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Veteran Teachers To Be Cut

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By ADAM EMERSON

aemerson@tampatrib.com

Published: March 23, 2009

TAMPA - As many as 150 veteran teachers likely will hear this week that the district won't be renewing their contract next school year.

These teachers were hired on yearly contracts after they retired and remain at the top of the pay scale. Administrators, facing cuts of more than $150 million, say they can no longer afford them.

Talks with the teachers union to bring these veterans back at a lower salary stalled last week. The district wanted to bring the teachers back at the starting pay rate, $37,014, but union leaders argued that a similarly qualified teacher hired from out of state could end up earning about $25,000 more.

Still, Yvonne Lyons, executive director of the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association, said the letters will come as a shock.

The district came up with its plan arguing that it can bring in replacement teachers at a lower pay rate. Deputy Superintendent Dan Valdez said schools can save as much as $4 million.

"It's not anything the district would like to do," Valdez said.

But the stakes, administrators say, have gotten higher. State economists have said they expect general revenue to be down about $1 billion this fiscal year and about $2 billion next year.

In response, Gov. Charlie Crist said he is holding back 15 percent from state spending in the last fiscal quarter of the year. Hillsborough schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia said that could amount to an additional $14 million cut for the district in May.

The Hillsborough teachers union has argued that lawmakers could find ways to generate money for schools and that it is premature to make painful budget decisions before the legislative session ends this spring.

On some matters, the district has agreed. Talk of unpaid furloughs was put off during contract negotiations last week, but senior administrators insisted the law, and the need for schools to plan for next year, forces them to more quickly notify teachers of their contract status.

Once the veteran teachers receive their letters this week, they can appeal with the district to come back.

Reporter Adam Emerson can be reached at (813) 259-8285.

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