AURORA | Aurora Public Schools’ upcoming, $300-million bond question could mean more money for APS teachers.
Aurora Public Schools and the Aurora Education Association, which acts as the APS teachers union, tentatively agreed to partially freeze salaries for APS educators Monday, Aug. 22, in an effort to make up for recent budget shortfalls.
The agreement is only tentative and has not yet been ratified by AEA members or formally approved by the APS board of education.
Following several hours of mediation on Monday, the district agreed to freeze APS teachers’ salaries for the first half of the year, but grant educators a 1.2 percent salary increase starting in January. That salary bump comes in lieu of teachers receiving their annual “step,” or experiential raise, which ranges from an increase of about 0.5 percent for more experienced teachers to as much as 5 percent for newer teachers, according to Amy Nichols, president of the AEA.
“If we want to attract and retain the best teachers, we’ve got to come up with a reason for them to stay…and that’s why this becomes important,” Nichols said. “Parents want consistency. They don’t want to see teachers leaving year after year.”
Nichols estimated that the teacher turnover rate across APS is about 18 percent.
The tentative agreement also stipulates that APS teachers could receive an additional $250-$400 if voters approve the district’s proposed bond issue this fall. If approved, a portion of the $300 million pot would go toward repaying general fund debt the district took on to construct the new Edna and John Mosely P-8 School, which opened near Buckley Air Force Base last year. Through a series of additional stipulations, that would free up funds for teacher’s salaries, although much of that would come in the form of non-spendable dollars, such as health insurance and Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association (PERA), according to Nichols.
“It would be additional, ongoing money,” she said.
The starting salary for an APS teacher with a bachelor’s degree is $39,286 this year, according to Nichols. Patti Moon, spokeswoman for APS, wrote in an email that even without the additional bond funds, the tentative agreement would equate to an extra $3.6 million in compensation for teachers, though the majority of that total would come in the form of increases to health insurance coverage, PERA and raises for teachers who have obtained advanced degrees. The 1.2 percent salary raise would cost the district about $800,000.
Dozens of other projects across the district have also been earmarked for the potential bond issue funds, including new schools in northwest and east Aurora, the replacement of both Mrachek Middle School and Lyn Knoll Elementary School, and a slew of technology and security upgrades.
The bond issue would increase residential property taxes by $1.93 per month for every $100,000 of home value, according to district documents.
The decision to partially freeze teachers’ salaries comes after APS faced a a budget crunch of about $4.5 million due to miscalculated student counts, according to Nichols.
Losing a “step” isn’t detrimental in the short run, but the compounded loss over the course of a career is troubling to some teachers, according to Bobbie McClure, a recently retired APS teacher who worked in the district for about 29 years.
“It just makes it tough for people that are trying to plan their future,” said McClure, who was a member of the AEA for the entirety of her APS career. “It may mean somebody has to work an extra year or think of supplementing their income once they retire.”
McClure, who taught a combination of general and special education at both Altura Elementary School and Hinkley High School during her APS career, said that she is in the process of applying to new education jobs to bolster her savings.
The district last froze APS teachers salaries about five years ago.
About 70 percent of APS teachers, or about 1600 employees, are members of the AEA, according to Nichols.
Regardless of the bond question, Nichols said she believes the negotiating process between the AEA and APS could be smoother, as well as the way the district compensates its educators.
“We believe we could do it better,” Nichols said. “Instead of eking out those little increases, what if we did something bold and innovative to attract the best teachers to APS? I know the district has the same interests — it’s how we get there.”
Members of the AEA still have to review the tentative agreement, and must vote on it by Sept. 12, according to Nichols. Following AEA-approval, the APS board of education will have to sign off on the agreement before any of the stipulation can go into effect, according to Moon.