Tell MPS: Put Students First and Get Back to the Table

our kids can't wait

Families and Community Members,

We have been asking our superintendent and school board to intervene at the bargaining table for months to no avail.

We went into mediation yesterday feeling hopeful that a settlement would be reached. After 17 hours, MPS refused to move one inch on our members' number one priority: Retaining the high-quality, experienced educators that our students deserve. Our educators currently make an average of $10,000 less than surrounding districts and this creates instability in our students' education. We have turned over 30% of our teachers in the last couple of years because of our low pay. This reality means that currently 20% of the teachers in the Minneapolis Public Schools are newly licensed. For comparison, only 2% of teachers in St. Paul are newly licensed.

Our students deserve stability in their education. This means having relationships with high-quality teachers in the buildings. MPS cannot afford to continue down this path.

Based on the packages that were presented, we know the parties can reach a resolution by moving different proposals. For example, we have found the money to raise our salaries to a place where we are beginning to catch up with other districts, while not harming our own district financially. That money is currently housed in the vacancy rate projections for next year. We are sitting at an 8% vacancy rate. MPS has projected a 2.5% vacancy rate next year. We asked them to meet us halfway and project a 5% vacancy rate, which automatically saves them around 13M that can go towards our pay, which will help to retain more staff. We know this is a sacrifice for members and students when positions go unfilled, but it also reflects reality and a major cost-savings for the district that is not currently reflected in the MPS budget.

Our kids can't wait! Please send this letter to our superintendent and school board today, so that our students can stay in school with the educators they deserve.

Read more about MPS' finances and spending on our homepage.