CR Teachers, Administrators Ratify $1.1M in Concessions

Council Rock teachers and administrators have agreed to defer salary increases for the first half of the 2011-12 school year as part of a series of changes to their contracts. The concessions will save the district more than $1.1 million, officials said.

The district sought the concessions from the Council Rock Administrator’s Association and the Council Rock Education Association to balance what was once a $14.2 million budget gap.

According to a statement from the office of Superintendent Mark Klein, the CREA ratified the changes with a membership vote on Tuesday and CRAA ratified these changes in early April.

The Board of School Directors will consider these changes at its meeting Thursday. The meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Chancellor Center.

According to the district, under the terms of the modified contracts, CREA and CRAA will defer increases in salary for the first half of the 2011-12 school year. Within the salary scale, teachers who earn movement for salary credits or who earn movement for years of service will receive this change with the first pay of the school year.

The agreement allows members who declare their retirement to receive the full salary increase for the 2011-12 school year, the district said.

The agreement gives teachers two “flex days” for their work outside of school in workshops or other staff development activities. CREA will receive an additional two days of professional service compensatory time for in-service days that are already scheduled in the calendar.

This is the second time in four years that the CREA and CRAA have modified contracts to help the school district work through difficult financial issues, district officials said. The combined result of these two modifications has resulted in more than $2.2 million in salary savings to the school district, officials said.

The Council Rock Educational Support Professionals Association (CRESPA) has also made concessions in its contracts that have saved the district money over the last two years, according to the district.

“The continued cooperation of all of district employees to help in these difficult financial times is a testimony to the commitment shared by all to the excellence of Council Rock School District,” said the statement from the superintendent's office.

In the same statement, CREA President Mariann McKee and CRAA President Susan McCarthy jointly stated that these changes “continue to recognize the need to maintain a quality education for the children in Council Rock.”

The board will also consider a preliminary budget for the 2011-2012 school year at its Thursday meeting.  To view the full agenda for the meeting, click here.