May 13, 2026
By ANASTASIA PENCHI
The De Soto Area School Board unanimously approved a recommendation to adopt a new Paid Time Off (PTO) system for employees instead of using the “sick leave” model during its regular April meeting. The board also approved a second recommendation to add two paid bereavement days as an added benefit for staff.
The changes are slated to be implemented for the 2026-27 school year.
Middle & High School Principal Tim Fergot said research supplied by the district’s Business Office showed that while the switch to a PTO system is not likely to save any money, it shouldn’t increase costs either.
The district is doing this in hopes of preventing high-quality teachers from leaving, he said, because it costs money to train new staff and can result in lower test scores. Districts have had to become more creative with benefits because they are limited on pay increases (inflation rate only) since Act 10 passed in Wisconsin in 2011 under former Governor Scott Walker.
“We want to be as progressive as we can be within reason,” Fergot told the board.
The recommendations came from the district’s Employee Retention Committee, which is made up of teachers and administrators from all three school sites: Stoddard Elementary School, Prairie View Elementary School in Retreat and De Soto Middle & High School.
The School Board created the committee last year after its third operational referendum was turned down by voters. It is facing several challenges: having had three different superintendents during the last three years; previous board turnover; aging facilities; and declining enrollment.
The board set four strategic priorities in 2025, which members now discuss each month: Long-range facility planning; academic excellence; employee retention; and community engagement.
Fergot, who is also serving as assistant superintendent with Interim Superintendent Craig Gerlach to better prepare for his role as next year’s superintendent, said the committee made the recommendations after staff made priorities clear in surveys.
He said the existing sick leave system is “antiquated,” as it doesn’t allow for real-life scenarios and encourages employees to be dishonest to get the time off they need. The 10 “sick days,” available previously will be changed to 10 PTO days.
The new system will offer “meaningful change” for staff, he said, and days off and substitute teacher schedules can be planned ahead instead of just scrambling the night before or the morning the “sick call” is made.
“It made sense to push this through,” Fergot added.
The board added the following “guardrails” for the first year to ensure the new PTO system will work:
- Substitute teachers must be available.
- Employees may not take more than three consecutive days.
- The district will designate blackout days when PTO may not be used.
- At year end, unused PTO will be rolled into a long-term sick leave bank for future major medical needs.
- Employees who exhaust PTO and request unpaid time will reimburse the district.
In addition, the district’s move to add two paid bereavement days will “support employees during times of personal loss while promoting a compassionate and supportive workplace,” according to the proposal.
The financial cost of the bereavement benefit is “expected to be minimal,” and “improved employee morale and retention may offset these costs over time.”
Fergot said it is important the district tries to keep its quality staff because ever since the state implemented Act 10, there are fewer teachers applying for jobs. Not only does De Soto compete with other districts – it also competes with the private sector, which offers higher wages.
It has lost at least one teacher to the private sector in recent years, he said.
“We have to be very mindful of the competition out there, especially for our highly qualified teachers,” Fergot added.
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