Sonoma school officials reached an agreement with the teachers association in the final year of a three-year contract, and a bond refinancing will save the district $1.3 million, the associate superintendent announced at the district’s Tuesday, July 28 meeting.
The collective bargaining agreement with the Valley of the Moon Teachers Association for the 2020-21 contract is the last year of the union’s three-year contract.
Bruce Abbott, associate superintendent of Sonoma Valley Unified School District, said that the agreement includes a 5 percent salary increase, which brings the total for the three years of the contract to 11.5 percent.
“Also in this (agreement) we are eliminating five steps in the salary schedule,” he said. “Having fewer steps means people move up to the top quicker, so this does help lifetime earnings. We’re now second lowest in the county in terms of number of steps to reach the top.”
Other changes in the agreement include nurses and speech pathologists being moved to the same salary schedule as psychologists, class size adjustments for elementary combo classes, and increased prep time for teachers of transitional kindergarten through third grade classes.
District officials also announced Tuesday plans to refinance the 2010 general obligation bonds that paid for solar projects throughout the district.
“The benefit, of course, is that we’re paying a lower interest rate (and) reducing to our taxpayers $1.3 million in outstanding debt, so that does help them in the repayment,” Abbott said. “So this is a benefit to our taxpayers in taking advantage of the market opportunity.”
Abbott also noted that the district “held its double-A rating” based on the condition of the district, which includes the health of the district’s reserves, revenue base – which is “very stable given the property tax base we live from” – and “stability in the district, were the main points that determined that rating.”
Board trustee president John Kelly added: “It is good news, I think, to see that the strong leadership of the district and the very strong reserves are being recognized by the bond market, because it’s really difficult to fool the bond market.”
Email Anne at anne.ernst@sonomanews.com.