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Wausau School District 2015-2016 Annual Report
HUMAN RESOURCES & EMPLOYEE RELATIONS Jeff Gress, SPHR, Director of Human Resources & Employee Relations New Compensation Model for Teachers 2015-16 marked the second year of the District’s new compensation system for its teachers. In 2013 the Board authorized Administration to form a team, including teachers, administrators, and board members, to begin researching and designing a new compensation model forteachers. The new model was initially implemented at the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year. In 2015-16, teachers were able to begin taking advantage of key design features of the model by credentialing (which is an annual process that includes completion of specific training and meeting Educator Effectiveness requirements) and earning professional development points (through the completion of District-offered courses, college credits, seminars, etc.). The combination of cre entialing and earning a specified number of professional development points can result in the ability to advance on the compensation model. The Compensation Design Team has continued its work over the past school year and will continue to refine and further develop the model in the coming year.
Health and Wellness Initiatives Staff Wellness Program -- Program Year 4 The District recognizes the many benefits of a staff wellness program and continues to promote a culture of wellness. Beginning in 2012 and continuing through June 2016, we partnered with WellNation (formerly Trotter Wellness) to provide a comprehensive health and wellness management program to our employees and their spouses. The primary goal of the program continues to be long-term improvement in the overall health and wellness of District employees and their spouses. The key components of the program includes an annual health screening panel (i.e., biometric screening), annual health risk assessment (HRA), targeted telephonic health coaching sessions (by WellNation’s professional health coaching staff), and year-long targeted programs and activities. The ongoing success of the wellness program is measured based on data from employee participation rates, aggregate biometric health screening results, telephonic health/wellness coaching sessions, changes in our aggregate average wellness scores, and the percentage of employees in risk groups. (The District does not receive any individual data on wellness program participants -- only group aggregate data). Year 4 of the Wellness Program has shown a slight decrease in participation. Of the 903 participants who initially enrolled in the program for this year, 704 successfully completed the program (i.e., 509 employees and 195 spouses) and qualified for the incentive. Individual feedback and survey data from participants indicated that engagement and overall satisfaction with the wellness program was declining. Accordingly, early in 2016, the Wellness Steering Team began exploring options for enhancing participation and satisfaction levels of the program. As a result, the Steering Team has developed plans for exciting program changes for the coming year.