The Salem-Keizer School Board meets Tuesday, April 9, to ratify a contract with the district teacher union, a vote which will close out a contentious bargaining process that almost led to the first teacher strike in district history.
To participate
The Salem-Keizer School Board meets Tuesday, April 9, in the boardroom at the former Student Services Support Center, 2575 Commercial St. S.E. The public meeting begins at 6 p.m. The board will meet in executive session at 4:30 p.m. to discuss plans related to school safety and threats against schools. Executive session meetings are closed to the public.
Members of the public may sign up in advance to provide written, in-person or virtual public comment. People can sign up using this form.
Public comment sign-ups close at 3 p.m. Monday.
The meeting will be streamed on CC:Media, channel 21 or on YouTube in English and Spanish.
Teacher union contract
Teachers and other members of the Salem-Keizer Education Association are voting through Monday on a new two-year contract. Union leaders expect to share results Tuesday.
If a majority of union members approve, the contract goes to the school board Tuesday for ratification.
The agreement covers about 2,600 licensed school district employees, including counselors, speech language pathologists, occupational therapists and other professionals who work directly in schools.
It include a 9.75% raise over two years, a $6,000 one-time retention bonus for employees working at least half time, and changes to policies and procedures around disruptive student behavior and large elementary school class sizes.
The full agreement is included in the board packet.
Supplemental budget
The board will vote on adopting a supplemental budget, which is required by law to make changes to school revenue and expenses during the year.
The updated budget reflects that the district received about $9 million more from the state this year than budgeted, mostly because legislators approved a $10.2 billion state school fund. The district budgeted for a $9.9 billion statewide school fund.
The supplemental budget also reflects increased expenses because of wage increases in the new union contracts, and the one-time retention bonuses paid to employees.
Budget committee vacancy
The board will declare a position on the budget committee vacant after former budget committee member Lisa Harnisch was appointed to the school board in March. Harnisch represents west Salem, zone 1, and is filling in the seat previously held by Osvaldo Avila, who resigned earlier this year.
The budget committee includes the full school board, as well as seven other appointed community volunteers. The group meets in the spring to review the district’s proposed budget, ask questions, suggest changes and ultimately vote on recommending the budget to the school board.
Harnisch’s term on the budget committee would have ended June 30, 2026. After the board declares her position vacant, the district will begin taking applications for volunteers to fill her seat for the remainder of the term.
Applications will open April 12 and close May 31. The board plans to make an appointment at its June 11 meeting.
Transportation plan
The board will consider but not yet vote on a supplemental transportation plan, which outlines the situations where the school district provides bus service for students who live within school walk zones.
Typically, elementary students who live within 1 mile of school and secondary students within a mile and a half don’t get bus service. But the district can bus students who live closer if it can demonstrate to the state that students can’t reasonably be expected to walk to school because of hazards along the route, like poor visibility, obstructions, a lack of sidewalks and the safety of street crossings.
If the state approves the district’s plan, state money covers 70% of the transportation costs.
The plan identifies about 2,100 district students who live within 72 “hazard zones” where walking to school is too dangerous. The largest number attend schools within Sprague High School and West Salem High School’s feeder areas.
A list of all hazard areas by school and how many students they impact begins on page 92 of the board packet.
Other agenda items
- The board will hold a first reading for three new curriculum adoptions: high school English language arts, middle school math and newcomer English language development. The curriculum would be approved at a later meeting.
- The board will consider proclamations for Arab American History Month and Child Abuse Prevention Month.
- The board will receive written reports on school construction projects and the financial audit of its spending from the state Student Investment Account.
- The board will hear a report from Superintendent Andrea Castañeda and the Community Bond Oversight Committee, which updates the board on projects voters approved in a 2018 bond.
Contact Keizertimes Staff:
[email protected] or 503-390-1051
SUBSCRIBE TO GET KEIZER NEWS — We report on your community with care, depth, fairness, and accuracy. Get local news that matters to you. Subscribe today to get our daily newsletters and more.
