Hard-pressed Carson teachers plead for pay raises

Ken Elverum's alarm clock rings at 2:30 every morning. By 3 a.m., he's waiting at the loading docks of the Nevada Appeal to deliver the morning papers.

He's usually back home by 5:30, when he takes a shower and gets ready to go to Eagle Valley Middle School, where he teaches sixth-grade social studies.

He gets to the school about a quarter to 7 and prepares for his classes. After school, he coaches basketball and doesn't leave until 6 or 6:30 p.m.

Between September and January, he spends his weekends at basketball tournaments and in the summer, he umpires baseball for extra income.

"Why do I keep this schedule? Finances," he explained. "Just like anybody else, I have to support my family."

A teacher's salary alone isn't enough, especially considering the high rate of health insurance, he told Carson City School Board members.

Carson City is one of four school districts in Nevada that has not yet settled teacher contracts. It is one of two out of the 17 districts not offering a raise.

Dozens of teachers and classified employees attended Tuesday's school board meeting and several of them implored board members to reconsider their offer.

"That's why I have to work 15 hours a day - to get by," concluded Elverum, who was the district's educator of the year in 2000. "When it comes time to consider giving us a raise, I hope you'll remember that."

Brian Wallace told trustees of his decision in the eighth grade to become a teacher. He realized that goal this year, but the reality has not matched the dream.

He is becoming discouraged by increasing demands placed on teachers by No Child Left Behind and the prospect of no salary increase.

"I am not going to be here within the next year and a half if this is the kind of treatment I can expect from this school district," he said.

Wallace is not alone in his sentiment, according to Jeff Greb, president of the Ormsby County Education Association.

"We believe this district has a teacher recruitment and retention problem," he said. "You lose between 8 and 15 percent of your teachers each and every year."

It's a problem, he said, that trickles down to the students.

"Studies show that the greatest single factor affecting student achievement is teacher quality," Greb said. "You can have the fanciest buildings with the best materials and most expensive programs, but it is the teacher's interaction with individual students that has the greatest impact on learning."

Superintendent Mary Pierczynski said the district cannot afford pay raises because there was no growth in the number of students.

"Certainly all of us would like to see all the employees get a raise," she said. "Every district's ability to give a raise is dependent on different factors."

And salary isn't a true reflection of what an employee earns, district officials say.

For example, an employee at the top of the salary schedule is paid $53,048 for 182 days of work.

In addition, the school district would pay $6,000 per year in insurance for that employee and pays $10,742, or 20.25 percent of the wage, annually into the employee's retirement fund.

New hires also receive a $2,500 signing bonus on top of the $2,000 they receive from the state.

Contract negotiations began before the end of last school year and mediation proved to be futile.

Binding arbitration is scheduled April 5-6, where a third party will listen to both sides, then choose one.

Contact Teri Vance at tvance@nevadaappeal.com or at 881-1272.