Some administrators in DeKalb schools will be getting a boost in their pay from stipends due, in part, to action taken this week by the DeKalb School District 428 Board.

The added funding of $87,500 would come out of the district’s Title I 1003a grant, which is meant to pay for personnel expenses, such as administrative stipends, when the costs are directly tied to the planning, coordination, and implementation of school improvement work. The lone dissenting vote was Board member Mark Charvat. Board member Vanta Bynum was absent.

Such funds, officials said, would go to help certain administrators account for time completing added paperwork, participating in professional development, and spending time in additional school improvement meetings, when leaders of other school buildings may not.

On average, the district’s principals and assistant principals logged 124 additional hours of time dedicated to their building’s designation, and the deans reported working 90 additional hours, district documents show.

Charvat expressed some reservations about supporting the request for administrator stipends.

“I think we could prioritize students with this money rather than provide bonuses,” Charvat said. “The administrators, they do a fantastic job, but I would like to see the money go directly to things that affect the classroom.”

A separate vote to consider postponing the board’s decision failed for lack of a second.

The stipends are anticipated to have a direct impact on student achievement and overall school performance, school board documents show.