Dec. 1—SCRANTON — The Scranton School Board plans to alter the administration's proposal to close three elementary schools.

At a meeting that also included approving new five-year contracts for teachers and paraprofessionals, the board discussed the reconfiguration plan for the first time since holding three town-hall meetings last month.

Instead of closing three schools — John Adams, William Prescott and Charles Sumner — the board could shutter one building for next year — or none.

While most directors agreed that the district had to close at least one building due to empty seats, a possible boundary study could delay the vote planned for this spring.

The administration's proposal, prompted by the recovery plan and excess capacity in the elementary schools, calls for Adams and Sumner to close at the end of this school year. Prescott students would move to Robert Morris in Green Ridge in 2025-26, after completing a $1.8 million addition for needed classroom space at Morris.

Officials who wrote the plan, including Chief Recovery Officer Candis Finan, Ed.D., agreed an addition to Morris did not make sense when there is already space in other buildings. Several Green Ridge residents spoke at the Prescott town hall last week, questioning how the narrow streets around Morris could accommodate four buses of Prescott students and where the additional staff would park.

Among suggestions made:

* Director Sarah Cruz said if Prescott closed, the students could be split between Morris and Adams, eliminating the need for the expansion at Morris.

* Director Ro Hume said that if Adams closed, the district could work with organizations to transform the building into a community center.

* Director Ty Holmes asked that the district work with the city, as it follows its new strategic plan. If the district closes schools and the population grows, the district may need to build a new school in five years, he said. "They're going forward, and we're going back," Holmes said. "We are temporary custodians of these positions. Will we create a mess for the people who follow us?"

A full boundary study could take a year, and directors also want to sell the Administration Building and review prioritized lists of building improvements. With transportation costs offsetting operational savings in the plan, the savings comes from not needing to complete repairs. Directors wonder what repairs are actually necessary. The district's award of $10 million for the West Intermediate project, from the state's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, could free up funding to renovate an elementary building, officials said.

Superintendent Melissa McTiernan said she and her team will have more information ready for the board at its Dec. 13 meeting.

"I don't know whether we need to close three schools," Hume said, adding that the board still needs to take action this year. "To do nothing while we wait for a study is to kick the can down the road and delay our release from recovery."

New contracts

Without pickets, strikes or even public comment, Scranton teachers and paraprofessionals have new contracts. The unprecedented early bird deals, approved by union members and unanimously by the school board an hour later Wednesday, include yearly raises.

Teachers on steps one through 13 will receive a 4% raise next year, and teachers on steps 14 through 16 will receive 2%. All steps will receive $3,000 increases in 2024-25, followed by 3%, 2% and 1.5% in subsequent years. Several health insurance options will be available with a cost to employees, but a reference-based pricing plan from Performance Health will be offered with no premium share.

Paraprofessionals, some of the lowest paid employees in the district, will receive 6% raises each year.

The current deal, which expires in August, came after a 12-day strike last fall and years of labor unrest. Business Manager Patrick Laffey said the district built reserves into the budget and will use some of the additional state funding received to help pay for the raises. Health care options will also produce savings. Starting in 2024-25, the starting salary for a teacher with a master's degree will be over $50,000, making the district more competitive, he said.

2023 budget

The district will proceed with preparing the budget that moves from the business privilege/mercantile tax to the payroll tax, joining the city. If directors approve the $216 million budget with the tax conversion, the district will work to educate business owners about the change.

The budget also includes a raise for substitute teachers, from $90 to $125 per day.

Directors plan to vote on the budget, which calls for a 3.4% property tax increase, Dec. 13. There was no public comment during the budget hearing.

Contact the writer: shofius@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9133; @hofiushallTT on Twitter.