Racine Unified board ratifies employee wage agreements and approves technology refresh; sends phone‑policy back to governance

At its June 15 business meeting the Racine Unified School District Board of Education approved several personnel and procurement items and directed further governance work on the student cell‑phone policy.

Labor agreements: The board ratified a tentative agreement with the Racine Educators Association providing a 2.63 percent increase to teacher base wages for 2026–27. The administration reported an estimated fiscal impact of approximately $4,287,862. The board also ratified a tentative agreement with building service employees (SEIU) that includes a 2.63 percent base wage increase, with an estimated fiscal impact of approximately $462,983. Both ratifications were moved, seconded and approved unanimously.

“We appreciate the hard work of our employees in this district,” a board member said following the vote.

Cell‑phone policy: After discussion the board voted 7–0 to refer consideration of student cell‑phone policy options back to the governance committee for further discussion and possible policy language. The referral was presented as a motion from Mr. Clemens with a second from Mr. Bellagio.

Technology procurement: The board approved a staff technology refresh motion to purchase 2,720 HP laptops and 100 HP desktops with associated warranty, accidental‑damage protection, and setup/configuration services from reseller PDS. The motion passed unanimously. During discussion the administration said the purchase is intended for fall deployment because current staff devices are out of warranty and increasingly failing. The transcript records the purchase as a "cost not to exceed $6,19,380"; the presenter noted the motion uses a "not to exceed" figure to allow for supply‑chain price variability. (The transcript formatting of that dollar figure is unclear; the official board packet should be checked for the exact dollar value.)

Votes at a glance:

- Motion to refer cell‑phone policy to governance: carried, 7–0 (yes: Mrs. Allen, Mrs. Barbian, Mr. Bellagio, Mr. Clemens, Mrs. Doxy, Miss Harris, Miss Walker Cleveland). - Ratification of 2026–27 teacher tentative agreement (2.63%): carried, 7–0 (estimated fiscal impact: $4,287,862, per administration). - Ratification of 2026–27 building service employees tentative agreement (2.63%): carried, 7–0 (estimated fiscal impact: $462,983, per administration). - Approval of staff technology refresh procurement (2,720 laptops + 100 desktops with services): carried, 7–0 (transcript: cost not to exceed $6,19,380 — check board documents for precise figure).

The board also approved routine consent agendas earlier in the meeting by unanimous votes.

What this means: The wage adjustments commit the district to the estimated additional personnel costs for 2026–27, which the administration presented as identified in the base wage rate calculations. The technology purchase is intended to replace failing, out‑of‑warranty staff devices and to standardize hardware across schools; procurement timing and exact costs were described as subject to supply‑chain variance and confirmed via a not‑to‑exceed clause.

Next steps: The governance committee will revisit the student cell‑phone policy; administration will finalize purchase amounts and timing based on deliveries, and human resources/finance will incorporate the ratified wage changes into the FY27 budget processes and public materials.