Maya McFadden file Photo
Paraprofessional Denise Roman gives Board of Ed a petition with 130 signatures in support of renegotiating the para contract rather than heading to arbitration.
Negotiations over a new contract for assistant teachers and parent liaisons has hit an impasse — as paraprofessionals cite too little pay, too much resistance from the public school district, and a contested union deal now heading to arbitration.
That update about a new contract for the paraprofessionals union, Local 3429, emerged Monday evening during the Board of Education’s latest hybrid meeting at Barack Obama School on Farnham Avenue and on Zoom online.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, paraprofessional Denise Roman said that members of the paras union voted down a tentative agreement proposed by the New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) district on Oct. 19. Out of 147 total union members, 107 voted against the tentative agreement. That means more than 70 percent voted “no.”
After the clear dissatisfaction with the agreement was shared, the district had two options: to return back to the table to renegotiate with the school staffers, or to go to arbitration.
Paraprofessionals who spoke up at Monday’s meeting said that the district has chosen the latter option, and is going to arbitration. When reached for comment, the school district’s spokesperson Justin Harmon told the Independent that the “negotiation process is confidential and we cannot comment.”
The current paras contract expired on June 30, 2023.
Monday evening's crowd at Board of Ed.
With a dozen other paras standing at her side on Monday, Roman testified to the school board. She showed the members a petition created on behalf of the union, requesting the district talk the issues through with the union and deal with the matter internally rather than go to an arbitrator to make a final decision.
Roman read the petition — which as of Monday had 130 signatures in support of renegotiating the tentative agreement — aloud to the board.
The petition read: “Dear NHPS Board of Education members, we the undersigned members of AFSCME Local 3429 are concerned about the current status of our contract and the impact it will have on our school communities. Our work is an integral part of the New Haven Public Schools. We are parents, grandparents, active community members, past students, voters, etc. who just want the best for our city of New Haven. We implore you to reconsider the act of taking our contract negotiations to arbitration and please meet with us to discuss a better way of resolving the issues related to our contract. Consequently we respectfully and formally request that you engage with us in a collective, concerted way to safeguard any negative impact that this may cause. Our team would like to meet with you in the coming week with the hope to remedy the situation in an amicable way. We eagerly await your response.”
The expired 2019-2023 Paras Union salaries.
Amid the current nationwide teacher shortage, the paras pleaded that they are vital now more than ever to a school system that is in high need of instructors. They said what they need in return is a livable wage.
Paraprofessional pay rates range from $23,000 to $30,000 for assistant teachers, up to $36,000 for parent liaisons, and from $39,000 to $45,000 for head teachers, per the latest contract.
Maria Serana.
Maria Threese Serana, a NHPS parent and educator who began working for the district in 2015, has filled roles around the district as a para, a fifth grade teacher under a Durational Shortage Area Permit (DSAP), and most recently as a long term science substitute at Wilbur Cross. She also spoke up Monday. She said that she is currently completing a master’s degree for elementary teaching.
“I strongly believe that arbitration would seriously undermine the rights and interests of para educators and subsequently cause long term harm to our students, families, and communities,” she said.
She requested that union members get the opportunity to “meaningfully” engage with the district and participate in defining the terms of their contract.
“The crucial role of para educators and the success of our students’ education cannot be over-emphasized,” she added.
Paras provide support to educators burdened with large class sizes, she said, and strive to close the academic gap for students who have fallen behind over the years.
When it comes to social and emotional learning, she said that “the work assistant teachers provide are more important than ever.”
Paras plead for livable wages at Monday Board of Ed meeting.
“There are para educators who have been working in the district for more than 50 years who have no pension and crumbs for pay. To make matters worse, we are told that if we are not happy with how much we are paid, that we should just find another job,” she said.
When she first arrived to New Haven as a long term sub, she said she benefited greatly by learning from para educators at Conte West and Quinnpiac Elementary School and developing her skills.
“The things I learned from them on effective classroom management and student engagement are not inferior to what I learned in graduate school,” she said.
She demanded paras be paid a livable wage to avoid working several jobs and open up their time to possibly furthering their education “to become the teacher that we are in dire need of.”
“Our para educators are living impoverished lives,” she said.
Marie Ackerman.
Marie Ackerman, who has worked as a paraprofessional at Worthington Hooker School for 29 years, emphasized her school’s shortages.
Ackerman specifically requested a school nurse for the school.
Worthington Hooker operates in two buildings in East Rock: a K‑2 building at 180 Canner St. and a building for grades 3 – 8 at 691 Whitney Ave.
Ackerman said, at times, she fills in for the school secretary when they go on lunch. She showed the board packets of papers that make up a week’s worth of student medical requests ranging from bloody noses and fevers to cuts and bruises and banged heads from recess, she said.
“To get the nurse to come over to our school sometimes, she’s busy, she has type 1 diabetes students that she has to tend to,” Ackerman said. “We have a lot of students on inhalers at our school, so does the upper school. So I’m asking that you would think about making sure that we have proper medical attention in our school.”
Also during Monday’s meeting a host of Hillhouse teachers testified about their concerns for their school. Several of these educators told the Board about how important paras are when they need support in and outside the class. Many also called for a fair para contract, as it would help bring in additional support to schools during the ongoing teacher shortage.
Watch the full meeting above.