Tentative contract in hand, St. Paul teachers, district must turn to students

The St. Paul school community breathed a justifiable sigh of relief late last week when teachers said they had reached a tentative contract agreement with the school district. That welcome announcement averted a strike — a scenario that everyone wanted to avoid.

Now that details of the proposed pact are public, it's clear that St. Paul teachers will be better off. We'll know in a few years if students came out ahead.

The agreement, which both the St. Paul Federation of Teachers and the school board are expected to approve in March, includes wage increases, the hiring of additional support staff, some modest class-size reductions and expanded preschool for 4-year-olds.

It remains to be seen, however, whether the changes will significantly improve student achievement in the district. We certainly hope that the additional $33 million cost of the two-year contract — two-thirds goes to salaries and benefits — will result in better-educated children. As the price of public education keeps growing, taxpayers expect better results.

Test scores and graduation rates in the district have shown modest improvement in recent years. But because so many St. Paul students are so far behind, the contract and new agreements need to significantly speed up progress to substantially narrow achievement disparities.

In the previous contract, the administration and educators struck a deal for 0.5 percent cost-of-living increases in each of the two years, while steps-and-lanes (longevity and education) schedules stayed in place. That brought the average wage and benefit package up to $92,000, including average salaries of $68,000.

Under the new deal, teachers would receive a 2.25 percent salary increase in the first year and 2 percent in the second. In addition, many would earn an additional increase for years of service, and some would move up the pay scale if they earn additional degrees or educational credits. Combined, the total wage and benefit package would increase by 8.6 percent over the current pact.

Other components of the tentative agreement reached in St. Paul — such as class-size changes and adding support staff — came in the form of memorandum agreements or board resolutions. That puts them in a less permanent category within the contract, giving the district needed flexibility.

However, it is significant that the board and the administration are on record as saying they will work to achieve those goals. Parents and community members who rallied for smaller classes, added support staff and greater preschool access will be watching.

Under the current contract, the district agreed to try to meet certain class-size ranges at various grade levels. The new contract includes similar goals, with the high-end numbers cut by one to four students. The new goals also call for smaller class sizes in the city's most challenged schools.

There is wiggle room for the district and individual schools, though, and the class-size ranges are based on the number of students that teachers see in a given day — not overall student-teacher ratios.

The district agreed to reallocate existing funds to hire 42 additional support staff, including counselors, social workers, school nurses and library media specialists. The district also will use current funds to offer more preschool spots to those who have been on waiting lists. An additional $6 million can be channeled to Pre-K from the district's all-day kindergarten referendum fund because the Legislature agreed last year to pick up that cost.