The Sulphur Springs Union School District’s recent governing board meeting was standing room only as educators from Sulphur Springs’ nine elementary schools packed into the district office.
Teachers had shown in force at the Jan. 21 meeting for two reasons: The first was that the district was celebrating six Sulphur Springs schools that’d made the top 3% of this year’s U.S. News ranking of thousands of California K-8 public schools.
But after teachers from Fair Oaks Ranch, Mint Canyon, Pinetree, Golden Oak, Leona Cox and Valley View accepted their plaques and commemorative banners, the meeting’s tone turned as trustees took up advance requests to address the board – all from district educators.
About 10 educators read statements addressing the district’s 1.3% pay raise offer, made earlier that month, saying the increase would not raise their salaries enough to offset living expenses already punishingly high.
Following those statements, board President Shelley Weinstein told teachers that while the board couldn’t immediately respond, she appreciated their presence at the meeting.
“As you know, we can’t comment on this, when it’s an unagendized item, but I do want each and every one of you to know that the board has heard what you’ve said,” Weinstein said.
The Sulphur Springs District Teacher Association has been in negotiations with the district over its 2025-26 contract since the fall, said SSDTA President Rikki Fayne. Fayne said that those negotiations are typical, and that the union has a good relationship with the district.
She added that the meeting was an opportunity for teachers not involved in the bargaining process to speak their minds about the contract terms, and when it comes to contract items taken up during bargaining, salary is typically a given – and that the cost-of-living crisis referenced during the meeting is not limited to teachers.
“Pay is going up, but insurance is going up, and there’s a lot of, ‘What’s going to happen, what’s going to happen to insurance premiums in 2026’ … and that’s scary to everybody, not just teachers,” Fayne said. “It’s not unique to Sulphur Springs, and it’s not unique to teachers.”
The 1.3% raise would equal about $698 in a year for a teacher on the first step of the district’s pay schedule, said Valley View Community School learning support teacher Kaitlyn Graff. Beginning teachers with schooling up to a master’s degree make $53,664 annually, according to the district’s pay schedule.
“That does not cover a grocery bill. It does not keep up with rent, gas, insurance or utilities,” Graff said during the meeting. “That is not a meaningful response to the rising cost of living, and that’s before taxes.”
Multiple educators said the increase falls short of the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, calculated each year by the California Department of Finance intended to be passed on to school district employees. This year’s tentative COLA is set at about 2.4%, according to the state’s Department of Education.
“COLA exists for a reason. It’s meant to protect workers from losing purchasing power as the cost of living rises. When employees repetitively receive less than COLA, it becomes a pattern of quiet pay cuts. That money is intended for the people doing the work,” Graff said. “It should not be absorbed into other areas of the budget where there are separate funding sources for those needs.”
Sulphur Springs Superintendent Catherine Kawaguchi spoke positively to The Signal about negotiations between the district and the union.
“We have really great relationships with our SSDTA, and we’re looking forward to continue having productive negotiations moving forward,” Kawaguchi said.
