Ann Arbor school board ratifies contract for teachers

The Ann Arbor school board ratified a two-year contract with its teachers' union Wednesday night.

The contract calls for a pay freeze for teachers this school year.Â However, some teachers will receive raises due to the district's step promotion program, which gives teachers more pay for each additional year of experience.

The agreement also sets the district's calendar for this school year and next.Â

"These are difficult times," said school board Trustee Glenn Nelson, adding he thought the contract reflected tough times.

The district and union will have to sit down during this school year to bargain the pay rate for next school year.

District administrators and union officials said they didn't reach an agreement for next year's pay because of unsettled funding for the district.

The district gets the bulk of its funding from the state. Earlier Wednesday, a state legislative committee recommended the state cut funding to each school district by $218 per student.

That would be a loss of nearly $3.6 million this school year for the Ann Arbor district.

The district is also awaiting the results of the November election. A countywide enhancement millage is on the ballot. The 2-mill tax would raise about $11 million per year for the school district.

Union members approved the contract late last week on a 879-137 vote, union President Brit Satchwell said.