The agreement includes adjustments to work calendars, increased paid time off for support staff, a cost-of-living raise for all returning staff, and movement on the salary schedules.
Key provisions of the tentative agreement include:
- 2% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA): All returning licensed staff, ESPs, and student service providers will receive a 2% cost of living adjustment. In addition, eligible staff will move up one step on their salary schedule based on role-specific criteria and performance.
- Reduced contract days for licensed staff and student service providers: All teacher, counselor, and student service provider contracts will be shortened by two work days (non-student contact days) with no decrease in pay for the reduction of days.
- Additional paid non-duty days for Educational Support Professionals (ESP): ESP employees will have two workdays converted to two paid non-duty days.
“In the face of financial challenges, the successful negotiations with DEA and DESPA reflect our shared commitment to all staff, and to the district,” said Karla Sluis, district spokesperson. “Together, we believe we were able to find a solution that honors our staff while safeguarding the future of our schools. We appreciate the hard work of all negotiators.”
The agreement is tentative and will be finalized upon ratification by DEA and DESPA, and if ratified, approval by the Board of Education, which will be discussed at the next Regular Meeting on June 24.
FAQ: School budget, pay raises, and negotiations
Didn’t the state increase school funding this year?
Yes. The district is receiving only a 1.5% increase in per pupil funding from the state for the 2025/26 school year. This small amount is not enough to cover the rising costs of employer-paid insurance premium subsidies. It would not cover any portion of annual salary increases through natural movement on our current pay scale.
Voters approved the 2024 Investing in Our Schools Bond. Why can’t that money be used to increase staff salaries?
While we’re grateful for the community’s support, bond money cannot be used for salaries. In Colorado, school bonds are only allowed to pay for buildings, renovations, and equipment – things like new classrooms, safety upgrades, or technology. State law strictly prohibits using bond funds for ongoing costs like teacher pay or daily operating expenses. To raise staff salaries, schools need more funding through the state budget or a mill levy override, which is a different kind of voter-approved funding.
Will the school district experience a federal funding cut?
Durango School District was informed last week to expect at least a 14% decrease in Title 1 funding. Title I is a federally funded program that supports schools with high numbers of students from low-income families by providing extra resources for literacy, math, and small-group instruction. In Durango School District, several elementary schools use these funds to boost academic success and engage families as partners in learning.
Does the district spend too much on administration?
No. For the 24-25 budget year, $47,572,978 went to staff salaries. Only 5% of this amount was spent on central administration salaries. These amounts do not include employer-paid benefits.
How is the district managing the budget in light of the changing fiscal landscape?
The district is carefully reviewing expenses and prioritizing spending that directly supports students. This includes keeping administrative costs low and protecting classroom resources. Every department has already cut 10% from their budgets. Each school has reduced their discretionary budget by 5%. We’re leaving several recently vacated positions unfilled until we know more. In addition, we are no longer working with strict caps on class sizes; we are moving to class size ranges. For example, third grade is staffed at 24 students to 1 teacher. We will no longer add an additional teacher when we reach 25 students. We will leave that at one teacher. The average cost for an additional teacher, with benefits, is $88,000.
What is the current average teacher salary in the Durango School District?
The current average teacher salary in Durango School District is $65,590 for a 183-day contract. If this were a full-year contract with 251 days of work, this would equate to a salary of $89,962.
What is the “step system” for teacher pay, and why is it important?
Most school districts in Colorado, including ours, use a "step system" for teacher salaries. This means that each year, teachers typically move up a "step" on the pay scale, if it is approved by the Board of Education. It's a way to recognize experience and keep salaries competitive over time, as a step will mean an increase in pay. However, each time all teachers move up a step, a district’s overall salary costs increase. The only time this cost doesn’t go up is when experienced, higher-paid teachers retire or leave and are replaced with newer, lower-paid teachers.
In our district, teachers move up automatically during the first four years. But now, those built-in increases are getting harder to afford. Student enrollment is going down, and with fewer students, the district gets less funding from the state. That makes it financially unsustainable to keep giving automatic raises every year without cutting other parts of the budget.
What is “natural movement” in salaries?
Natural movement refers to salary movement staff may earn as they earn credit for additional experience, professional development, college coursework, committee work, etc. These increases in the teacher salary schedule are on average 4% per move.
Have staff received raises in recent years?
Staff in Durango School District have received continued pay raises since 2011. Since that time, staff have received compensation increases through increases applied to salary schedules, movement through the salary schedules, cost of living adjustments, and bonuses. The starting teacher pay has increased by 29% since 2021 due to investments made directly into the teaching salary schedules.
How does Durango School District’s starting hourly rate compare?
Durango Forward members have asked Durango City Council to raise minimum wage by 15% to $17.03/hour. Durango School District’s lowest starting hourly wage is $19.84/hour.
What's in a staff member’s total compensation package?
In addition to base pay:
- Teachers work 183 days per year. Our year-round employees work 251 days per year. We have 9-month to 12-month work schedules available for support staff.
- All employees have 21.4% retirement contributions to PERA.
- On average, there is 60% of health insurance premium support for all employees who work 24 or more hours per week.
- On average, 65% of the dental insurance premium is covered for employees.
- Employees receive paid time off. Teachers, counselors, and student service providers receive 10 days of general paid time off. Support staff receive paid sick and personal days, Year-round support staff also receive paid vacation days.
- There is an employer-paid life insurance plan.
- An Employee Assistance Program offers free counseling services, life coaching, financial planning services, and legal assistance.
Why didn’t the district agree to the raises initially proposed by the Associations?
The Associations initially proposed 15%, 12.5%, and 5% raises each in addition to movement on their respective salary schedules. Even the 5% option would cost about $3.7 million every year, far more than the $731,000 in new funding. The 15% option would cost over $8.7 million yearly – more than the district’s entire $6 million in reserve unassigned funds.
What makes a raise a “recurring cost”?
Once an increase is added to the pay schedule or given as an ongoing cost of living adjustment, the district must fund it every year. That’s why we have to ensure that the raises we give are sustainable in future years.
What’s the risk of using savings (unassigned funds) to pay for raises?
The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) encourages school districts to keep three months, or 25%, of general fund expenses in unassigned fund balance. The district’s $6 million in unassigned funds is like an emergency fund. Spending it on ongoing costs like raises would:
- Drain funds needed for future emergencies.
- Leave the district financially vulnerable due to inflation, enrollment decline, or unstable state and federal funding.
Why not just lay off workers to save money?
School districts are government employers, and therefore are not permitted to carry unemployment insurance. Unlike a private entity, when a former school district employee is awarded unemployment benefits by the state, the school district pays every dollar. Even with layoffs, the district must pay the unemployment benefits if they are awarded – 55% of weekly wages, reducing actual savings. Plus, cuts can increase class sizes and reduce student services. As a precaution, we are currently leaving several vacancies unfilled until we have a better sense of future funding from the state and federal government.
How is the district working with the Durango Education Association (DEA) and the Durango Education Support Professionals Associations (DESPA)?
Durango has Master Agreements with its associations and uses a collaborative, interest-based negotiation process – a model many nearby districts don’t have. We’ve tentatively agreed to new language for various articles in the DEA and DESPA Master Agreements that further support positive work environments for staff and clarify working terms for employees. We have also tentatively agreed to a compensation package for the 2025-2026 school year.
What’s the next step?
The agreement is tentative for now. It still needs to be voted on and approved by both DEA and DESPA. If both groups approve it, the Board of Education will review and vote on it at their next regular meeting on June 24.