Morgan County Board of Education turned to a private company for the employment of special education aides at its regular meeting Thursday night, but the change did now come without opposition.

Board members voted 5-2 to enter into a contract with Appleton Learning of Huntsville to hire non-tenured special education aides only for Morgan County Schools for the 2015-2016 school year.

Superintendent Bill Hopkins Jr. said he anticipates that the school system will need to fill 12 SPE aide positions next school year.

Board members Jimmy Dobbs and Jeff McLemore opposed the change, as did Uniserve Director Gloria Johnson.

The contract was also the subject of a 20-minute work session discussion between board members and Appleton representative Glenn Clayton before the meeting.

“A lot of these aides are working for health insurance  and retirement,” Johnson said. “They will lose this or pay higher rates if their employment is outsourced under this contract.”

Based on the school’s system’s current pay schedule, SPE aides are paid $14,536 to $19,000 annually, with the rate depending on education. State health insurance premiums are $15 per week for single coverage and $177 per month for family coverage.

Clayton said rates with Appleton would be $29 per week for singles and $54 per week for families, with higher deductibles than under their current plan.

Hopkins said outsourcing SPE aide positions would greatly reduce the time required to bring in a new aide when one leaves or when one is needed for a newly enrolled student.

“We have to post an aide position for 14 calendar days before it can be recommended to the board for approval,” said Cliff Booth, Human Resources Director. “This means it can take up to three or four weeks to fill the position.”

Clayton said Appleton has candidates trained and can fill an aide position in two to three days.

Hopkins also said the school system would save about $4,000 annually for each aide hired by Appleton.

“It’s not about saving money for the schools,” he said. “It’s all about what’s best for the student.”

The Appleton contract may suspended by either party with a 30-day notice.