Photo by Judith Roberts)
By Kyle and Judith Roberts
RUSTON, La. — The Lincoln Parish School Board approved one-time stipends of $2,000 for certified employees and $1,000 for support staff at its regular meeting Thursday at the main office, with the district covering nearly $400,000 in costs so employees the state’s funding does not reach can be included.
The board also approved a 2027 health plan renewal and raised its stop-loss limit.
Board President Gregg Phillips said the board looked at who the governor’s order covered and who it left out, and chose to cover as many employees as it could.
“When we looked at what the governor’s stipend mandate did, who it covered, who it didn’t, we had a burden for all of our employees, so we wanted to do as many employees as we possibly could,” Phillips said. “So the superintendent and his staff did a great job of finding as much funds as we could possibly do to help our employees, because every employee is so important to us. And so we wanted to recognize and help them as much as we could. We know times are tough. So we wanted to do what we could.”
The stipends stem from Executive Order 26-047, under which the state redirected $168 million in Minimum Foundation Program money. The packet says the order funds only certain positions, and any excluded employees must be paid with local funds or receive no stipend. The positions listed as excluded from the state-funded list include principals and other school administrators, school nurses, pre-K staff, resident teachers and several other groups.
The packet estimates the stipends will go to 597 certified employees at a cost of $1,434,560.17 and to 379 support staff at $421,191.72. The total cost with benefits is estimated at $1,855,751.89. Under the plan, part-time hourly support employees with regular schedules of at least 20 hours would receive $800. Part-time salaried certified employees and those working 10 to 20 hours would receive prorated amounts. Employees must be actively working Nov. 14 to be eligible, according to the packet.
The board’s local share will come from 2020 Sales Tax Fund one-time expense reserves. Payments will go out in the Dec. 17 payroll.
Every item on the agenda that required a vote passed unanimously. Board member Donna Doss, District 4, was absent.
The meeting opened with a recognition of Ruston High FFA state champions. LPSB Communications Coordinator Brandon Sutherland introduced two teams: The farm and agribusiness management team, which earned a bronze emblem at nationals, and the marketing plan team, which earned a silver emblem at nationals, placing it between the ninth and 16th best team in the nation.
Finance Committee Chairperson George Mack Jr. then reported on the committee’s meeting and turned to the health plan items.
Chief Financial Officer Juanita Duke reported that supplemental benefits such as cancer and disability plans will not change for 2027. The dental plan, however, will rise about 9 percent.
The board then voted to continue claims administration with UMR and pharmacy benefit management with Managed Pharmacy Alliance. It also approved the PPO plan design known as Option 2 for the plan year that begins Jan. 1, 2027.
Under the design, the annual out-of-pocket maximum rises from $6,500 to $7,500 per member. The deductible, which stays at $800, will no longer apply to doctor visits. Members will instead pay a $50 copay for a primary care visit and $75 for a specialist visit. Prescription copays for formulary and non-formulary drugs rise, and the specialty drug copay cap goes from $250 to $300 per prescription.
Jason Huffman of Brown & Brown, the plan’s broker consultant, said the changes affect few members.
“The number of folks that will typically hit that maximum out of pocket over the course of the year is between about 3 and 4 percent,” Huffman said. “So of the 170 or so retirees that are on that plan right now, that’s about six or seven folks. On the active side, we’ve got over 600 employees enrolled, and there we’re talking about 21 members or so that would see anything in terms of that maximum out of pocket. Everyone else will not even notice that that has changed at all.”
Huffman also said the copays give members certainty. A specialist visit before the deductible is met can cost $200 or more, he said, while a flat copay lets members know the cost in advance. He said UMR’s administrative fees will not increase.
The board then approved an 8.7 percent increase in plan contributions, or $1,254,000. Plan participants will contribute an estimated additional $368,600 and the school board $885,000 annually, starting Jan. 1, 2027. The 8.7 percent is an average across all coverage classes and does not apply equally to each.
Huffman said the increase ties to the plan design changes and gives the plan a 97 percent chance of covering projected 2027 costs. He said it also reduces the chance of a mid-year increase request or another increase in 2028.
“It’s about a $14 increase for the employee who’s enrolled in the employee-only program,” Huffman said. “Of that increase, $28 is covered by the school board. The $14 would go to the employee.”
Active employee-only premiums rise from $120.77 to $135.26 a month under the schedule in the board packet.
On the stop-loss policy, Duke said the plan buys specific stop-loss coverage that caps what one catastrophic claim can cost the plan in a year. The board voted to raise the limit from $200,000 to $250,000 per covered member and to renew with United Healthcare under Option 2.
Huffman said the change would save more than $260,000 in premium compared with the renewal quote at the current limit. The packet puts the Option 2 annual premium at $1,184,300.16, down 4.08 percent from the current $1,234,675.20.
Assistant Superintendent Justin Barron then presented a revision to the personal leave policy, GBRIA. The board waived its review-period policy so the change takes effect immediately, then approved extending four personal leave days to all full-time employees, except those who receive annual leave and bus operators.
James Odom reported October sales tax receipts of $2,850,900.55, up about 1.5 percent from a year earlier. Fiscal-year receipts are up about 2.4 percent, and the district has received no audit recoveries this year.
Odom also said general fund revenue is down about $2 million from last year, mainly because the state redirected Minimum Foundation Program money and last year’s funding included about $1.8 million for stipends paid outside the program. Health plan expenses rose from $11.9 million to $13.7 million, he said.
Superintendent John Young thanked the board for including employees who were left out under the executive order and said the district had heard from many of them.
Young said the Louisiana Department of Education will release 2025-26 school performance scores on Dec. 1 at 11 a.m., an hour before the board’s December meeting. He said a presentation on the district’s results will follow if the district receives the embargoed results beforehand.
Young also announced a partnership with the Boys & Girls Club of North Louisiana, with sites at Glen View Elementary and Dubach School, offering leadership development, after-school meals and tutoring.
The Finance Committee will meet Nov. 19 at 2 p.m. to review the guaranteed maximum price for the Lincoln Parish Early Childhood Center renovations. The board’s next regular meeting is Dec. 1 at noon at Glen View Elementary.
