Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 20, 1990                   TAG: 9004200397
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: RICK LINDQUIST SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: RADFORD                                 LENGTH: Medium

RADFORD SCHOOL BUDGET CUT

The board unanimously approved nearly all of Chairman John McPhail's suggested spending adjustments, including cutting raises for teachers and most other employees from 5.6 percent to 5 percent. That change will save nearly $33,000 when benefits costs are included.

However, the board authorized 5.6 percent raises for "certain administrators and supervisors" who were not specified.

McPhail's recommended list also included a 5 percent raise for Superintendent Michael Wright that was not included in Wright's January budget proposal.

The "temporary" $16,000 discrepancy resulted from board member Chip Craig's suggestion to keep that amount in the $7.2 million budget for a new clerical position, instead of using existing staff, and to drop workers compensation insurance in favor of a self-insured system to make up the difference.

The idea apparently caught Wright and Craig's board colleagues off guard. The board put the $16,000 back into the budget but put off formally endorsing the self-insurance plan pending more details, which Craig pledged to work out with Wright.

Because of a tight deadline, the board told Wright to put the school system's insurance package out to bid, but with the option of excising the workers compensation policy.

"Our [workers compensation] claims history has been good," said Wright, who expressed initial uncertainty about the idea's legal implications.

"For the last three years, [claims payout] has not exceeded $3,000 a year," he said.

"We're taking a bit of a gamble,"Craig conceded, but he said the possibility of a "major, catastrophic injury" claim was not likely "in this kind of profession." He said the school system's employees were being lumped in "with more high-risk industries."

"I think we'd be saving a lot of money by being self-insured in this area," said Craig, an attorney with broad workers compensation case experience.

The board also took $8,000 from $17,500 originally set aside to send seven Radford High School students to the New River Valley Magnet School, to fund a college-credit course in computer fundamentals.

And the board went along with McPhail's suggestion to fund major school repair projects totaling over $58,000 over a three-year period.

The board agreed to add $3,533 to the budget to buy computer software to help special education and learning disabled students, and $6,170 to equip new high school honors science classes, which the board also approved.

In other action, the board also approved, in principle, a seven-period day for Radford High School. However, the panel was unable to work out scheduling specifics, which are complicated by bus and teacher schedules.

And the board approved a 1990-91 school calendar that adds three days to the required 180-day schedule.