AUSTIN, Texas — Editor's note: The related video was published in June 2021.
Austin ISD leaders on Monday hosted a conference to discuss a handful of proposals, including possible raises for all classified employees in the 2022-23 school year.
If the budget is approved by the board of trustees in June, the minimum wage will be increased from $13.50 to $16 an hour for all classified employees. This increase for around 2,000 employees would be paid for with savings made from an updated master schedule.
In June, the board will also vote on increasing teacher pay by 2% of the pay scale midpoint and then an additional $1,000 for each of the district’s approximately 5,000 teachers.
After announcing intention to update the master schedule for next school year earlier this month to give teachers more planning time and potentially saving millions of dollars, AISD allowed time to give families and staff feedback. District leaders then elected to make the following changes:
- "An eight-period block schedule that preserves electives, does an eight-period A/B block schedule for four days and one day with a straight eight-period schedule. This is what most secondary schools are already doing."
- "One hour of early release each week for staff to have common planning time."
- "Elementary and secondary teachers will have common planning time built into the day, which for elementary teachers will be the first time they have had this."
- "This new schedule will reduce teacher vacancies, address the substitute shortage, and save $21 million."
Raises were also approved during the current school year. In June, the board voted to approve a budget that allowed for a 2% pay increase. That agreement also allowed for:
- A one-time $1,000 payment for active, regular status, benefits-eligible staff who were employed on May 31, 2021, and remain employed through Aug. 31, 2021.
- Increasing teachers’ and librarians’ starting salary to $51,150.
- Increasing the district’s minimum wage from $13 an hour to $13.50.
- Creating a committee to look at addressing compensation inequities.
Watch the full announcement below:
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