By Traci Newell
 Pyne |
When Robin Sacks began teaching in the Los Altos School District in 1969, within three years she was able to buy her starter home – a three-bedroom house in Palo Alto.
Today, a teacher in the district has a starting salary of $44,388, and is lucky if he or she can afford a one-bedroom condominium in San Jose, Sacks said.
“I am watching my money buy less and less,” Sacks said at the last school board meeting.
Teachers’ contracts are still under negotiation for the 2007-2008 school year. District officials expect to revise the budget again in May.
In the past five years, district teachers have received two across-the-board raises. Teachers can earn step and column increases every year by accruing academic units and degrees and increasing longevity in the district.
“When we ask for an across-the-board salary increase, that means everybody gets something, beefing up their (salaries),” said Roberta Pyne, president of Los Altos Teachers Association. “To get step and column isn’t really considered a raise.”
Pyne said that most longtime employees have maxed out their step and column opportunities. Approximately 180 out of 229 teachers in the district have taught six or more years in the district.
Los Altos teachers rank low in salary funding in comparison with the 30 other districts in the county.
“Los Altos teachers – the best in the state, the best test scores in the state, the most hardworking, fluctuate between 25th and 27th least-paid in the county,” Pyne said. “If you want to keep that high-quality teacher, keep those high test scores and keep the children performing at the wonderful level they are, you need to start keeping the teachers.”
Pyne said LATA has observed a higher turnover in younger teachers who enter the district.
“The newer teachers could leave at any time,” Pyne said. “Younger teachers have to fight for what’s best for them.”
Representatives from LATA and district officials met last week to review a LATA-submitted contract proposal. The next bargaining meeting is scheduled April 29.
“I want to keep a high level of instructional value in the district,” Pyne said at the April 7 board meeting.
Contact Traci Newell at tracin@latc.com.
