Crawfordsville Community School Corp. has reached a tentative agreement with the teachers’ association that proposes what is believed to be the largest salary raise in the district’s history.
The annual contract, which was presented to the school board at a special meeting Monday, calls for a $4,000 base salary increase for full-time teachers evaluated as highly effective or effective and with less than seven years of consecutive experience with the district.
“When I came to Crawfordsville, I was on the negotiations team, so I’ve seen 20 years of bargaining — this is the best we’ve ever been able to do,” superintendent Dr. Scott Bowling told board members.
The raise is in line with the salary increases offered by North and South Montgomery schools in their latest contracts, which were ratified earlier this year. No raises are being offered to teachers rated ineffective or in need of improvement.
The pay increases were made possible as Indiana lawmakers bolstered funding for K-12 schools in the new state budget flush with federal coronavirus relief funding, adding about $1 billion over two years.
Legislative leaders said the budget plan will cover the $600 million a year in additional money the governor’s teacher compensation commission found was needed to significantly boost Indiana’s lagging teacher pay in comparison to nearby states.
Local schools also spent some of their federal relief aid on one-time hazard pay stipends for teachers and other staff.
The proposed salary increase more than doubles for all Crawfordsville teachers who have completed exactly seven consecutive years of service with the district.
Those teachers would receive an $8,400 raise based on the “academic need” to “retain mid-career teachers based on their current salary level,” the tentative contract reads.
Bowling said the increase brings Crawfordsville’s salary closer to larger school districts such as North West Hendricks and Brownsburg, but “we’re not there yet.”
“We do have a problem with teachers who we sort of train and then they take off,” Bowling said. “I mean, it’s not a mass exodus but it becomes very attractive, once you get your feet wet.”
The tentative contract also includes a raise in starting pay to $42,300, a $4,000 increase. The state has asked schools to try to increase minimum teacher salaries to at least $40,000 by 2022-23.
North Montgomery increased its starting pay to $41,000 and South Montgomery went to $41,300.
Crawfordsville has also agreed to contribute more to employee health insurance premiums. The district’s contribution would go to $8,042 from $7,875, under the proposed language.
The district’s most popular health plan, which has a $6,750 deductible for families, has an annual rate of $9,960, Bowling said.
The board is set to ratify the agreement during Thursday’s regular meeting at 6 p.m. in Crawfordsville Middle School.
View the tentative contract by going to cville.k12.in.us and clicking on “Policies, Guidelines and Contracts” on the school board page.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
