The Morton School District and Morton Education Association will begin the new school year next week with a new contract.
After MEA members ratified the three-year agreement in votes taken Thursday and Monday, the Morton School Board voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the contract.
"While the contract is very detailed, the headline is MEA members will receive a 5% pay raise in each of the three years," said Superintendent Craig Smock.
Board Vice President Jerry Rudd, who ran the board meeting Tuesday in the absence of board President David Cross, thanked everyone "who put in countless hours to get the contract done."
The journey to reach an agreement to replace the previous three-year contract was a difficult one.
For the first time in 24 years, the district and union needed a federal mediator to resolve their differences.
A 6 1/2-hour meeting with the mediator July 8 resulted in a tentative settlement of the financial issues that were separating the two sides.
Union president Shane Weyland said Wednesday the MEA negotiating team worked tirelessly to produce a contract that is fair to the MEA membership and the School Board.
"The contract set a foundation that will allow Morton to retain and recruit the best teachers in Illinois," he said. "The MEA membership is now ready to do what we do best: educate Morton students."
Weyland said the results of the MEA ratification vote aren't being released "at this time."
The MEA represents 240 teachers, counselors, speech pathologists, psychologists and social workers in the 3,300-student K-12 district.
The new contract covers the 2024-25 through 2026-27 school years. It went into effect Tuesday and will continue through Aug. 1, 2027.
With the MEA contract in place, the board unanimously approved salary increases Tuesday for non-union staff including 10- and 12-month administrative and support personnel and school-year support personnel.
The board approved 5% salary increases for most 12-month employees, retroactive to July 1. Twelve-month employees who have taken on additional duties, or have salary bumps because of experience or being in the retirement window will see raises of more than 5%.
Salary increases of no less than 5% were approved for 10-month administrative and support personnel and school-year support personnel.
Because of the state-mandated minimum wage increase from $14 to $15 per hour, employees in these categories will see raises of between 5 and 10%.
Morton elementary schools will be getting electronic crosswalks
More electronic crosswalks with flashing beacons are coming to Morton schools, Superintendent Craig Smock announced Tuesday.
The crosswalks are already in place in front of Morton Junior High and Morton High School on Jackson Street. Smock said there are plans to install similar crosswalks in front of the district's four elementary schools, beginning with Jefferson this school year.
Crossroads in front of Grundy, Lettie Brown and Lincoln elementary schools will be installed after this school year.
Like the junior high school and high school crosswalks, the cost for the elementary school crosswalks will be shared by the school district and village of Morton.
"Considering these crosswalks operate 24-7, the cost for them isn't prohibitive," Smock said.
Breakfast will be served at Jefferson Elementary School
Minor changes to the list of school fees previously approved for the 2024-25 school year approved unanimously Tuesday by the board.
The most notable change is the addition of prices for a pilot breakfast program at Jefferson Elementary School ($2.50 for adults and visitors, $1.60 for students, 60 cents for milk).
The district received a grant from the Illinois State Board of Education to fund the program at Jefferson. If the program goes well there, it could expand to the other schools in the district in the spring.
"We wanted to start with Jefferson to get a sense of whether we could do the program there from a staffing standpoint, and to help us determine costs and prices prior to expanding it to the other schools. We hope to start making those determinations toward the middle of the school year," said Superintendent Craig Smock.
