Center Grove teachers asked to ‘act like grown people’ at contentious meeting

Tensions erupted between Center Grove teachers and the school board during a meeting Thursday, when the board voted 3-1 to approve administrative pay raises despite not having reached an agreement on teacher contracts with the district’s teachers association.

One board member short since former member Joe Hubbard left the board to run for Greenwood mayor, remaining members Jack Russell, Scott Alexander and Rob Daniels voted to approve administrative raises. Board member Amy Counts was the sole dissenter.

For the second consecutive school board meeting, teachers came out to protest in conjunction with the United Teachers Association of Center Grove. This time, about 60 teachers held signs with messages such as “Make Teachers a Priority,” “Irreplaceable” and “We Deserve Better.” Other teachers sat on the ground and graded assignments to demonstrate the amount of work they do outside contract hours.

The school year after Center Grove lost 50 teachers to non-retirement resignations, the two sides haven’t reached an agreement on teacher pay increases for the current school year. In October, the teachers association rejected a proposed 5.65% salary increase for teachers by a 91-16 vote. On Thursday, the school board voted to approve the same percentage increase for administrators.

The pay raise for administrators was already accounted for in the 2023 budget, which the school board approved in October, Center Grove spokesperson Stacy Conrad said in an email.

A motion to approve the administrative raises was met with jeers from the crowd of teachers.

“Just stop! Act like grown people!” Russell shouted toward the crowd.

Teachers left the meeting en masse shortly after the vote.

Russell declined to discuss his comments or share his thoughts on the negotiations.

Parent Amanda Schipp, who has children at Middle School Central and Walnut Grove Elementary School, said the reaction was dismissive.

David Lawson, co-president of the teachers association and an English teacher at Center Grove High School, said he is disappointed but not surprised at the board’s reaction to their campaign.

“They’ve been committed to not changing their initial and only offer. It’s not a surprise, it’s disappointing but it’s been disappointing the whole time we’ve been in bargaining,” Lawson said. “Jack Russell sat on the stage at Center Grove High School on the candidate forum and he told teachers to continue doing what you’re doing and to keep fighting for what you need. After he was elected he certainly changed his tune, shouting us down and telling us we needed to act like grownups when we’re advocating for each other and our students. It was a total disappointment.”

Center Grove school officials offered a 5.65% salary increase for both teachers and administrators, but the increase translates to $3,167 for the median teacher, compared to a $6,667 raise for the median administrator, Lawson said.

While the proposed wage increase would raise starting teacher salaries to $46,015, teachers at Clark-Pleasant schools now make at least $47,000. At Greenwood schools, the least-paid full-time teacher makes $48,014.

Administrator pay is among the best in the state, while teacher salaries lag. In the 10 years since 2012, Center Grove Superintendent Rich Arkanoff’s contract salary has been increased by $71,841, from $155,000 to $226,841. Meanwhile, a bachelor’s degree holding teacher who made $45,977 in 2012, would now make around $64,412, assuming they followed the normal payscale track, Lawson said in a Facebook post.

With the impasse between the two sides, a mediator from the Indiana Education Employment Relations Board will be sent to finalize a deal, looking at funds that have yet to be allocated in a process called “fact-finding.” The teachers association believes the school board approved raises for administrators so that money couldn’t be given to teachers during the fact-finding process, said Peggy Young, teachers association co-president and fourth-grade teacher for Center Grove Elementary.

While school district officials typically waits until teacher contracts are agreed on to approve administrative raises, the meeting was the last of the calendar year, and that lead the board to act Thursday, Conrad said in an email.

The dispute between the two sides will likely lead to more teachers resigning, Schipp said.

“Teacher retention is really important and during the recent school board campaigns, it came to my attention how strained relationships are and how it’s leading to the loss of teachers. I came out to be supportive of the teachers and was disappointed by the board’s actions tonight,” she said. “I think our teachers are so invested in our kids, they go above and beyond. I’ve had some of my kids teachers stay after school multiple times a week and offer free tutoring and help with homework. Kids have long-term relationships with prior teachers who continue to push them long after they’ve left the classroom.”

Bill Collins, a parent who lost an election bid for Center Grove school board earlier this month, said things won’t change with Russell and Alexander being reelected to their spots on the board.

“I think that it’s in keeping with the misguided efforts of the board putting the administration before parents’, teachers’ and students’ best interest,” Collins said. “Nothing will change until we have change.”