An email was sent out on Oct. 25 from CUHSD and CHSTA stating they’ve reached an agreement for the 2024-2025 negotiation cycle.
The contents of the email include a summary of various agreements that were made, specifically concerning work hours and pay. This includes a salary increase under Article 18/28 (Compensation), stating CUHSD will, “Increase to the salary schedule of 3% in 2024-2025 effective July 1, 2024, and 3% in 2025-2026 effective July 1, 2025.”
Some teachers such as Danielle Schwartz, an IB HOTA teacher, are satisfied with this outcome.
“I’m really happy that we finally came to an agreement,” says Schwartz. “…I was hopeful that we would receive more of a raise, but despite that, I’m happy that we were able to come to an agreement that worked out for everyone.”
In a previous email on Oct. 23 from CHSTA regarding teacher contract negotiations, the union expressed its disapproval of the district’s suggestion to extend teachers’ workdays by holding IEP and 504 meetings outside of school hours.
The email stated, “We are concerned that this could disproportionately impact some of our members whose classes include a large number of students with IEPs and 504s. We also do not agree that management has the right to direct the professional duties that are completed outside of the instructional day.”
IEPS and 504s meetings concern special needs students. Meetings were held during the school day to check student progress toward education standards.
The union ended Work to Contract last Monday since it began on Oct 1. They prepared to take drastic measures if Fact Finding did not procure an acceptable solution.
“Fact Finding is the last required step in the negotiation process before a potential strike,” CHSTA said in the email. “In the weeks ahead we will be laying the groundwork should a strike become necessary.”
There was a board meeting on Oct. 17 in which teachers wore red to show solidarity and dissatisfaction with working without a contract. According to Bardia Golbad, a senior, multiple teachers voiced their concerns about the Superintendent, Dr. Robert Bravo.
“[Teacher speakers mainly talked] about how they couldn’t get back to their normal school lives,” says Golbad. “They couldn’t support students anymore because of the Work to Contract since they had letters of recommendation to do but they never had time, but they didn’t have time to do it at home or they had other jobs to do such as being a parent.”
Leading up to these events was a district-wide student walkout on Tuesday, Oct. 1. DMHS students shouted chants and made signs to show their support for teachers.
“I know the teachers here, I feel like most of them are pretty good,” Sebastian Yuen, a senior, said during the walkout. “And if we don’t keep them.. I guess the school won’t be good. The one thing I like about the school is I believe the teachers are good.”
The first event in the teacher contract negotiation timeline is the Teacher Quad Sit-in on Sept. 19. They set up flyers and a banner spreading awareness about issues such as an expired contract, impasse, and $63 million in surplus.
“So part of why this is happening now is because the board said that [they] didn’t know the numbers,” said Clare Chatfield, an English teacher, during the sit-out. “[They] couldn’t promise any substantial salary increases because [they] don’t know what [their] budget is going to look like.”
In an interview with Jason Baker, the president of the Board of Trustees, shared his perspective as an individual on this entire matter.
He supports the Union in its fight for more support for teachers and students, but he also explained that the majority of the $63 million surplus was one-time money and not from income. So, they have to be cautious of spending that money on teachers which are ongoing expenses. They have projections of what the budget could look like, but a projection is just a projection. However, there has been an agreement to spend a deficit of $6 million towards teachers.
The Dispatch reached out to the school district for a comment but has yet to receive a response.
