Avon School Board Approves Two-Year Deal with Teachers

Avon's approved a new deal with the teachers union at Tuesday's meeting that will freeze wages and require teachers to pay more for health care coverage.

The contract, which goes into effect on August 1 and runs through July 2013, also freezes teachers' positions in terms of longevity steps, which means that they do not get step raises.

Teachers will pay also more for health insurance.

Wage freezes should save the district about $270,000 a year, said David Bruening, negotiating committee member and president-elect of Avon Teachers' Association. The health insurance changes will save another $75,000.

Negotiations took about six weeks, said board president Susan Harrison. During the meeting, board member Scott Radcliffe addressed the teachers in attendance, thanking them.

Lynn Maslinski, the current president of Avon Teachers' Association, pointed out in a statement Tuesday that most of the teachers in Avon already contribute to their health insurance costs at the rate mandated by the recently passed Senate Bill 5.

Despite the belt-tightening, Bruening, a history teacher at , said the deal was also a victory for teachers.

"We were happy to step up without cutting services and maintaining the curriculum," he said. "In the long run, we did what was best for students and the community." 

Harrison praised the teachers union for the concessions and the quickness of the deal.

"They understand what we're working with, especially with the prospect of ," she said, adding that the teachers were a great help in supporting recent school levies. "It's amazing how well we have worked together."

In other news:

• The board approved officially severing ties with Anne Maiden, the former art teacher convicted in 2010 of theft and misuse of credit cards. Maiden smashed car windows on two occasions in Hudson and Elyria, stealing purses and credit cards, and buying things such as a television and gift cards with the stolen credit cards. Maiden's state license, which she allowed to expire in 2010, has been permanently revoked by the State Board of Education. In a unanimous vote, Maiden was permanently removed as an employee.
• Contracts for summer projects such as window replacement, masonry work,  paving, and adding bleachers to the football/soccer stadium were approved.