Melrose teachers pay is 299th out of 314 school districts? Does anyone continue to wonder why the school system is in turmoil? All the great teachers are going to better paying districts. Those with the higher degrees, those who really care are not going to work for paltry pay. Dolan should be ashamed. He is also not planning on hiring a replacement athletic director once the current one retires this year. He is taking it out of the budget saying we can't afford it. We probably could do without one. The current one certainly has not done anything. She definitely wasn't worth her $150000 salary. The point is where is all the money? Dolan will probably blame it on the lack of an override. I'm going to call it as it is, lack of knowing how to run a city and manage funds. All this building that was supposed to help but has done nothing. I can't understand anyone who thinks he is a great mayor. Time for change.

Gee,Bubbles....were you born in a bubble?

The Mayor has the best political machine the city has ever seen - he has given out enough favors and goodies to critical groups and key city people to garner their vote and their commitment to him. This should not be news to anyone. He has done just enough good things for his PR machine to blast out to the public so that most people think he is doing a great job. Not much critical thinking going on. The school issues may eventually pull him down - with his commitment to the current superintendent who never fails to show just how incompetent she is while the school committee supports her.

I'm afraid to say that the situation will need to get far worse before we begin to see real change.

Agree that the whole administration should be ashamed, but not for the reasons you state, not exactly, that is. Dr. Peterson did not leave MHS because of the money. She said so and would have left even for no other job, where all she wanted to do was stay here in her marvelous room and give her heart and soul to her students until she eventually retired (many years from now!). CT and MF and CC made that impossible with their nastygram emails and harassment tromping through her classroom, negative remarks, etc. (those evaluating her wouldn't even have a chance at passing her courses with their lack of intelligence or academic accomplishment, and yet they were determined to impose their "superior" view on her and harass her constantly). She and many others of our finest teachers left because of a truly toxic environment created by this administration/school committee/mayor. Melrose used to be regarded as a fairly mediocre district but one in which good teachers were left alone to teach at a high level and where all were treated basically with respect. That was the case even during JC's failed administration. It is absolutely not the case under CT, who is incompetent, vindictive, and has absolutely no idea how to treat others in a respectful, professional manner. She has fostered an environment where only those beholden to her think things are great, and even many of those eager-beavers have learned the hard way that Melrose is no longer a reasonable or good district to be a teacher, especially if you care about students.

The pay is now mid-range (don't know what year the OP was referencing), and still inadequate, granted. But that is just not why teachers, good ones and even mediocre ones, are leaving or are desperately trying to do so.

As for the AD, she was always useless (and would have been fired by a competent superintendent), but that doesn't mean that the district doesn't need a qualified one. We do. However, this is hardly the worst of the cuts these cynical politicians and administrations have already made to their deceitfully portrayed "level service" budget. They have eliminated 3 department chair positions: math, history, arts. This is not "level service"! This is gutting the academic infrastructure of the entire secondary school system. Elementary parents are being pacified with a glut of "facilitators," "interventionists," etc. so that Dolan's Melrose Ed F mommies stay in his corner (at least until the next batch from Birth to Five are more fully cultivated), until most of those MEF top brass will have learned enough of the dirty truth to pull their kids and enroll them in private schools. There will be those diehard apologists and propagandists who are now entrenched in cozy patronage jobs, that is, and never really cared enough about their own kids to notice how rotten the education had become, and will therefore continue to froth about how absolutely marvelous it (and the "exemplary" administration) is.

Meanwhile, the 3 superintendents (CT plus 2 assistants) will continue to attend their multitude of conferences at 4-star hotels (on the taxpayer dime), and take lots of vacations/personal time (during prime school time--did you notice CT's absence during the joint BOA/SC presentation Monday?!). They will be very busy jockeying for their next cushy landing spot and consultant schemes, ignoring the festering mess they have overseen. The lawsuits and federal complaints will continue to multiply, but no one on the outside will even know because of the Kremlin tactics of the school committee. Jess and Margaret will know, of course, as they have all along (with Kristin no doubt in the background still). CC will strut around officiously but only raise the occasional meek question if it's politically expedient; otherwise it's gung-ho for whatever her "exemplary" employee puts forward. Rob will pretend not to know, even though his right-hand legal eagle is fully involved and implicated. And of course he's continuing to stamp his feet and have his temper tantrums about the failed override, and now is crusading about the trumped-up "crisis" of this budget season (just another rehash, only this time more vindictive and juvenile, of his annual non-crisis crises). The new ones will continue to have that deer-in-headlights look and pretend to be terribly studious and responsive to the public, unless of course they consider you to be a critic, at which point they will have no hesitation to unload (not having any anger-management skills), but only when the camera isn't turned on them. This includes the new mommy on the board, who is not exactly nicey-nice behind the scenes when she doesn't get the bowing and scraping Margaret led her to believe she'd be entitled to when she interacts with staff. The felon continues to prove his worth (as in minus zero). When she's not letting loose due to her "headaches," LD sometimes asks or votes something real, but it's doubtful she has either the political will or backbone to do what really is screaming to be done. How she could have approved that new "reorg" plan is beyond comprehension, and it indicates how little she either understands or is willing to challenge the rest. Apparently she believes the rubbish CT and RD continue to promulgate.

So while Rome burns, the politicizing of everything education in Melrose continues. No, teacher pay is not the central problem, nor was it ever the central problem. Yes, this city desperately needs a change in leadership, of which it is severely lacking. It's the Marthas and Margarets who are actually calling the shots right now, which is pathetic and dangerous. It's past time to demand a corrective course of action while there is anything of value still standing.

And then there are the Water/Sewer rates.... If citizens don't step up and demand a return to a flat rate, they have only themselves to blame.

$3.5 MILLION DOLLARS left over in "Free Cash" at the end of this past budget season, folks! $3.5 million!

Just saw something asking for donations for the flower hanging baskets put on the Victorian light poles every year. I've never seen a request for donations before. Is it something they do every year or is it something that we suddenly don't have money for anymore?

We have always underpaid our teachers, even before Dolan was mayor. It has been a shame for a very long time. But I thought everyone on this site was say with the 25% pay increase the teachers would be on par with other communities? What happened there? How are we still so low?

"Just saw something asking for donations for the flower hanging baskets put on the Victorian light poles every year. I've never seen a request for donations before. Is it something they do every year or is it something that we suddenly don't have money for anymore? "

just more of Robbie's shenanigans trying to drive home his point about shaming the voters who voted against the override, and about this fake budget "crisis"

That's absolutely true. You must have heard the same snippet of conversation I heard. Listen - he's an obnoxious, spoiled little punk. He always has been, and probably always will be, and what makes it worse is that he no longer has his Dad around to ride herd on him and keep him more or less in line.

Was the AD position eliminated?

Why did the I T guy leave? Low pay I would guess. If you look at all of the city depts-they all are probably 299th out of all of the towns. They lost their over ride vote so now the play is for them to forecast doom and gloom to scare people into it meanwhile every top people get their raises to retain good talent. All while the municipal $$$ expert guy has 3 million sitting tucked away. Who are the suckers here?

Did a 25% pay increase ever happen?

MELROSE TEACHERS AVERAGE SALARY DATA
Avg. Salary - 2009 $55,897
Avg. Salary - 2010 $62,225
Avg. Salary - 2011 $56,666
Avg. Salary - 2012 $57,764
Avg. Salary - 2013 $53,569
Avg. Salary - 2014 $60,338
Avg. Salary - 2015 $60,939
6-year change in average pay 9%

Melrose teachers are paid 18% below the STATE average. For a community in such close proximity to Boston we should be above the state average. Where does the money go? Everyone pays taxes - but at the HS level Melrose only educates 80% of Melrose children. 20% of the students attend charter/private/parochial. Doesn't add up.

To post such nonsense about teacher's salary and think that is the true story tells me you are on some kind of opiate! Go back to your mom's basement.

$60000 to work 180 days a year!? Sign me up! Our full time cops and fire fighters make about $55000. See a problem there? Teachers get paid enough.

The AD position is slated to be eliminated once the current useless overpaid twit is gone. I have had three kids in high school sports in the last 4 years. 2 currently. I have never seen that woman at any games my children have played not any banquets. She has forgotten to schedule buses. She seems to make an appearance at football and volleyball🙄 games only. She doesn't even to the sign ups when you or your child go in to register but she makes how much? Well over $100000 for sure. I have seen other towns AD's at games often. Well the two that I recognize anyway. But it would be a shame not to replace this position. Especially with someone with a personality like the athletic trainer. (Not saying hire him, but someone like him at least) He is at varsity home games, cheering on the kids and the teams. Knows most of their names from school. I can remember my AD in high school being the same. He was a man in his 60's and well loved and respected by all the athletes. Nobody likes Pat. She was there for the money only.

What happened to the edit feature? Hasn't been working for me.

Real change HAS begun. The turning point was last November when the override was defeated by a landslide. "The best political machine the city has ever seen" failed to deliver the tax hike. The "key city people" are not as influential or as important as they think.

The AD looks tanned and rested after her trip to San Diego with Saint Rebecca and the ineffectual Sp. Ed. Director.

The override defeat by a margin of 2 to 1 was a stunning defeat for the Mayor and his hangers-on (MEF lemmings, beholden public employees, etc). They thought they had this in the bag up till the last minute until the silent majority had their say. Ironically, this is the same silent majority created by the Mayor, Superintendent, School Committee Chair(s) and city solicitor by their repeated hostile attitudes, attacks and retaliation against those parents, voters and even our best school committee members who had/have real and valid complaints and concerns about our schools and local government. Thanks to Melrose Messages, there is a real forum to discuss these important issues without having to worry about retaliation. Yes, there are still a few mouthpieces of the administration (Clown Patrol, Vuvu) who show up periodically on MM when they see the truth rising to the surface but at least we don't have to worry about illegal retaliation. Its nice to see Melrose Messages getting hundreds of views a day, 20 to 50 times more views than the Mayor's blog or Margaret Driscoll's fantasy version of the school committee official minutes, neither of which report reality on the ground.

Did the 25% pay raise over 3 years happen? You bet it did! Just ask any teacher in the system for less than 12 years! Just take a look at those hefty raises in those step increases that were added 3 years ago. You clowns who can't add will find this well beyond you ability to comprehend - we went over all this 3 years ago when the Mayor and superintendent told us that teachers were getting only a 1% COLA increase and neglected to say that they dramatically increased the monetary increases for each step increase.

But now because of this current administration attitude of "my way or the highway" all of our exceptional older teachers have left or retired, leaving us with many new teachers with little previous experience. When you calculate the average teacher salary for a district - having a large number of young and inexperienced teachers - brings that total salary level down - and therefore - gives a smaller average teacher salary. The way to fix that is not to substantially increase teacher salaries - but to change our administrators who have created havoc and division in our school system. The math is very simple!

So even with the "massive" 10% raise, we are still in the bottom 10% of salaries. I thought that this board said that once the raise set in, that teacher salaries would be on par with other communities - but they are not.

I am not sure if you are acting stupid or just plain spreading false information around the district intentionally. No one on this message board ever said that after 3 years - ALL teachers would be on par with All other teachers! Other teacher salaries are not standing still while our teachers are getting raises.

Every school district is different - they have different funding - some cities & towns have a good commercial base (which Melrose does not) and have a lot more money to use for schools - other towns and cities have higher tax rates and therefore have money to spend on schools - while other district have superb management and administrators and get more bang for their bucks - and some cities get more federal and state dollars because of their demographics than Melrose and have more money to pay teachers. So when you do this averaging - the results can be skewed and basically meaningless.

When a teacher leaves a school district - that's a big deal since they lose their seniority when they go to the next school district - teachers prefer not to do this - they want to build up seniority in a school district along with its perks. You know a school district is having management problems when both older and younger teachers begin leaving a school district - as is happening in Melrose over the past 4-5 years.

Start reading the "tea leaves" in Melrose - folks!

Salary is just part of a compensation package. Health insurance, disability insurance, retirement package, professional development, and especially time required all need to be factored in.

The city pays a very large percentage of health insurance costs. It is so high the city makes money by paying $5,000 extra to employees who use their spouse's health insurance.

Compare the health insurance benefit and the amount of time teachers are actually required to spend in the school. Many teachers spend more than the time they're contractually obligated to spend, but many clock out as soon as they can.

This new $100,000 stipend for teachers to be 'content specialists' will turn into a patronage system for the superintendent. There are stipends all over the schools. Are they factored in the average salaries?

Of course they are not factored into the general teacher salary category. Unless they are teaching - their salaries are not included and the again it looks like our teachers are terribly paid because of the calculation used. Again, another ploy by the union to keep pushing for higher wages and benefits - demanding more time off for their teachers for professional development which numerous studies have already shown do not show the value of such a financial investment.

I don't recall you ever making caveats that only a selected group of teachers were getting raises. I do believe you kept calling it a 25% raise and then made claims that this would put us on par with other communities. What happened then?

Your are incorrect, Pay Scale. If you had taken the time to read the actual contract - that was posted and the details of it we received only after the SC voted approval of it - you would know that the younger teachers with less than 12 years in the system got the big raises over 3 years - longer term teachers got other benefits to compensate them at retirement time. This whole union negotiation process is just a racket that even the Mayor dislikes but is forced to deal with. Having weak and ineffective leaders negotiating these contracts will guarantee no change in this process. Someone at some point will need to stand up and eventually say - we need to change this process.

Without knowing where those salary numbers come from and what they include as "pay" I can't make any comment other than to say that the Mayor said it was a 1% pay raise. Maybe if we didn't have more administrators and specialists per square inch than any organization in recorded history we could afford to pay better.

The Mayor has admitted to us that the millions allocated for the pay increase in the last contract paid for substantial step increases for teachers who are still getting them. That's all you need to know - so besides the 1% COLA increase, they got big raises in each step (10 steps). This is no longer arguable. The Mayor and the school admin as well as the negotiators for the schools didn't feel it was necessary to tell the public about this important fact about the step increases and is the reason why they did not include a revised step increase table along with the edits being made to the existing contract. The Mayor, Ms. Taymore, Ms. Driscoll and others hid this information from the public - we call this "deceptive practices" - typical of this administration. The current negotiations for the next 3 year contract will be no different - expect deception and untruthfulness.

Not only did they hide the new salary charts, the mayor/school committee showed up in public and voted 3 times (minus Mrs. K, naturally) to accept the terms of a contract with no actual prepared contract or even a draft to review, only the aggressive (obnoxious) statement of Dolan that this new (3 years ago) contract was "99% the same as the previous one," to which Mrs. K remarked that most people took more time evaluating which breakfast cereal to buy than this School Committee took to decide how to spend $28 million dollars. She asked if anyone sitting there would have bought a car or anything for that matter without knowing the details. She said it was grossly irresponsible to do zero due diligence. She was right and they were wrong and we are all paying the price, over and over again. Guess what? Driscoll, Dolan and Taymore are once again negotiating this next teacher's contract, with the very same attorney, MaryJo Hollender.

And where is the public standing up to demand corrective action (or a whole bunch of them!)? Answer: With the exception of Gerry and Myron, the public is simply not interested. They show up about a bunch of feathers, self-righteous as all get-out. Did even one of those righteous parents even blink about this critical issue? Nope. How about the elimination of 4 Department Chair positions that effectively gut whatever is left of the academics in the secondary system? Nope. How about a 20% increase in the Ed Stations program? Nope. How about 8% increases in athletics, music/art, ECC fees? Nope.

Melrose is getting what it deserves, apparently. What a shame for the students, who truly deserve better, no matter what the idiotic parent community isn't doing to stand up for them.

But in the end they are still making 299th out of 314th. And yes, they have other benefits, but so do the communities that are also paying out more $$ than Melrose. You can go at length about how the issue of the teacher pay was raised (or not raised), but that does not solve the problem that our teachers are grossly underpaid.

What that chart shows are "average" salaries, which means you take the total amount of money paid to teachers, and divide it by the number of teachers listed. Any district which has fewer veteran teachers, like Melrose, will appear to pay a lower salary. We keep losing veteran teachers, who are paid at a higher step, whether they retire or quit in disgust, and we replace them with kids right out of college, who start at the bottom of the pay scale.That skews the numbers.

That chart also does not account for benefits, that is explained in the article. Melrose pays a whopping 84% of teachers 22k health care plan. When figuring compensation, you need to add that in. If another district pays only 60%, and we pay 84%, that needs to be considered as additional compensation.

Some districts also require longer working hours than Melrose does, which is reflected in their teacher salaries. And don't forget, teachers can increase their pay by participating in professional development and earning pd credits. So districts with higher numbers of teachers who aggressively pursue professional develop opportunities will, by default, appear on that chart as paying teachers more.

I'm not suggesting that our teachers are highly paid...I don't believe they are. What I am suggesting, however, is that our teacher compensation is competitive with other districts with a similar demographic. They are not "grossly underpaid " or amongst the "lowest paid in the state" if you compare actual step/lane pay as written in the contracts, and include additional benefits that are factored in to their actual take home pay, like the small amount they pay for health insurance.

That was my point. I have no way of knowing if the salary chart from an above post includes any of that or not, or whether any of them are already in the books for further increases down the road, independent of the next contract. Consequently I can't comment on the chart's accuracy. One thing I do know - I don't trust a single word that comes out of the Mayor's mouth if it has anything at all to do with money. He's a total bull$hit artist.

You are absolutely correct. Benefits are compensation and need to be accounted for in order to make any kind of relevant comparison. They don't want us to be able to do that, because it torpedoes the myth that Melrose teachers compensation ranks 299th of 314. It does not.

If Melrose teachers were so badly paid - we could not get any replacements either for them or admin staff - everyone would be going to Boston, Chelsea, Lawrence, Lowell, and Springfield to work where salaries are much higher!

Just read this post and laughed out loud! You obviously know nothing in regards to school systems.

Can you elaborate?

Which subject do you teach?

Problem is that you can't tell for certain if the teachers are underpaid relative to other Mass teachers. Once the mayor & SC LIE about the contents of the teacher contract, all real evaluation goes out the window. MPS seems to find people to work there, so ...

An important question is, do teachers leave Melrose for higher pay? Or do they leave for other reasons? If it's primarily for other reasons then that is more important than simply raising the compensation. Sounds like there is a lot of hidden compensation already.

There's probably some of both, but it looks like the really good ones who left did so because of the completely toxic atmosphere created by Taymore and her minions. That's also reflected in the quality of the new hires. Most applicants want nothing to do with Melrose except as a last resort.

From reading this thread it would appear that all the good teachers have left the Melrose Schools. Great. So what you are saying is that we are stuck with all the lousy teachers. I am sick and tired of listening to teachers complain about their pay. Boo-Hoo. There are many hard working people out there that haven't had raises in several years. If the teachers don't get what they want, they just picket-hold us all hostage. Give me a break. Stop whining.