How Are Our Schools Doing?
Information from Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Melrose High is consistently ranked well in numerous school evaluations.
The city says classes will be overcrowded
In fact the city is failing to maintain balanced class sizes
Teacher contract list student to teacher ratio at 1 to 25
This was agreed upon by all major city parties from the Mayor, Teachers union, and School Superintendent.
Behind the Curtain of Public Schools: What the Public Doesn’t See
The general public is unaware of what actually happens behind the scenes in a public school and how the schools are managed. People outside of the school environment are often misled by a surface-level understanding of facts and by vague information.
Pension vs. 401K/403B
Decades ago, pensions were the norm in the private sector. Private companies did away with them mainly because of the financial and managerial burden they place on employers. The majority of private companies offer 401K’s, while private schools generally offer 401K’s or 403B’s.
Upon retirement, a public school teacher can start receiving a pension through the Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System, which is a percentage (based on age and years of service) of the highest 3-year average salary earned. Teachers who work until full retirement age will receive 80% of their highest 3-year average salary for the rest of their lives. The longer a teacher works, the higher the payout. A teacher can start collecting a smaller percentage after 10 years of service and at age 55 or 60, depending on whether the retirement table used was before or after 2012 (Tier1 vs. Tier2). https://mtrs.state.ma.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/retirementpercentagechart-tier1.pdf
https://mtrs.state.ma.us/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/retirementpercentagechart-tier2.pdf
If a teacher works to full retirement (80%), and the teacher’s highest 3-year average salary is $100,000, then they will receive $80,000 per year in retirement for the rest of their life. Many teachers continue to teach in order to earn the highest pension possible, but they may retire sooner at a lower percentage.
Teachers contribute 9-11% of their salaries to the Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System. Teacher salaries start out low, but continue to increase year after year. After 10 years of service, most teachers are making a reasonably good salary (around $100,000). The promise of a pension upon retirement is what keeps most teachers from leaving the profession (which is becoming more and more stressful).
Private schools generally do not offer a pension and may offer lower salaries than public schools. New teachers will often get experience at these schools and then try to gain employment at a public school because of the higher salary, unionization, and pension. Charter schools generally offer lower pay with longer hours, and a longer school year.
Teacher Compensation
Teacher salaries are agreed upon through a collective bargaining agreement between the teachers’ union and the city (school committee). This contract is re-negotiated every three years.
Teacher salaries increase each year and are based upon the teacher’s age, number of years of service, and educational level. (See table on page 54) Unit A Teachers Final 2022-2025 sig on file.pdf
On top of that, teacher salaries also increase every three years as a new contract is negotiated and a new salary table is set. After 10 years of service, teachers in most districts are earning a reasonably good salary (around $100,000). Salaries between districts usually vary by only a few thousand dollars.
It is difficult to compare salaries between cities and towns, i’e., one town may have just renegotiated a contract, making it appear that their teachers receive higher salaries. Some districts have more novice teachers, so looking at “the average salary” of the teachers within a town is not always a reliable indicator of teacher compensation.
Longevity Pay is given to teachers in varying amounts at different thresholds (after 10, 15, 20 years, etc.) of service to acknowledge their loyalty and commitment to a district. These amounts vary from district to district.
Health Insurance The percentage that a district pays towards employee health insurance varies among districts, but is generally between 65% and 85% of the cost (Melrose pays 82%). Some districts will even continue to contribute toward an employee’s health insurance throughout all of their retirement years.
Staffing
Teachers obtain “professional status” after 3 years of service within a school district, having undergone formal Induction and Mentoring during that time. Teachers are less likely to leave a district (either voluntarily or through firing) after having achieved professional status.
The first teachers to be laid off are often those who have not yet received professional status, not veteran teachers with professional status. A district may decide not to give a teacher professional status for various reasons - possibly because the teacher was not a good fit or was no longer needed for a particular role.
It is becoming harder and harder for districts to fill vacancies within school districts. Because of this, more teachers are being hired under emergency licenses (due to a teacher shortage) and do not have the same qualifications as a licensed teacher (haven’t passed the state licensing test, haven’t completed a teaching practicum, do not have a teaching degree, etc.) If they have not met the requirements necessary to be fully licensed within a certain time period, they are let go.
Teachers leaving the profession vs. teachers switching school districts are two different things. Don’t be misled by data indicating that teachers leave due to low pay. As illustrated earlier, teachers earn a lower salary in the first few years of teaching, but their pay is constantly increasing with age and experience. Teachers leaving for higher pay are oftentimes leaving the profession to start a new career. Veteran teachers with professional status generally do not switch districts to earn a few thousand dollars more per year if they are content in their positions. Due to reasons other than salary, teachers have left districts and now earn a much lower salary; or they have retired early, receiving a lower pension amount. They do this because their quality of life is more important to them than their salary and benefits.
Teachers hired from 2019 Override: 28.5 jobs added (were all of these necessary?); Teachers fired in June, 2024: 13 current teachers plus 4 vacancies unfilled. These figures give a vague snapshot (were these teachers licensed, did they have professional status, was this a 1-year grant position?). Melrose still had 15.5 more teachers in June 2024, compared to 2019.
Teachers who are fired in June are sometimes rehired in August once additional state funding comes in.
The Bridge: A School/Community Partnership provides volunteer opportunities to community members to help fill some of the gaps within Melrose Public Schools.
School Climate
Teachers today are facing more stress and violence within the classroom than ever before. Many have retired early, taken mental health leaves, increasingly called in sick, left the teaching profession, or switched districts (at times for lower pay), as a result.
Student Discipline: In order to decrease the student detention rates, “restorative practices” (which originated in the prison system) were introduced as an alternative to discipline in schools prior to the pandemic. As expected, student detention rates went down (since detention was scarcely being used), while classroom disruptions increased, likely due to the absence of consequences for student behavior. This needs to change if we are to restore order within the schools and retain staff. Increasing staff and offering higher pay for teachers and administrators won’t fix this problem.
“Sick buildings” (new construction with mold issues, for example) are a reality in Massachusetts. Teachers and students have left school districts as a result.
What is the future for public schools? Many students are leaving “brick and mortar” schools in favor of homeschooling and online schools. Peabody Public Schools now offer an online option as does Greater Commonwealth Virtual School (GCVS) and TECCA, all of which are free Massachusetts public schools.
A Retired Teacher