The overall $1.9 million in the agreement exceeds the funds currently available for The Lawrence School Board for Teachers` Compensation, Kathy Johnson, executive director for school district finance, told the Journal-World on Monday. Megan Epperson, co-negotiator of the Lawrence Education Association, told the Journal-World on Monday that the preliminary agreement will now be given to union members and Lawrence School Board, both of whom will vote on whether the agreement should be ratified. The agreement also provides for additional scholarships for teachers with additional tasks, such as. B coaching teams or athletic activities. The agreement provides for a base salary increase of $218. It also allows teachers who qualify for a salary increase by increasing the school district`s salary scale, which offers certain salaries based on teacher experience and continuing education, such as obtaining a master`s degree.B. In addition, teachers who qualify for a second stage on the pay scale will receive them halfway through the school year so they don`t receive one in the past year, Cunningham said. Kimball said how much more the board can do to reduce class sizes and provide additional specialists to help class teachers depended on the overall agreement negotiated with teachers. The $1.9 million package represents about 2.4% more allowances for teachers than the 2018-19 agreement, said David Cunningham, executive director of human resources for the school district. The borough is using the salary plan to measure the district`s wage competitiveness with surrounding districts for established vocational school teachers, Cunningham said.
For example, a Lawrence teacher with 20 years of experience, who completed 10 hours beyond a master`s degree, would receive a salary of 55,090 $US. A teacher with the same experience and training would receive 53,900 $US in the Topeka School District and 65,761 $US on a Shawnee mission. School management will receive a report on the preliminary agreement at the August 12 meeting, she said. In addition to salary increases, the agreement also provides for increases in the financing of health insurance premiums. District spokeswoman Julie Boyle said the increase in health insurance allows the school district to continue to offer fully paid individual insurance for 497 employees. The Lawrence School District and the local teachers` union have reached an interim agreement that increases the teachers` allowance by just over $1.9 million. When wage negotiations begin, they will focus on the borough`s salary plan. As in other districts of the state, the salary plan offers teachers two ways to earn increases.
One of the possibilities is to stay in the borough for another year and to earn a vertical increase in the ladder.