By TARA HETTINGER
Tara.Hettinger@newsandtribune.com
May 10, 2008 06:08 pm
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Parents and teachers from New Albany-Floyd County Consolidated School Corp. plan to rally at Monday night’s board meeting due to on-going contract negotiations.
“I think we all have a role to play just to show our support, because our children are going to these people,” said Jennifer Stricker, parent of a Floyds Knobs student. “We all need to learn more and know the facts, including me. But I have to support the teachers because that’s where my children are going.”
The contract ended in December. However, it will remain effective until a new agreement is reached.
The education association is asking for a raise for teachers, lower class sizes and more planning time.
“The proposals we’ve made utilize only new money coming in from the state,” Mark Kessans, president-elect of the association, said in a press release. “It doesn’t even touch their $679,472 interest income on investments, or their $3.9 million cash balance, or their $508,577 rainy day fund.”
However, school administrators say the new money and interest is already accounted for in the budget. Most of that is to pay for operational expenses and the automatic raises all teachers with 17 years of service or less get each year.
“As for the rainy day fund, that’s one time money,” Fred McWhorter, director of business for the corporation, said. “With fuel costs sky rocketing, we anticipate having to use that fund for the transportation fund in the near future.”
One of the administration’s proposals to the association is a 2 percent salary increase retroactive to the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, in addition to the automatic pay raises.
They would also have a 2 percent compensation package to be used for pay raises, the 401(a) retirement plan and/or to hire staff to improve plan time.
“With our 2 percent offer that’s on the table, we’re looking at spending around a quarter of a million more than we’re taking in,” McWhorter said.
“Our teachers are great. There’s good instruction daily in the classrooms,” said Bill Briscoe, assistant to the superintendent for administration and operations. “This is about coming up with an ending offer that’s good to our kids, community and our teachers.”
McWhorter then referred to the amount of money spent over the amount taken in. In 2005, that amount was a little over $13,000. The next year, it was $671,808. In 2007, it was more than $1.6 million.
At the last board meeting, school board president Rebecca Gardenour read a statement, breaking down some of the numbers by quoting salary figures and comparing them to state averages. The News and Tribune investigated those numbers and found them to be accurate according to the Department of Education Web site and various tax forms.
Doug Taylor, president of the association, said there’s only one reason the board brought up the numbers.
“To me, them bringing that up insinuates that they think we all make too much money,” Taylor said. “They are just trying to depress our salaries by comparing them to the average, because being above average in salary I guess is a bad thing. Though average performance on the ISTEP or average performance in the classroom wouldn’t be acceptable.”
“We want to give the teachers a raise that is fair and at the same time, wouldn’t cause higher class sizes or massive layoffs,” Briscoe said.
The sides are working with a state-appointed mediator in the negotiation process. If the sides fail to make progress with the mediator, a state-appointed fact-finder will be brought in to issue a non-binding recommendation.
The next school board meeting is set for 7 p.m. Monday, at the Administrative Services Center. The rally will start at the same place at 6:15 p.m.
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