It’s official: Cypress School District ratifies pay raises for teachers
Teachers to get a 9% salary boost costing $19 million to district
Almost a year after the Cypress School District began negotiations with its teachers’ union, the district’s Board of Trustees officially ratified an agreement during their Oct. 13 board meeting.
After traditional negotiations failed, a state mediator had to be called in to resolve a deadlock between CSD and the Association of Cypress Teachers (ACT), which represents the district’s approximately 200 teachers. The sticking point in the contract talks was over salary increases and benefits.
It was the first time in the district’s long history that the school district and its teachers failed to voluntarily reach an agreement. The agreement negotiated by the mediator calls for a 3% pay raise retroactive for the 2021-22 school year and another 6% increase effective July 1, 2022, both sides have confirmed.
This amounts to a cost of roughly $19 million or about $98,872 on average per affected employee, according to the district.
The ACT membership approved the pending agreement in September almost immediately after the two sides agreed on the new terms.
“We are very happy to have an agreement,” said Dr. Tim McLellan, CSD Assistant Supt. for Business Services. “The district wants to see our teachers paid as much as possible within the budget,” he said.
Now that the district Board of Trustees has also approved the agreement, the district will begin processing the checks representing the retroactive pay raise amounts, McLellan confirmed. He said checks should begin arriving in teachers’ mailboxes sometime in December.
“We are happy the Board approved the contract,” said Elizabeth Dunagan, a teacher who has acted as the ACT’s chief negotiator throughout the process.
Though the pay raise issue has been resolved, she said, the district and the ACT have yet to schedule negotiations on some remaining issues.
Dunagan said the housekeeping issues include work hours, special education staffing “and some conversation about how teachers can be more active with helping the district decide how funds can best be spent to support our students moving forward.”
Sign up for our newsletter
Your weekly dose of education news in Orange County simplified. We shine a light on the stories, people and policies impacting your family’s educational experience.
More in News from Spotlight Schools
Bella Kim is the first Editorial Intern for Spotlight Schools
The sophomore at Los Alamitos High School brings a student journalist's perspective to the newsroom
Westminster School District hires new Superintendent
Gunn Marie Hansen, Ph.D., was fired as Orange Unified's Superintendent in January despite public outcry
O.C. Board of Education says Waldorf public charter school cannot expand countywide but can add high school grades within Ocean View School District
Plus, Sycamore Creek Community Charter School's proposed expansion site is not actually within Los Alamitos USD boundaries
O.C. Dept. of Education charter schools unit recommends denying Waldorf school’s request to open campus in Cypress
Sycamore Creek Community Charter School is asking the O.C. Board of Education for permission to expand
Waldorf public charter school seeks to expand across O.C.
Los Alamitos USD opposes effort to open a Sycamore Creek Community Charter School campus in Cypress
Academic Innovation Showcase highlights 'specialty programs' in Westminster School District
Dual language immersion, computer science, environmental science a focus for district's schools
'The Loft,' space dedicated to student wellness, opens at Los Alamitos High School
Orange County Dept. of Education hopes to open 'WellSpaces' at all middle and high schools in O.C.
New E-bike rules for students at Los Alamitos USD middle schools
Students will be required to take a safety class
Superintendents ousted by two school boards in O.C.
Parents in Orange Unified and Capistrano Unified questioned the timing and reason for firings
Parents told to 'Run, Hide, Fight' if confronted by active shooter
Seal Beach police and McGaugh PTA co-hosted event on 'Surviving Gun Violence'
Orange County's charter schools steadily growing
While public school enrollment has been declining across California, some O.C. charter campuses are gaining pupils
Report on O.C.'s children shows decrease in high school dropout rate, increase in number of kids missing school, among other findings
28th Annual Report on the Conditions of Children in Orange County assesses kids' education, health, economic well-being and safety
Police and McGaugh PTA hosting free public event on 'Surviving Gun Violence'
Dec. 8 presentation intended for people 18 and older
Man arrested, accused of trespassing at Los Alamitos High School
Police seeking warrant to search suspect's phone
How did your O.C. school district score on California's standardized tests in 2022?
See links to tests results for each of the 28 public school districts in Orange County
Man arrested; accused of threatening kids during movie night at McGaugh Elementary
Seal Beach Police stress this is an isolated incident
New details on building of second gymnasium at Los Alamitos High School
Project's cost are exceeding what was budgeted but district is looking at options for bond-financed facility
California students’ 2021-22 standardized test results to be released in October
Supt. warns of potential drop in students’ scores
‘Forward Focused’ vision explained at Los Alamitos USD State of the District speech
Students should not have to choose between “doing well and being well,” Supt. says
After months of negotiations, Cypress School District reaches deal with teachers' union
Both sides agree to terms for pay raises but it must still be ratified by union's nearly 200 members
Construction to start on new WellSpace at Los Alamitos High School
Los Alamitos Education Foundation to pay to build student wellness center staffed by mental health professionals
Westminster School District starts 2022-23 school year
District also celebrating its 150th anniversary
Public tours STEM Building at LAHS as Officials hold ribbon cutting
Taxpayers get to visit $67 million structure financed by 2018 Measure G bond money
Los Alamitos High School begins 2022-23 school year
Students start classes in new $67 million STEM building built with bond measure money
What you need to know about Covid-19 rules for the upcoming 2022-23 School Year
California leaves masks as optional on TK-12 campuses
A Future with Fewer Students?
Student enrollment projections presented for the Los Alamitos Unified School District
Rethinking homework: New policy emphasizes 'quality over quantity'
The Los Alamitos Unified School District Board of Education adopted a new homework policy that translates to less homework overall for students.