MCEA tentative agreement: stipends, endorsement pay and leave changes; board to ratify Nov. 18

Superintendent Dr. Winston summarized a tentative collective bargaining agreement reached Oct. 22 between the Monroe County Community School Corporation and the Monroe County Education Association.

Key provisions in the summary posted on the district website include: eligible teachers rated ‘‘effective’’ or ‘‘highly effective’’ will receive a one-time stipend totaling $1,000 in each of the next two school years; teachers who update their license to include the state’s early literacy endorsement will receive a $200 increase to base salary; continued salary movement for master’s degree attainment; hourly pay for work outside the regular contract day of $30 per hour for instruction, $20 per hour for supervision, and $20 per hour for professional-development work done outside the contract day; an increase in paid parental leave from eight to 10 days for teachers on rows A–E of the salary schedule; beginning Jan. 1, 2026, a 20% discount on extended-day program tuition for teachers with children in MCCSC pre-K–6 programs (applies Sept.–Apr.); updates to insurance contribution amounts for 2025 and 2026 to reflect rising costs; and an adjustment to the retirement matching percentage for teachers in rows A–E from 5% to 3.5%.

The tentative agreement also updates the extracurricular activity (ECA) schedule to add girls wrestling, boys volleyball, and Scholastic Esports. Dr. Winston thanked MCEA president Jenny Noble Kachara and bargaining team members and said the board will ratify the agreement at its Nov. 18 meeting.

Provenance: Dr. Winston presented the tentative agreement at 00:12:19 and concluded the summary at approximately 00:15:56.