USD 305 teacher talks turn to pay, benefits as staffing changes continue
Teacher negotiations in USD 305 have now moved beyond first-round work-rule proposals and into pay, insurance and longevity. Public district releases show the first round was held April 14, the second round was held April 20, and the next round is scheduled for May 11.
The district’s April 14 release showed the opening round focused largely on contract language and working conditions. NEA-Salina proposed changes involving blackout days, duty-free lunch consistency, leave protections for employees under medical care for work-related injuries, staff feedback in the appraisal system, dress code, two additional PTO days, communication outside the duty day and other structural clarifications. The Board of Education’s proposals included changes tied to home-district assignment language, blackout days for employees working in non-Salina districts, elementary music teachers and supplemental language for elementary marathon coordinators.
By the second round, compensation had moved to the center of the talks. In its April 20 release, the district said NEA-Salina proposed adding $2,000 to the base salary on the certified salary schedule while also paying step and movement, increasing the employer-paid health-insurance contribution from $580 per month to 85% of the premium cost for each tier of the plan, adding retiree-contribution language for district retirees with 20 or more years of service who remain on the plan until Medicare eligibility, and changing longevity language so all years of service to Salina Public Schools would count regardless of position type.
Those requests would build on changes already made for the current school year. In a May 20, 2025 release, the district said the 2025-26 agreement added $1,000 to the base salary, paid step and movement, increased the employer contribution for health benefits by $20 per month, restructured and increased longevity pay for employees in years 36 and above, clarified the duty day and calendar year, and added several other language and schedule changes.
At the same time negotiations are moving into money, district board records show continued staffing movement. In the public March 10 board packet, the personnel report listed 15 certified resignations effective at the end of the 2025-26 school year and 6 certified retirements. Those departures included positions in science, foreign language, school nursing, elementary classrooms, and multiple special education roles.
The public documents do not, by themselves, explain why each employee is leaving. But they do show the district is bargaining over compensation and working conditions while also processing certified departures across several buildings and specialties. That gives the negotiations a broader local context than salary language alone: the contract talks are unfolding while the district continues to manage visible staffing churn in its public personnel reports.