Unionized teachers turned out in force at the Saratoga Springs school board meeting Thursday as they call for a new contract.
Teachers in the Saratoga Springs School District have been vying for an updated union contract for nearly two years.
At the meeting in the packed gymnasium of Caroline Street Elementary School, teachers and union supporters held various signs. One read “No contracts? A race to the bottom.”
Negotiations have been ongoing since the last contract expired in June 2022.
During the public comment period, Katherine Cole, a teacher at Saratoga Springs High School, expressed concern that poor working conditions for teachers translate into poor learning environments for students.
“What they don’t see is how when I leave this campus I am an empty shell of a person," said Cole. "And I worry that I am teaching them the wrong kind of lesson. One where they must over exert themselves, are constantly told to add more to their plates when they’re already overflowing, feel as though they’re doing everything they can but it never being good enough.”
Robin Chudy has been teaching in the Saratoga Springs school district for nearly three decades, and says she’s seen a shift in teacher retention in recent years.
“I see good, young teachers leaving this district. Good teachers looking for jobs in different districts that pay more and I can’t blame them." Chudy continued, "in the past two years as a department head I’ve written four letters of recommendation for teachers looking to leave this district. They don’t feel the joy and pride I did all those years ago. My colleagues are feeling underappreciated, disrespected because we can’t come to a fair contract.”
Union President Timothy McGuiggan said the turnout was an effort to get the district to reach a fair contract that will provide teachers with competitive wages. McGuiggan said the district has been losing teachers at a time when nearby districts like Shenendehowa have higher salaries.
“Well, it provides stability so when someone’s looking where they’re going to be working they’ll know that they have a stable working environment, they know they an plan what the next few years are going to be like," said McGuiggan. "It provides stability for the community as well. It provides stability to the district in budget planning. So, that’s a larger part of it.”
McGuiggan says that the Board of Education has been cooperative in contract negotiations.
“They’re not shutting us out, I would not say that," explained McGuiggan. "They are working with us on it but we just can’t seem to get over the last hump and get something done. It has not been acrimonious, I won’t say that, and it has not been something where we don’t feel the district is coming to the table. We just—we feel we need to emphasize, and that’s what tonight was, we need to emphasize that we need to get this done.”
Representatives of the Board of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mary Gecewicz, a former district elementary school nurse, was present at the meeting and spoke with WAMC after delivering remarks during the public comment period.
Gecewicz, one of more than 15 parents to come forward with allegations of abuse within the high school athletics program, spoke about her daughter’s experience racing for the nationally renowned track team.
“She was abused, she was controlled, they had to practice everyday of the year except Christmas," said Gecewicz. "They had to run and practice through sicknesses. They ruined my daughter’s life. They ruined our lives because we were the parents. I tried many times to beg them, talk to them to leave my daughter alone.”
The district has launched an official investigation of the allegations outlined in a 77-page complaint made by a coalition of parents, former student athletes, and a former Board of Education member in October.
On Thursday, the Board of Education appointed two long-time coaches central in the complaints to coach the indoor girl’s cross-country team this winter.
