Baldwin City school district, teachers reach contract agreement

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The Baldwin City school board and district teachers have reached an agreement on a 2018-2019 contract that gives all teachers a $500 annual raise and a $500 holiday bonus.

Baldwin City Superintendent Paul Dorathy said the school board on Monday approved a negotiated contract that raises the district’s base pay for first-year teachers with no previous teaching experience by $500 to $37,750. A $500 increase was also added to step raises that teachers receive for years of experience and additional education. In addition, the board voted to give district teachers a $500 stipend with their December paychecks, he said.

The Baldwin teachers voted last week to approve the contract, Dorathy said. Although the contract was approved almost three months after teachers reported to work for the 2018-2019 school year, negotiations went well, he said.

Mike Curran, president of the Baldwin Education Association teachers’ union, agreed. Contract approval was delayed because union negotiators wanted to know the district’s official 2018-2019 enrollment and its effects on the district budget before finalizing an agreement, he said.

He and district teachers were pleased with the agreement, Curran said.

“As a negotiator, you always want more for salaries, but you have to be realistic about what the board can afford,” he said.

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