USA TODAY International Edition
Denver teachers set to go on strike
207 schools, 90,000 students affected
DENVER – Thousands of teachers are set to walk off the job Monday after failing to reach an agreement with Denver Public Schools administrators over salaries and bonuses – the latest in a year of strikes across the nation.
Though classrooms would be staffed by substitutes and administrators, the strike would significantly disrupt operations at the 207-school district, administrators acknowledged. Early-childhood classrooms would be closed, leaving about 5,000 preschoolers at home.
The strike would bring picket lines outside schools and rallies at the park between the Statehouse and Denver’s City Hall. The union, the Denver Classroom Teachers Association, represents about 5,635 educators.
“It’s not going to look like a typical school. We want to be honest about that,” Superintendent Susana Cordova said.
The sides met Saturday but were unable to resolve their differences. The union left negotiations, declaring the strike would happen Monday.
It’s unclear exactly how the strike will affect schools and for how long.
Administrators prepared lesson plans and secured substitutes, and they plan to have schools open for at least the first few days of a strike.
Among 207 schools and about 90,000 students, any disruption could quickly ripple out. DPS is one of Denver’s largest employers, and some parents plan to keep their kids home in an effort to force it to compromise faster.
Though administrators said schools won’t operate as normal, they will be
open.
Kids will be expected to attend classes, and most meal programs will operate. Nearly 70 percent of DPS students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
If the strike lingers on, administrators might run out of substitutes and fill-ins. The preschoolers won’t be able to attend because the district can’t quickly meet state-mandated standards for background checks and qualifications for subs in early-childhood classrooms.
Teachers vs. the district
Denver’s teachers are frustrated by what they see as chronic underfunding of public education in Colorado, and uncertainty in their salaries.
School administrators tried to increase pay for some teachers by creating bonuses for high performance, but the union wants all teachers to get base raises and cost-of-living increases.
A big part of teachers’ frustration is with the system known as “ProComp.” It was supposed to help the best teachers earn more money for helping students achieve high test scores or working in troubled schools.
A starting teacher in Denver earns $43,255 a year. The district offered to raise that to $45,500; teachers want $45,800. ProComp bonuses can add up to $7,000 to a teacher’s paycheck.
“DPS must improve teacher pay to keep quality, experienced teachers in Denver classrooms,” said the union president, Henry Roman.
Teachers won’t be paid during the strike, and other unions are setting up food banks to help.
The district argues the bonus system rewards the best teachers when surplus taxpayer money is limited.
School funding in Colorado is set by legislators, who are limited in how much they can increase the state budget annually.
District officials say each day of a strike will cost about $400,000. They say it’s important to pay teachers well but tout the bonus system as the best way to reward teachers.