During the October Noblesville Schools Board of Trustees meeting, the board approved the motion to ratify the contract agreement between the Teachers Forum and Noblesville Schools.
Superintendent Dr. Hile gave several highlights of the collective bargaining contract negotiation. Among the highlights mentioned were an increase in teacher pay to $46,000 for 2024 and $48,000 for 2025, an increase to the 401a match for retirement for teachers from 2.5 percent to 3 percent, a decrease in the Retirement Notification Incentive from $10,000 to $1,000 if notice of retirement is given by Jan. 31 of the year, and a new dependent leave benefit for new mothers within the first year of a child’s birth.
While I support most of the changes mentioned, I believe that the dependent leave benefit went too far. The leave allows a new parent to take up to 30 sick days within the first year of a child’s birth. This is a new addition to the teachers’ contract and is over and above all other time out of school, such as fall break, winter break, spring break, summer break, and paid time off. I know that a newborn can present many challenges, including sickness, but I believe that the 30-day policy may be ripe for misuse.
The highlight of the November meeting was the bid for the Noblesville High School Academic Addition. While the project is coming in slightly above the originally anticipated budget, the bid was accepted by the board and ground-breaking should start by January of 2024. You can view the 11-page rendering of the addition at tinyurl.com/NHSacademicaddition.
Also in the November meeting was the policy adoption of the H250 School Library Material Removal Request procedure. As written, this policy allows a parent to request the removal of a school library material, but the entire review and decision process is led by school employees and administration. Absent is any parental or community involvement in the review of the contested library material.
I believe this goes contrary to the intention of the law passed by our legislature during the 2023 session regarding school library content. The legislature’s addition of language to allow for parental involvement was a recognition of the importance of parental input. This policy, as it stands, falls short of this acknowledgment.
It is important to note that the final decision of whether to remove a school library material or not is up to the school board. Therefore, it is incumbent on any community member concerned about contested library material to make their opinion known to the board members.
Dr. Hile will give the State of the Schools update on Wednesday, Dec. 6 at the Noblesville Schools Community Center on Field Drive. The presentation will include academic achievements, workforce development, school finances, and construction.
While I expect the presentation will focus on all the positives, I would focus on what is not said. You know what they say about details.
For those interested, tickets are available through the Noblesville Chamber of Commerce at NoblesvilleChamber.com.