Lake County Gazette

The Mokena School District 159 Board of Education has approved an updated compensation package for the district’s bus drivers, effective immediately.

Superintendent Robert Gurney stated, “Our bus drivers are an essential part of our success here in Mokena School District 159.  Their work in ensuring that our students travel to and from school each day safely is something that we are all proud of. As a district we are very excited to support them with this additional compensation and retention bonus structure.”

The new package includes a $2.05 per hour market adjustment, raising the starting hourly wage for newly hired bus drivers to $25.50. In addition, a $1,000 signing bonus will be given to school bus drivers who join the district fully licensed and certified. For those not yet licensed, the district will offer a training program lasting between 40 and 60 hours, paid at $20 per hour as new hires work toward certification. The updates also include medical and life insurance provided by the district.

Current drivers will see a retention incentive program introduced for the upcoming school year. Both new and current bus drivers will receive an annual retention bonus ranging from $880 to $2,640 based on years of service, paid in two installments.

Mokena School District 159 serves Will County and includes Mokena Elementary School, Mokena Intermediate School, and Mokena Junior High School (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). According to data from the Illinois State Board of Education, the district employs 97 teachers with an average salary of $61,802; most teachers are women (85.2 percent), while men make up 14.8 percent (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). The student population is predominantly White at 85 percent, with Black students at 2.7 percent, Hispanic students at 7.7 percent, and Asian students at 2.1 percent (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/). In 2020, spending per student was reported at $23,197 for a total expenditure of $35,515,357 (https://www.illinoisreportcard.com/).

For information about available bus driver positions in the district, interested individuals can visit https://mokena159.schoolspring.com/ or contact the Transportation Coordinator at (708) 342-4959.