The San Diego Unified School District and the San Diego Education Association have reached a tentative contract agreement after nearly a year of bargaining for a new contract.
The three-year deal includes decreased class sizes, more teacher preparation time and more counselors for special education support.
The teachers union members and the Board of Education must vote on the agreement before it becomes final. Votes are expected in late May.
Teachers will get a wage increase of 1 percent (retroactive to July 2014), as well as a 4 percent increase starting July 1, 2015. Another increase will be discussed the third year of the contract when the 2016-17 state budget is approved.
Their benefits will all be fully funded.
Under the agreement, class size ratios will change to 24 students to 1 teacher in kindergarten through third grade classes, though that ratio will be 22 to 1 in high-needs schools. Fourth through sixth grades will have classes of 35 to 1 by the 2016-17 school year.
High-needs schools will get more counselors and special education support. A full-time staff member will be available at each school with high percentages of English language learners, foster youth or students living in poverty.
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Elementary teachers will get more prep time, and a retirement incentive will go into effect for educators who retire at the end of the year.
The tentative agreement also includes research, including a study of the special education program and a committee to look into evaluation models and professional growth.
“I want to express our gratitude to our educators for their dedication to our students and for the sacrifices they made in past years that allowed us to balance our budget while staying focused and committed to our educational mission during multiple years of severe budget cuts in California,” said Superintendent Cindy Marten in a statement.
Just last month, the SDEA and the district declared an impasse when they could not reach an agreement on class sizes, support staff, enrichment classes and more.
According to the district, entry level salaries for San Diego Unified teachers are about $42,200 a year; $64,130 is the midrange; and the maximum is $87,177.
Compared to other districts in the county the median base pay for San Diego Unified teachers is slightly lower, according to numbers provided by Transparent California, a website that collects salary information about public employees in California.
According to Transparent California, the median base pay for San Diego Unified teachers is $66,127 compared to $75,719 in median base pay at the nearby Sweetwater Union High School District, which does not serve K-6 students. At Vista Unified, the median base pay for teachers is $69,411 where at Grossmont Union High School district, it’s $75,167.
However, San Diego Unified has 22 percent of its teachers with a total compensation package that places them making above $100,000 annually, according to the data.
