News Release
May 7, 2007
School Board President Theresa Peña and DPS Superintendent Michael Bennet Disappointed By Union Call Of Impasse
Denver Public Schools (DPS) Superintendent Michael Bennet and School Board President Theresa Peña expressed disappointment tonight after Denver Classroom Teachers Association (DCTA) gave up on contract negotiations and union leadership announced they were declaring an impasse in negotiations for school year 2007-2008.
"The DCTA union leadership informed us tonight that they have given up on negotiations for the 2007-2008 school year and are declaring an impasse," said Board President Theresa Peña. "DPS holds teachers' compensation as a top priority, and we had hoped to continue with this important dialogue," continued Peña.
"Over the past four years, teachers have seen an average 21% pay increase in our district," stated Superintendent Michael Bennet. "Particularly in view of the extraordinary financial challenges Denver Public Schools faces, we wish the leadership would recognize that we are desperately trying to honor our teachers."
DPS realizes the importance of attracting and retaining the best teachers. For this reason, over the past several years—even as the district's enrollment has declined—the district has continued to prioritize teacher pay increases. It is why, in the face of limited revenue increases, DPS proposed a 6.2% increase for 2007-2008 during negotiations.
Teachers' compensation continues to be the largest single expenditure by the district. While DPS revenues increased by only 13.4% during the 2004-2008 timeframe, teachers received a cumulative 21.3% pay increase—all while other DPS unions received only a cumulative 11.5% increase and DPS administrators received a cumulative 8.4% increase. In order to place high-quality teachers in every classroom, DPS directed an additional $3.5 million in unexpected 2005-2006 state funding entirely to teacher salary increases and nothing else.
The salary increases over the past four years do not include the $25 million Denver voters approved to fund teacher salaries or the increasing pension contribution the district is now funding to make the pension actuarially sound. We are pleased to note that 1,863 teachers have opted in to ProComp since its inception and their salaries have increased an average of $3,000.
For more information, please call Alex Sanchez at 303-263-7788.