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Permit #15 Williston,VT 05495 POSTAL CUSTOMER
OCTOBER 1, 2020
District, teachers settle employment contract By Jason Starr Observer staff
The Champlain Valley School Board and the local teachers union settled on a one-year employment contract shortly after the school year began in September. The contract takes over for a two-year deal that expired in June. The sides were only comfortable with a one-year agreement because of pandemic-related uncertainty about school district finances in the coming years. They plan to return to negotiations this fall to work on an agreement that can take over when the new contract expires this coming June. The new contract gives a roughly 3.2 percent salary increase for teachers on average, with larger raises going to teachers with the most seniority, who have been maxed out on seniority pay increases under the current salary grid. Negotiations on the contract started last winter and were paused when schools shut down during the beginning of the pandemic in the spring. They resumed over videoconference through the summer, and teachers entered the school year without a new deal. “We are happy to be done with
it,” said Lisa Bisbee, a special educator at Williston Central School and the lead contract negotiator for the teachers union. “Not having a contract always looms over the school culture and it’s something teachers have in the back of
The new contract gives a roughly 3.2 percent salary increase for teachers on average. their minds to worry about. With the hybrid (remote learning) model, we have enough on our plate right now. Now, our energy can be focused where it needs to be, on teaching.” The contract includes a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) to create a process for changing working conditions related to the pandemic. The MOU calls for negotiations between teachers and the district whenever a change in schedule or job duties are needed. Examples include work-day expectations of teachers who are teaching remotely and district sup-
plies of personal protective equipment, hand-washing stations and masks. “The MOU is a way to make sure administrators don’t change schedules or change someone’s duties without coming to us,” Bisbee said. “We will decide that together.” The new contract is the first to incorporate a statewide health insurance provision for teachers. The statewide insurance increases teachers’ share of premiums from 16 percent to 20 percent. Throughout negotiations, teachers sought to increase their salaries to offset this increase in health insurance costs. The 3.2 percent raise — which is a larger annual raise than teachers received in the previous contract — accomplishes that. “What we really needed was an offset for the new health care money we will be paying, and we were able to get that,” said Bisbee. “We are pleased.” The school board has also agreed to terms on a one-year contract with the district’s support staff. It includes a 3.5 percent salary increase for custodians, food service staff and intensive paraeducators.
Sorting it out
Observer photo by Al Frey
Ashley DuBois sorts food donations at the Williston Federated Church on Saturday morning during a food drive for the Williston Community Food Shelf. A total of 1,850 pounds of food were collected. Joining Ashley Dubois in organizing the event were Rebecca Dubois, Shelley Marshall, Heather Lewis, Trevor Lewis and Carol Bouchard.
Timing right for new Williston tutoring business By Jason Starr Observer staff
The Education Annex is opening in Williston at a time when its services may be more needed than ever. With local grade-school students currently spending more time learning away from their classrooms than in them because of pandemic-related precautions, the new tutoring hub on Knight Lane is poised to help families navigate remote learning challenges. Williston partners Sarah Legault and David Lewis had plans to start the business that predate the pandemic, but the upheaval in public education prompted them to accelerate their plans. “This is a great time to launch this business,” said Legault, a teacher in the Burlington School District. “It’s definitely a time
where families are struggling with their children being home all the time … Keeping the motivation and the engagement level high is really hard. You have to be self-motivated at home. It’s very difficult. Engagement is a big piece, having a person there to mentor and motivate them.” The annex has six individual education suites for one-on-one tutoring and mentoring. Packages and pricing are custom designed for each student’s needs. The business will be open Monday through Friday starting next week, ready to serve students in grades 2-12. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time,” Legault said. “I’ve done tutoring in the past and it’s always been meeting students in their homes, or in a coffee shop. It’s so not free of distractions and you really don’t get a lot accomplished. This is a distraction-free learning
environment, which for me is a big piece that I’m excited about.” While there may be a current need for helping families navigate remote learning, the business has more extensive goals, including offering writing workshops, SAT prep and summer break enrichment. Legault plans to continue teaching in the Burlington schools. Lewis, former owner of a car dealership, is the business’ chief operating officer. The partners have hired a tutoring workforce whose talents will drive what the business is able to offer. “We’ve hired a lot of amazing talent,” Legault said. “There are a lot of teachers out there that are looking for a non-traditional career in teaching … We really want to get creative with this. We can provide a large range of services based on the educational talent that we’ve found.”
Observer courtesy photo
The Education Annex is located on Knight Lane in Williston.