On Tuesday, June 26, the WW-P Board of Education announced the approval of a three-year agreement with the WW-P Administrators’ Association that will grant an increase the increase of 2.1 percent in 2012-’13 and a flat 2 percent in the two years after that. WW-P School Board Vice President Robert Johnson, who served as chair of the board’s negotiations team, said the increases are lower than in prior years, reflecting the current economic circumstances facing school districts and their employees. Salary increases will be distributed in accordance with salary guides agreed to by the board and administrators’ association.
Other highlights of the agreement include the elimination of longevity pay for all newly-hired administrators. Longevity pay results in thousands of additional dollars on top of yearly salaries. Under the contract in effect from 2008 to 2011, administrators who had either 15 years of educational experience in the district with two of those years as an administrator or 15 years total with 10 of those years spent as an administrator in WW-P receive an additional $1,500 per year in longevity pay, $2,000 after 16 years, and increases of $500 to that amount every five years thereafter. At a maximum, an administrator with 30 years of experience and 15 of those years as an administrator in WW-P receives $3,700 in longevity pay.
Also, pursuant to a new state law, administrators represented by the WWPAA will contribute 1.5 percent of their salaries toward the cost of medical and prescription health insurance premiums. The 2012-’13 school year will be the first of a four-year phase-in period of contributions, which will result in increasing contributions each year. By year four of the phase-in, all WW-P administrators will contribute 35 percent of the cost of medical and prescription health insurance premiums.
Johnson commented on a popular sentiment he has heard from community members regarding teacher and administrator pay.
“In the nine years I’ve been on the board, members of the public have said that we really need to attack administrative costs and we need to reduce administrators.”
But he disagreed with that notion, saying it was unfortunate that over the last few years WW-P has seen a reduction in administrators. He says the district has been fortunate that its remaining administrators have stepped up their efforts when called upon.
“One example is the implementation of this HIB — a mandate that was extremely well-intentioned and necessary — but it gets thrust on the administration, which is constantly taxed with fewer resources and more demands. I think in particular (WW-P’s Director of Guidance) Lee McDonald should be commended for the energy, integrity, and professionalism with which he took on the role of district anti-bullying coordinator, as just an additional duty,” Johnson said.
Johnson says McDonald’s work was representative of the contribution administrators make to West Windsor-Plainsboro. He also recognized WW-P’s administrators including Special Assistant for Labor Relations Russell Schumacher, who attended the June 26 board meeting, and Denise Mengani, principal of Maurice Hawk Elementary School who also serves as president of the WW-P Administrators’ Association.
Reading a prepared statement, Johnson said the three-year contract allows WW-P’s board of education to better plan for future school district budgets.
“As a negotiations team the board was cognizant of the settlement cost to taxpayers, especially in today’s economic climate. I believe the 2.1, 2.0, and 2.0 percent increases are fair and reasonable settlements for the dedicated administrators who oversee a complex, changing, and challenging school district where we work together to meet the needs of all students,” Johnson said.
