Jan 17, 2018 2 min read

Ringgold School Board Wednesday approved a new 5-year teacher contract following tense negotiations that led to a walkout.

The new contract will result in the union receiving a 3.9 percent increase in wages per year to cover the entire salary budget, Ringgold Education Association President Maria Degnan said.

“Tonight marks the culmination of a long process,” Degnan said.

The contract in its fourth year includes some step freezes that will allow younger teachers to earn higher salaries quicker, something that has been an issue in school districts, she said.

The teachers will earn retroactively in the first year of the contract between $36,750 and $79,508 a year depending on when they were hired. By the end of the contract, the salaries will be set between $40,000 and $81,008 a year.

The REA voted last week 152-36 to ratify the contract.

The union walked off the job for 23 days after giving the district an Oct. 13 strike notice, with pay and issues involving the salary step schedule having been the main stumbling blocks in reaching a new pact.

The union also claimed during negotiations its teachers were the lowest-paid in the region, causing a pattern of turnover at Ringgold.

Director William Stein Jr. said the contract “paves the way for a better future.”

“It’s something that we needed to put behind us,” Stein said.

Director Maureen Ott said she voted against the contract because it gives teachers a nearly 4 percent salary increase in each year of the pact at a time when “most working people” are getting 2 percent wage increases a year.

Ott, who cast the only no vote on the contract, said she predicts it will lead to program cuts or furloughs.

In other business, the board approved a request by a group of students to form an American Civics Club, but not without dissent from Director Larry Mauro.

Mauro said he suspected the club is affiliated with hate groups, “stuff we don’t need in the school.”

Stein said the district investigated the club request for four months and determined its members want to learn about government and community service.

“I’m satisfied that we beat this to death,” Stein said.

High school junior David Reidenbaugh of Eighty Four, who is among its members, said the club wants to do good work and give back to the community.

“Under no circumstance is this a racist organization,” Reidenbaugh said during public comment.