Minneapolis Public Schools (MN),
(July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2015)
Seven months into the 2013-2014 school year, Minneapolis teachers voted
to ratify their 2013-2015 contract.
This contract furthers efforts initiated by its predecessor to strengthen
academic performance at Minneapolis’ high priority schools (the 5 percent most
persistently low-performing Title I schools). While there are changes in this
section of the district’s contract, most of these are changes in recommendations rather than hard policy changes. This includes:
Professional
development:
The new contract increases the number of days
for teacher professional development and collaboration from three to five in
high priority schools, effective 2013-2014.
Additional
instructional time:
Both the previous and current contracts provide
the district several options for adding instructional time but neither mandates
that the district employ any one of the suggested options or actually add more
instructional time. The difference between the previous and current contract in
this area is that the current contract adds one more option for adding
instructional time (extended learning options and a longer day) and does not
limit the number of days the school year may be extended (the previous contract
limited this to a maximum of 5 days.)
Class
size:
The contract sets lower class size targets for
K-3 teachers in high priority schools, from 21 students required under the
previous contract to a target of 18 students.
Renewed
focus on talent:
The new contract calls for a collaborative
effort by the MFT and the district to develop hiring and retention programs that
will help attract and retain teachers at high priority schools. But the
contract does not provide any specifics on how to achieve this goal.
We look forward to hearing how the district and MFT go about making these
goals for high priority schools a reality. Turning now to contract changes that
affect teachers across the district:
Class size:
For the first time, the contract calls for
district class size targets to be set through the district budgeting process.
The targets must be published and made available for the expected class size
and teacher–to- student ratio for each grade level and school.
As a result, the budget calls for a target of 26
students in grades K-3 and 32 in grades 4-12. (As previously noted, these
targets may differ in high priority schools.) When class size exceeds the
target, the contract calls for the addition of extra aides or teachers.
Transfers
and assignments:
The latest contract made a small change to the
transfer process, lowering the number of candidates in the interview pool for
any given vacancy from five senior teachers and five other applicants, to four
from each category.
Community
and Partnership Schools:
Acting on an initiative of soon-to-be former Superintendent
Bernadeia Johnson, the district and MFT agreed to the creation of Community
Partnership Schools (CPS). Schools interested in achieving CPS
status develop and submit a site plan to the CPS Advisory Board. The Board
reviews the site plan and makes recommendations to the Superintendent who
determines if the school’s proposed plan should be sent to the Board of
Education for final approval.
Teachers at these schools take a lead
role in developing site-based educational models. They might, for example, be
instrumental in the development of curriculum, budget, instructional time or
design of the school days, just as long as everything is within legal and
budgetary requirements. Johnson declared that she would like to
eventually see 20-30 percent of the district’s schools functioning under this
model.
Salary:
After four straight years of no cost of
living increases, Minneapolis teachers will see an average 4.3 percent annual
adjustment across the salary schedule in 2014-2015. The salary schedules for
the other years of the contract’s term are not included in the contract.
Benefits:
The district
will increase its health insurance contribution for families and
dependents by $600 each year, raising the total contribution from $3,850
in January 2013 to $5,050 by January 2015.
Granite School District (UT), (July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2017)
Granite’s new
contract brings little change to report. In fact, we can report only one (rather
insignificant) change:
Salary:
The
latest contract only included the 2014-2015 salary schedule, and it appears teachers
will receive an average 1.5 percent cost of living increase across the salary
schedule this school year.
Bridgeport Public Schools (CT), (July 1, 2014 – June 30,
2017)
Bridgeport teachers
have a new contract after an extremely contentious negotiation process. Mayor
Bill Finch and then-School Board Chairman Kenneth Moales began negotiations by
calling the district’s previous contract
the worst contract they’d ever seen and demanded major
concessions from teachers. Meanwhile, the Bridgeport Educators Association accused
city leaders of wanting only to advance Governor Malloy’s reform agenda. After
all the fireworks, the new contract is remarkably void of interesting
change.
Salary:
Over the next three years,
teacher salaries will increase by 1.5 percent, 2.3 percent and 1.5 percent in
2014-2015, 2015-2016 and 2016-2017, respectively. Step movement is frozen for
the 2015-2016 school year but teachers will be able to advance a step on the
salary schedule this school year and in 2016-2017.
Benefits:
Insurance
premiums for teachers are increasing over the next three years.
Under
the old contract, the district contributed 86 percent of the health
care premium. By July 2016, that will decrease to 81 percent. One wonders, in
light of the increased health premiums and a one percent raise, if younger
teachers have any cause to rejoice?
Some education advocates
in Bridgeport have expressed disappointment with the district’s new contract, declaring
it a missed opportunity to introduce meaningful changes such
as performance pay, which the neighboring urban districts of Hartford and New
Haven have instituted.
