By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Storm damage to the roof at Great Bend High School and an explosion next door to the new USD 428 Support Services Building are just a pair of exhibits as to the importance of property and casualty insurance. Thursday morning, the USD 428 Board of Education approved a new contract with the Kansas Educational Risk Management Pool for $463,702.30. Superintendent Khris Thexton said that's $180,000 more than the last contract.
"It is a large increase, but we've added two new buildings to our coverage," he said. "Their value is way more than what we currently have with the current buildings. I knew it was coming. I was hoping it wouldn't be that high but you can't not have property and casualty insurance."
The coverage will be good from July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024. The pool mirrors that of the district's health insurance policy.
"You see surrounding states that are going to these styles of programs mainly because if you don't have a big claims year, that money goes right back into your pool and you can build off that," Thexton explained. "It's not going to, say, a company that's managing that program."
The policy includes a $25,000 deductible for wind, hail, and water damage, and a $10,000 deductible for all other peril, including vandalism, fire, and theft.