An Oct. 20 vote by the Fayette County Board of Education approved nearly $1 million in budget changes that will hire 19 parapros and help pay for school-level supplies and materials.

The $987,378 budget change includes $364,058 for the salaries and benefits of 19 parapros, $425,000 in operations expenses for a variety school-level supplies and materials, $48,000 to pay for additional classes if needed, $50,000 for professional development and $100,000 for instructional software.

Projected budgetary savings shown in the September financial reports of over $2 million should be sufficient to cover these changes, said Assistant Superintendent Tom Gray.

Gray said the vote did not require a budget amendment since the changes are transfers between budget categories and the total budget will not be increased.

The school board in the FY 2015 school year added 39 parapros back to the employment rolls.

The addition of parapros and other staff positions in the past two years followed previous years of job cuts. It was in the FY 2014 school year that nearly 60 parapros and more than a dozen central office positions were eliminated.

Since then, with the local economy having stabilized somewhat from the recession, the school board has maintained approximately 10 percent of revenues, or $17 million, as a reserve cushion.