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Indian River County board ratifies three-year contract with teachers association
Summary
The School Board approved and signed a collective bargaining agreement with the Indian River County Education Association, including updates to health insurance premiums, salary and performance-pay structure, and language on training and terminal pay.
The School Board of Indian River County on Monday approved a collective bargaining agreement with the Indian River County Education Association and held a brief signing ceremony after the vote. Board members voted 5-0 to adopt the agreement and authorized signatures from district and union representatives.
The contract update includes several changes negotiated over multiple interest-based bargaining sessions, school staff said. "We put some language in to give teachers time to complete their required trainings," a district negotiator said, and the agreement also revised language on terminal pay for vacation leave and procedures for determination of student grades and parent responses.
Bruce Green, who presented details of salary and benefits changes, said the parties agreed to set health insurance premiums through the district's Health Insurance Task Force (HITES) at an 18.5% increase. He said the increase translates to a premium rise ranging "from $6 to $196 a month depending on the plan that you're on." Green also described moving earlier retention and performance increases into higher performance-pay tiers; he cited a pay example of "$1,200 to $1,500 for highly effective, depending on if you're PSC or annual."
Jen Cristofori, a member of the bargaining team, thanked both sides and described the process: "We spend a lot of time together, 16 hours on salary alone," she said, calling the contract language among the best in the state to support teachers. Zachary Wiggers, a Sebastian River High School teacher and treasurer of the Indian River County Educators Association, spoke in support of continued collective bargaining and praised negotiations as cooperative.
The board motion to approve the 2025-26 collective bargaining agreement was made by Ms. Rosario and seconded by Dr. Posca; the vote carried 5-0. Following the vote the district and union representatives completed a signing ceremony on the dais.
Discussion versus decision: the board record shows the presentation and discussion of contract terms (discussion) followed by a formal motion and vote to approve and sign the agreement (decision). No amendments to the motion were recorded at the meeting.
The district did not provide a district-wide dollar figure for the salary increases in the meeting presentation. The contract language and the approved agreement are on file with the district.
