WTA president Christina Herman urges higher teacher pay as Wilson board moves to executive session

Christina Herman, president of the Wilson Teachers Association and a Wilson Central School District tenure teacher, told the board at the June 9 meeting that district spending choices send a poor message to teachers and parents.

"We have the money for the conferences, retreats, and possible attorney fees," Herman said during public comment. "While at the same time, you're also being told the district is willing to spend dollars on a potential arbitration for an agreement to avoid paying less than $200 to our teachers to shadow our events beyond the school day." She said the WTA proposal would raise teacher salaries to the average of surrounding districts and urged the board to value extra time teachers contribute.

Superintendent Timothy Carter listened as Herman outlined concerns about both value and equity, including rising health insurance costs that she said leave some steps short of covering those increases. Herman said the district’s willingness to allocate funds to conferences and potential legal costs, while resisting modest payments for after‑hours work, creates optics that undermine staff morale.

After public comment, Board President Carlin moved and the board voted to enter executive session to discuss collective negotiations under Article 14 of the Civil Service Law. President Carlin stated that no formal action would be taken after the executive session.

The meeting record does not show an on‑the‑record response from the administration addressing Herman’s specific demand for salary increases or the $200 shadowing item. The executive session was the board’s next procedural step to discuss negotiations in private as permitted under New York law; no votes or settlements were announced publicly at the June 9 meeting.