Faculty and staff at Paine College are receiving their benefits again after a roughly two-month hiatus.
In May, the school notified employees via a letter that their life, health and disability benefits would be suspended, noting stymied negotiations with their coverage provider. The college had also stated that dental benefits would continue.
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The cancellation even received brief mention later that month when the school’s board of trustees announced its latest wave of donations — some $200,000 worth, mostly from alumni — when Butch Gallop, presenting a contribution on behalf of the estate of Ellis and Ann Johnson, stressed that school administration was pursuing a more cost-effective carrier.
On June 27, the historically Black college announced that it has restored insurance benefits for all its full-time employees, as it was working with a “new broker team… to assist in providing expanded benefits.” Alongside medical, dental, life insurance and both short and long-term disability coverage, supplemental benefits are also to include accidental insurance, hospital coverage, and even insurance for critical illness, such as cancer.
“We are pleased that we were able to work through this matter together to arrive at a positive resolution,” said Paine College President Cheryl Evans Jones in a statement, apologizing to employees for the interruption. “This caused us to examine internal procedures to ensure that this does not happen again.”
The announcement came weeks after Jones made public her imminent retirement from Paine after five years as president, and 31 years total at the college. During her tenure at the college, Jones has served as provost and vice president of Academic Affairs. The Board of Trustees is currently searching for the school’s next president, and Evans intends to remain until her replacement has been selected.
Open enrollment for employee insurance at Paine began on June 28, and coverage began on Monday.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
