Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025
Vol. 6, No. 2
PCMExplorer Local People. Local Stories.
GREAT TO BE BACK PCM kicks off the 2025-2026 school year Aug. 25
Jasper County reworks pay plans to retain and attract more workers Supervisors had instructed wage committee to find system that best fits county By Christopher Braunschweig PCM Explorer
Jamee A. Pierson/PCM Explorer
Supervisors have reworked all pay plans for Jasper County employees in hopes to simplify the system, attract more workers and save tax dollars in the long run. Dennis Simon, director of human resources for Jasper County, said the new pay plans had been formulating over the past several months. Supervisors had been meeting with Simon and other department heads during work sessions to hash out the details. They looked at everything from step
programs to merit systems. “Came down to making the recommendation to move forward with the five-step pay plan,” Simon said at the Aug. 12 meeting. “It achieves everything I believe the board wanted. It increases our hiring rate, it also gets the employee to the top rate of scale; both would be very effective for recruitment tools and retainment.” The supervisors approved five different consolidated pay plans, including plans for the RETAIN | 3
Student absence reporting now available in Infinite Campus PCM’s new system allows future absences to be scheduled along with day-of absences By Jamee A. Pierson PCM Explorer PCM has moved to a new way to report absences for students. Instead of directly contacting the school, parents can fill out an absence request form by logging in to Infinite Campus, a digital platform used by the district as a central hub for managing student data, streamlining administrative tasks and facilitating communication between schools, parents and students. “With the new absence request form in Infinite Campus, you can quickly let us know if your child
will be gone, late or leaving early,” the district said. “You can even enter multiple days at once and upload a doctor’s note all in one place.” To submit an absence request form, log in to the Infinite Campus Parent Portal either through the app or in a web browser. Then, scroll down to Shortcuts and select Absence Request. Select which student will be absent and select the excuse reason. Select Absence Type, either full day, arrive late or leave early, and enter dates and time, if applicable. If the student will be ABSENCE | 3
Jamee A. Pierson/PCM Explorer Families at PCM can now report absences for students on Infinite Campus.
PERFECT DAY AT PERCY
A large crowd gathered to celebrate the family-like community of Percy
Jamee A. Pierson/PCM Explorer From the church service in the morning to fun and games in the afternoon, the Percy Fair is an event families from the area look forward to each year.
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