Bonuses On Way For Teachers Who Hung In

Full-time and part-time New Haven Public School (NHPS) employees who have been bearing the brunt of staff shortages, upticks in violence, and learning gaps will be thanked for their commitments to the district with $1,000 and $500 retention bonuses. 

The Board of Education approved that plan Monday night at its regular biweekly Zoom meeting. 

The Retention and Recruitment Incentive Plan was presented by Superintendent Iline Tracey to the board and approved unanimously, as one of several efforts the district is making to retain its education staff and recruit new faces next year. (Click here and here to read previous stories about NHPS recruitment and retention efforts.) 

In addition to offering retention bonuses, the district will also offer recruitment incentives to all full-time and part-time employees who work for the district as of Jan. 1, 2023. 

All current and future full-time employees will receive $1,000 incentive bonuses. Part-time employees will receive $500.

Employees will receive the incentive in their last paycheck of the school year, Tracey said. 

“We’ve recognized that our staff members have been working hard right through the pandemic,” Tracey said. ​“They support the system and allowed the system to continue to float and not sink.” 

The district executive team worked with the Connecticut Department of Education to win approval to reallocate a portion of its American Rescue Plan (federal pandemic-relief) funds to accommodate the incentive plan. 

The projected total cost of the plan is $7.2M for 3,200 full-time employees and 800 part-time employees.

Recipients include all employees except the superintendent and some assistant superintendents, Tracey said. 

Board Vice President Matt Wilcox clarified that the plan funding will not come from the district’s general operating budget.

“With the nationwide attacks on education and teachers, it is a welcome relief to see the NHPS administration and board working towards the goal of paying staff what they truly deserve,” said board member Darnell Goldson, who had previously raised the idea of raises or bonuses for stretched staff. ​“I hope this isn’t a one off but instead signals trends to come.”

Enough To Counteract Suburban Raises?

New Haven Federation of Teachers President Leslie Blatteau credited U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona for encouraging school districts statewide to use federal dollars to support teachers financially during the pandemic. 

“NHFT members certainly welcome this bonus. The last two years have been some of the most challenging of our careers and the recognition of the stress we’ve experienced means a great deal to us,” Blatteau said Tuesday.

She added that the district should address the teacher shortage crisis with ​“substantial raises for our educators in the coming years” and by giving teachers a seat at the decision-making table.

“Many neighboring districts are making competitive offers to teachers that we can’t refuse,” Blatteau added.