Thursday was an exciting day as we broke ground on the new transportation/maintenance/central office building. I appreciate the support of our patrons and community for passing the April 2021 bond issue. The nearly 80% approval rating is a testament to your dedication to our students and their success. Site preparation will begin in early September as we start to move dirt and prepare to start construction. You will find regular updates of the progress in We are Fort and on our website as we make progress on the projects over the next few years. Team Fort Osage met for the first time this year on August 19. It was a productive meeting with good feedback provided by the committee. There was discussion about health insurance, the beginning of the year safety plans and the bond and levy construction projects (information provided below on each).
Health Insurance Prior to last year, Fort Osage had been able to keep the insurance premium increases in check with good staff health and low claims. A few years ago Fort Osage had the best claims loss ratio in the metro at 73% (compared to 31 area schools). These low claims led to minimal insurance premium increases (if any) for several years. I’ve been told that insurance claims are like a pendulum. Meaning if your claims are good they will likely swing the other way and become worse over time. Likewise, if the claims are unfavorable they will likely become better over time. Over the past two years, Fort Osage has seen the pendulum move as our claims loss have increased. Last year the increase in claims led to some unfavorable bids for our January 1, 2021 renewal. There are generally two ways the District can structure its health insurance payment to our provider (fully insured or self insured). The funding structure does not impact the employees or its dependents in any way. With fully insured funding structures Districts pay the same amount in premiums each month (regardless of claims). When you have high claims the insurance provider will increase the premium the following year (as we experienced last year with our bids). With self insured funding structures, Districts have the opportunity to set their own premiums, but must fund the plan appropriately in order to pay the insurance claims that are incurred each month. Meaning if the District has more claims than it’s paid in premiums, the District will owe additional money. Likewise, if the District has fewer claims than the premiums paid, the District will build a surplus that can be used to offset future insurance claims. On January 1, 2022, Fort Osage will enter into its second year of the three-year commitment with the Consortium, which includes Blue Springs, Grain Valley and Smithville School Districts. Cigna will remain our health care provider and we will offer the same four plan options. The only change will be the cost of the plans and the amount the District contributes toward the plans. Based on our current claims (110% claims loss), Fort will see an increase of approximately 12%. Based on our claims loss, this increase is considerably lower than what I would have expected had we been fully insured. With board approval, the District’s contribution will go from $633.00 to $710.00 per month. By doing so, this would make three of the four plan options completely board paid. This is consistent with this year’s plans. The Open Enrollment period for 2022 benefits elections will take place in October (more information to follow via email). If you have any questions, please contact Benefits Coordinator, Laura Ford, at [email protected]. Safety Plans The current Jackson County indoor masking mandate was discussed. The quarantine procedures for vaccinated and unvaccinated students and staff were reviewed. Bond and Levy Construction Projects The timeline below was provided. Fall 2021 New transportation, maintenance, central office building Design Phase Kitchens Gym Band Room Renovation Parking and Road Improvements Summer 2022 Kitchen Renovations Blue Hills Buckner Fire Prairie Osage Trail Parking and Drive Improvements Blue Hills Fire Prairie Portion of Main Campus (east of Indian Lane) Summer of 2023 Kitchen Renovations Cler-Mont Elm Grove Indian Trails High School Band Room Renovations All Projects Completed It is amazing how many activities occur in our school district each week. There are multiple opportunities for parents, patrons, and staff members to support our students outside the classrooms. Supporting our students in their activities makes an immediate impact on building effective rapport that carries over to the school day. Thank you for all you do for Fort students both in and out of the classroom! If you’re interested in some Fort Osage apparel, a $35.00 gift card to the Fort Osage Activities Booster Club will be given away to one lucky winner utilizing the RNG. For those of you interested, please send an email to [email protected] with ‘Fort Fan' in the subject line. Entries will be accepted until 8:00 am on August 30. Giveaway prizes are not purchased with District funds. Only Fort Osage employees are eligible to enter the drawing. |
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