Looks like city school district teachers made out better than Shenendehowa school teachers (see story a few below):
Teachers in Saratoga Springs schools get pay raises and the district will implement new state-mandated teacher evaluations under a new three-year labor contract approved by the Board of Education on Friday.
Members of the Saratoga Springs Teachers Association (SSTA) and the board authorized the agreement for July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2014 in separate votes this week after 21 months of negotiations.
The package includes salary increases of 0.75 percent for 2013-2014, 0.5 percent for 2012-2013, and zero for 2011-2012, plus “step” raises based on seniority, according to the district. Teachers will continue to contribute 11 percent toward their health care insurance costs, Superintendent of Schools Michael Piccirillo said.
“It’s pretty much bare bones,” Piccirillo said in an interview Friday. “In the end, it came down to wanting to settle this and get our teacher evaluation plan to the state.”
Under the agreement, the district’s 530 teachers signed up for professional evaluations under the Annual Professional Performance Review (APPR) guidelines. The district needed to send their APPR plan to the state Education Department by January or face losing $833,000 in state aid, Piccirillo said.
“The SSTA is pleased with the outcome of our contract and APPR plan,” said Karen Swift, SSTA president, in a statement. “I am proud of the hard work the members did to produce an evaluation system that is not only fair for educators, but also supports their efforts to do their best for the students in this district.”
Piccirillo commended the union members. “This plan will be beneficial for the teaching and learning that takes place in this district now and in the future.”