KCSD-teacher contract set to expire at end of June; negotiations underway

BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP, PA – A three-year contract between the Keystone Central School District and its teachers’ union (the Association of Clinton County Educators) is due to expire as of June 30 and the two sides are reported negotiating on a new agreement.

With the current pact ending as of the end of this month, therecord-online asked the district for an update on efforts for a new contract. John Freund and Elizabeth Kelly, school board attorneys with the Bethlehem-based King Spry law firm provided this statement:

Yes, the contract between the Association of Clinton County Educators (ACCE) and the Keystone Central School District Board of Directors (Board) is set to expire on June 30, 2022. The Board and ACCE have been in negotiations for a successor agreement since January of this year. Although an agreement has not yet been reached, the Board is hopeful that we will find common ground with ACCE for a successor agreement.

The district and the ACCE had announced in May of 2019 an accord on the terms of the current contract. A joint statement at the time said the pact included a two-year teacher pay freeze that would save the district $2.65 million over the three-year contract period.

Given the two-year pay freeze in the current agreement, therecord-online also asked about pay issues in any ongoing talks, to which the board attorneys responded:

Finally, because salary is an important part in current negotiations, we believe it is not prudent for us to comment on the issue at this time.

The school board on Thursday night approved adjustments to the current contract between the district and its support personnel union (the Keystone Central Education Support Professionals Association). The memorandum of understanding includes pay hikes, effective July 1 of this year, for multiple categories covered in the current pact which runs from July 1, 2020, through June 30, 2024.