Moffat County teachers to see pay increase starting this fall
Moffat County School District and the Moffat County Education Association reached an agreement Wednesday night that will invest roughly $1.75 million to increase teacher pay across the board.
The increase will mean all teachers in Moffat County School District will be making at least $50,000, and most significantly more. The top-end salaries are also increasing substantially, and all teachers can now gain up to 30 steps, as opposed to the previous maximum of 25.
The $50,000 baseline is the amount that a new, certified teacher with a bachelor’s degree will make. A single-year step will increase by 2% a year, and a lane change, whereby a teacher increases his or her level of education, increases salary by 4%.
A teacher with a master’s degree in his or her sixth year of teaching would elevate from $54,462 under the current salary schedule to $62,097 under the agreement. That teacher, if he or she were teaching as a sixth-step teacher today, would also gain a step to step seven, meaning next year’s salary would actually be $63,339. The top possible salary for a teacher with a Ph.D. and 30 years of experience would be $116,845, up from $87,913.
This represents a 17.4% increase to the base salary for a first-year teacher, a 32.9% increase for the top possible teacher salary, as well as various proportional increases across the board for teachers of more or less experience or educational levels. All teachers of all levels will receive a significant pay increase next school year.
“We appreciate the value our district is placing on teachers,” Moffat County Education Association president Kim Serio said. “I feel like this district is moving in a very positive direction. I haven’t felt this way in a very long time. We are being heard for the first time in years, and I’m grateful for that.”
“I think this demonstrates the commitment we have to secure quality educators, whether as a first-year teacher or retaining long-term teachers,” MCSD Board of Education president Heather Cannon said. “This is an investment in our kids and our community, and I agree, this is a good step to move forward.”
This agreement must be ratified by the board and by Moffat County Education Association membership in the coming weeks.
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