Tentative contract would boost teacher pay in Wichita school district. Here’s how much

Wichita teachers have reached a tentative two-year contract agreement with USD 259 that would allow for new teachers to be hired at $50,123 a year starting in 2024.

The contract proposal, which 4,000 Wichita teachers will vote to ratify or reject in early August, aims to attract and retain educators in Kansas’ largest school district as the state’s worst teacher shortage stretches on.

“We’re really excited that we’ll have that $50,000 for next year for new teachers to help recruit them to Wichita,” said Katie Warren, United Teachers of Wichita president.

Starting pay for new teachers in the 2023-2024 school year would be $47,736, higher than the state average of $40,130, according to the National Education Association.

The federally mediated contract proposal also includes raises for existing teachers — 4.85% in year one and 5% in year two — outpacing the state average of 3.9% for educators, according to the Kansas National Education Association.

Teachers at Wichita’s special education centers and alternative schools — Sowers, Bryant, Greiffenstein-Wells and Levy — would receive an additional bonus of slightly more than $4,000 a year.

“I am pleased that we are able to honor our teachers with this tentative two-year contract,” Superintendent Kelly Bielefeld said in a district news release.

“We appreciate the hard work that they do every day to prepare our students to be future ready. Not only does the contract support our current teachers, but the starting salary of more than $50,000 in the second year will help us to recruit new teachers to join the WPS family.”

The proposal increases sub pay for teachers covering another teacher’s classroom to $30 an hour with a daily maximum of $60. It includes no changes to the existing employee health program or premium rates.

The tentative agreement also does not change contract language giving teachers a say in when disruptive students should be allowed to return to the classroom after being removed. The district pushed to remove that language during negotiation, arguing that it should ultimately be up to principals to decide when a student returns to class.

The UTW negotiating team will present the contract offer to the union’s executive board, which will decide whether to recommend it for approval. The vote to ratify or reject the contract will take place online.