Category

Explanation

Notes

Responsible-ed Comments

Working Days

196 Total Days

1. 183 Instructional Days

2. 8  days without students for professional development

3. 5 days for classroom management—i.e. set up their classrooms; input grades etc.

1. Professional development days provide teachers with opportunities to learn new policies and procedures, curriculum, and pedagogy.

2. Allow teachers to accumulate credit to meet State mandated professional development requirements.

Teachers are given the opportunity to “flex out” of classroom management days. 

Normal Working Hours

7 hours 45 minutes per day

1. 30 minutes lunch

2. 250 minutes per week without students to prepare

Friday hours are 7 hours 30 minutes

Professional Development Hours

13  days are 7 hours 30  minutes

This time includes a 90 minute lunch

Teachers are on the job on these days for only 6 hours

Time for Meetings

Allows for

1. three meetings per month

2. for no more than one hour

Teachers are not responsible for preparation for any of these meetings

Meetings tend to be informational only.  Lack of teacher preparation inhibits the possibility for collaboration which most professionals avidly pursue

Paid Time Off

3 Personal Days per year

10 Sick days per year—will accumulate

5 Bereavement days per year

Sabbatical—allowed after 10 years and is for one semester—employee receives ½ salary plus full benefits

Written request for personal days is required 2 days prior.

If personal days are not used may be added to sick leave.

Written request policy is rarely followed in USC

Administration reports an average of 6 days of absence are used by each teacher per school year. 

Unpaid Time Off

Disability—up to one year

Maternity—up to one year

Education—allowed after 3 years and is minimum one semester, maximum 2.

The contract stipulates that employees are guaranteed their same jobs on their return. To continue benefits employee must pay full premium cost.

Teacher Evaluation

Two processes used:  

Traditional Model

First three years all teachers are evaluated every year in the following manner:

·     Two formal observations plus a maximum of 4 walk-through observations per year

      Observations are conducted by administrator

      After successful completion of three years  an employee may receive tenure  

Optional Supervision Model

·     Used all years for tenured employees except every 4^th year when the Traditional Model is required.

      Allows employee to opt out of formal observations.

·     Requires four walk-through observations during the year. 

·     In lieu of formal observation employee may complete a project during the school year  

      of their choosing.

·     Choice of projects include peer review, committee or curriculum activities, individual or group research projects, individual lesson study or individual goal  

      setting related to the USC professional rubric.  

1. Tenured teachers may have formal observations only every fourth year.

2. It is not stipulated in the contract that formal observations include pre- and post-observation conferences.

3. Walk-through observations in Traditional Model are not mandatory.  The contract says only “up to four”.  

4. There is a difference between a walk-through observation and a formal observation.  Formal observations normally require an evaluator to be in a teacher's classroom for the entire lesson.  Lesson plans are required and criteria for evaluation are more numerous and specific.

   Walk-through observations are largely undefined leaving it up to the Administrator to determine how seriously to conduct the observation. 

   There is no requirement that it be accompanied by pre or post conferences

   There is no requirement that it be accompanied by a written lesson plan

   There is no requirement that the evaluator observe an entire lesson

Under the Traditional Model only two formal observations per year are allowed.  This is an insignificant number in a teacher’s first three years especially since the district has tenure at stake.  

Under the Option Model professional tenured employees are allowed to choose their method of evaluation 75% of the time thus limiting supervision.  Teachers may not  be formally observed for 3 out of every four years after they receive tenure.  

No employee, tenured or otherwise should be able to opt out of formal observations. The district should simplify and tighten the evaluation process.  We should 

1. Conduct a minimum of four formal observations every year, two of which would be unscheduled for every professional employee. 

2. Every formal observation should include at least a post-observation conference and, if it is a scheduled observation, it should include a pre-observation conference

3. Walk-through observations 

   should be Standard Operating Procedure and unlimited. 

4. Comments from parents and students (as stipulated in the Mount Lebanon contract) should be included in a teacher's professional evaluation at the end of the year.

5. Every teacher must have a year end performance evaluation which includes measurable goals for the following year.

Salaries

Year One of Contract:

Step 1 with BA—38,400

                   MA—40,000

                  PHD—41,890

Step 15B    BA—81,000

                   MA—84,950

                  PHD—89,632

(Salary increases between steps 1 and 15 are between $1000, and $1400 per step)

Year 4 of Contract:

Step 1 with BA—42,600

                   MA—44,200

                  EdD—46,090

Step 15B    BA—87,493

                   MA—91,400

                  EdD—96,082

Step = Years of teaching

Teachers are placed on a step related to their years of teaching when they are employed by USC.  There is a stipulated procedure for this in the contract.  Generally speaking a step corresponds to years of service or experience.  There are 15 steps in USC.  Teachers top out after 15 years service.  

In addition this contract promises a Cost of Living Protection for all professionals on steps of salary schedule below $50,000.

Since teachers on this step program receive an automatic increase in salary due to an added year of service each year, this contract gives them a double bump.  For example:  For a teacher in step 4 of year one with a BA they are receiving $42,150 per year.  The next year they will advance to step 5 which would have had them at 43,550, however with the new contract they will receive an additional bump to $44,300. This is an increase of 5% in just one year!  By the end of the contract this teacher will receive $48,600 which represents an increase of 15.3% in four years.

Salary Comparison

USC

Mount Lebanon

Peters Township

South Fayette

Moon Township

East Penn (Emmaus)

Baltimore, Md.

Fairfax County , Va.

Starting Salary with BA

$38,400

$39,955

UNDER NEGOTIATION

CHECK FOR UPDATES FREQUENTLY

$39,300

$37,831

$40,000

# of Steps to Top Salary

15

18

UNDER NEGOTIATION

CHECK FOR UPDATES FREQUENTLY

18

21

27

Top Salary with Doc.

$91,782-- 15th year

$89,807-- 18th year

(in 15th year $59,273)

UNDER NEGOTIATION

CHECK FOR UPDATES FREQUENTLY

$87,430

$74,134

$85,793

Benefits

Summary of benefits

Deductible (individual/family)—  None

Lifetime Maximum—      Unlimited

Primary Care Physician—   100% covered

Specialist Visits--$15 co-pay;100% covered

Emergency Room—100% covered

Ambulance--100% covered

Hospital inpatient--100% covered

Hospital outpatient--100% covered

Physical Rehab--100% covered

Maternity--100% covered

Infertility Treatments--100% covered

Medical/Surgical--100% covered

Spinal Manipulations--$15 co-pay; 100% covered

Diagnostic Services--100% covered

Prescriptions--$5 co-pay for generic

                     $20 co-pay for brand only if     

                         patient demands brand when

                         doctor prescribes generic

Teachers can choose either a POS or HMO for Medical Coverage.  Teachers in POS will pay full difference in cost between POS and HMO. 

Cost of benefits

District pays:  $390.00 per month individual

                     $1,099 per month for family

Teacher pays:  $30 per month for individual

                       $75 per month for family

At higher pay scale teachers pay $15 or $25 more per month

The contract stipulates that teachers pay 12-14% of cost increase each year.

Teachers pay around 8% of premium for individual coverage and around 6% for a family.  

Nationwide workers' costs for healthcare have risen by 36% since 2000    which translates to an average $1094 more or around $3000 per worker.

What a family pays for premium:

USC teacher:              $900/year

Average worker:          $3000/year

Not included in this analysis is the level of coverage. USC teachers' far exceeds the national average.

Tuition Reimbursement

100% for relevant courses taken for credit; up to 12 credits per year per employee

The district has a $100,000 maximum per year

Although it is true that professional development of this kind can be beneficial to the district, we believe it is also personally beneficial to teachers and that they should pay for at least 50% of their tuition.  Additionally there is no stipulation in the contract that teachers remain at USC for any time after they receive tuition reimbursement.  Therefore we have no guarantee that we will gain from their education.  By comparison, Mt. Lebo does have a service requirement and payback schedule in case of voluntary employment termination.