We request proposals from teachers/lay people to run after school programs for our students. We offer a stipend to run these programs. They are usually a 3-12 week stint with the director specifying how many hours per week he/she will meet with the kids. Our Board is running into some difficulty in determining how to compensate these directors. One program may be far more time consuming (hours spent planning etc.) but the time actually spent with the kids may be similar. A drama production may require so may hours with the kids that we could not feasibly pay on a per hour basis. If we were to pay on a per hour basis, what would we use for our benchmark for this hourly cost? Would it be reasonable to pay for an expensive program with a specific (within our budget) stipend amount and an additional amount to be paid based on ticket sales so that our net cost remains within our budget? Any thoughts on what has worked well for you would be appreciated.

Although your PTO is paying the stipends, I wonder if the HR department for your school district could help provide some guidance?