William Penn committee approves WPEA contract, authorizes salary-track changes

The William Penn School District Policy Committee on Nov. 6 approved a new collective bargaining agreement with the William Penn Education Association effective retroactively from Sept. 1, 2025, through Aug. 31, 2029, and separately approved salary-track changes for listed employees covered by the agreement.

The motions were moved and seconded and adopted by voice vote; the meeting transcript records multiple “Aye” responses and the chair’s announcement that the motions passed, but it does not identify the motion mover, the seconder, or a roll-call tally. The contract approval was introduced by Mr. Deans, who presented the agreement to the committee and asked for a motion to approve the WPEA collective bargaining agreement.

Andrea Fink, president of the William Penn Education Association, spoke during the public-comment portion after the committee’s votes. “This agreement is more than language and numbers on a page,” Fink said, calling the contract “a long overdue recognition of the work” of teachers and other student-facing staff. She also criticized the length and tone of the negotiations, saying they were “far longer, far more strained, and at times disrespectful than they ever should have been.”

Following a question from a participant identified as Rachel Zicki about whether salary-track changes would take effect immediately, Mr. Deans told the meeting that he had replied in the chat and that staff would send additional information the next day by email. “The salary track changes that were approved today are reflective of the new contract, and they will be moving forward,” Mr. Deans said.

The committee’s action authorizes payroll and implementation steps under district procedures; the transcript does not specify how soon payroll adjustments will be processed, what exact dollar amounts individual employees will receive, or whether any back pay calculations will be itemized in a public document. Those implementation details, Mr. Deans said, will be provided by email to affected staff.

The committee adjourned the policy report portion of its meeting after the approvals and scheduled its next policy committee meeting for Jan. 8, 2026.