least 1,000 new students next year. The $4.7 million for the program will add 31 new teachers and 19 new interpreters.

The school board will hold several public hearings about the budget before a scheduled April 11 vote and will present the budget to Metro Mayor Megan Barry April 13.

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