ITHACA, NY (607NewsNow) — Months of discussions between the Ithaca City School District and the Ithaca Teachers Association have resulted in agreement about a new contract.
In a joint statement released by the two groups, the 3-year deal includes a 7% average salary increase for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years, and an average raise of 6% for the 2027-28 school year. The contract also includes a step and lane schedule, which was a major sticking point for union members.
“They were very clear—securing a step and lane salary schedule, maintaining our excellent health insurance through retirement, and creating more supportive family leave options were widely and deeply felt issues that members were willing to fight for,” ITA President Kathryn Cernera said. “This clear vision of what we needed helped us to rally our community and keep up the fight for many months. I am sincerely appreciative of the hard work everyone has put into negotiating a contract that has the potential to be career-changing for so many teachers and their families.”
A step and lane schedule makes sure that all teachers receive an annual raise of pay that doesn’t fall below 5%. The bargaining sessions, which began during the previous academic year, were all streamed live on the ICSD website. Superintendent Dr. Luvelle Brown says that transparency was win/win.
“This public collective bargaining process has contributed to an awareness, deeper understanding, and tentative agreement on terms that are mutually beneficial for adults and students in our school district,” Brown said. “I’m pleased that we have an unprecedented and historic opportunity to position our teaching staff as one of the most competitively compensated with robust benefits when compared to any school district in Central New York. At the same time, enhanced professional development to support the extended instructional time for students will be invaluable.”
The estimated 600 ITA members must vote to ratify the agreement, which was reached Oct. 30. The union and district will continue to meet “to finalize the language for a comprehensive collective bargaining agreement by late November,” according to a statement. Once ratified by the union, the ICSD Board of Education will vote to accept the contract.
