BCLUW board approves staff master contract

The BCLUW board of education approved its staff master contract with a 1.5 percent raise in base pay for certified staff, support staff and administration and set a preliminary calendar for the 2019-2020 school year during its regular meeting on Monday evening.
           
According to Superintendent Ben Petty, none of the teachers will get a raise of less than $650 in annual salary, and while he acknowledged that the 1.5 percent figure sounded low, he added that it’s a product of the current environment in Iowa. 
           
“We’re not talking about a raise that’s probably worthy of the folks that we have, but with the times and the SSA (Supplemental State Aid) where it’s at the last one to two years, that’s what we’ve had,” he said.
           
After some discussion, the board voted 4-1 to set the calendar for the upcoming year with a shortened winter break. Classes will dismiss at 1:30 on December 20 and resume on January 2 with a 10:30 late start. The last day of classes will be May 27, two days after Memorial Day. Board member LJ Kopsa was the lone dissenter in his vote, and Mary Beth Neff and Lynne Kock were absent.
           
“No one I talk to wants to go past Memorial Day,” Kopsa said. “I’m not trying to be a jerk. It’s just a principle thing.” 
 
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