Wauwatosa School Board votes to give teachers a bump in pay

Most Wauwatosa teachers will notice heftier paychecks come next school year.

The Wauwatosa School Board last week unanimously approved salary increases for teachers for the 2016-17 school year. All teachers will receive a raise, barring they're not on an improvement plan — when instructional coaches work with teachers to help them improve in certain areas, said Director of Human Resources Craig Hubbell.

The salary increases, which account for a 1.55 percent increase over last year's budget, comes at a cost of $490,933. The standard increase for many teachers — at least those categorized as Level 1 and 2 teachers, those with three to five years of experience and "effective educators" making $60,000 or less, respectively — received a raise of about $1,000, Hubbell said.

"We're very glad we can offer raises to teachers," he said. "They do great work, they work hard, they have an outstanding impact. We're glad we can recognize that through compensation."

District officials were not included in the salary raise; whether they'll receive raises for the 2016-17 academic year will be addressed at a later meeting, said Hubbell.

It's not the first time Wauwatosa teachers have received raises in recent years; the standard increase for Level 1 and 2 teachers for the 2015-16 school year was about $2,000.

Wage comparisons

The salary of a new teacher in the Wauwatosa School District starts around $41,000, said Hubbell. There are 546 full-time equivalent teachers in the school district, which translates to about 580 positions, he said.

According to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, during the 2013-14 school year, the average teacher salary in the Wauwatosa School District was $52,854. The average amount of education experience for teachers was nearly 11 years.

By comparison, the average teacher salary in the Elmbrook School District was $64,632, according to the DPI. Teachers in that district averaged more than 15 years of experience. Waukesha teachers received an average salary of $60,570 during the 2013-14 school year, also with more than 15 years of experience, on average.

During the school board meeting, Superintendent Phil Ertl said some are concerned about teacher retention, and comments have been made that other districts offer better pay.

"Overall, I don't think we're loosing a lot of people that are going after more money, but I think this continues to help move us in the right direction," he said of salary increases.

The DPI listed the following positions as the highest-paid employees in the Wauwatosa School District across all departments from its 2013-14 fall staff report, the most recent data available:

1. Phil Ertl, superintendent, $163,738

2. John Mack, business director, $138,651

3. Elizabeth Erenberger, director of teaching and learning: curriculum and instruction, $125,075

4. Daniel Chanen, director of human resources, $118,193 (Chanen has since left the district.)

5. Nick Hughes, Wauwatosa East High School principal, $116, 960

6. Frank Calarco, Wauwatosa West High School principal, $114,400

7. Therese Kwiatkows, supervisor of special education and compliance, $110, 923

8. Jeffrey Keranen, Whitman Middle School Principal, $110, 847

9. Jason Galien, former Longfellow Middle School principal $104,817 (Galien has since moved to a new position.)

10. Mark Carter, current Longfellow Middle School principal, previously at McKinley Elementary $101,931

The school board approved a new contract for Ertl in September, which carried a salary of $178,044 for the 2015-16 school year.

Learn more

To find the wage of your student's teacher in the Wauwatosa School District, visit the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's website 1.usa.gov/28J6YXL and explore under "All Staff" files.