Lexington school committee ratifies new contract for Unit C employees

Lexington’s school committee unanimously voted in favor of ratifying a new contract for the school district’s Unit C employees on Tuesday night after over a year of negotiations.

Unit C employees are a segment of the Lexington Education Association, or LEA, who work as specialized instructional assistants. Many are part-time employees who work one-on-one with students who have disabilities or behavioral issues. They help those students with social emotional challenges in the classroom and manage their curriculum.

“We could not do this work without [Unit C], they are so important and vital to our students’ success,” Julie Hackett, superintendent of Lexington Public Schools, said during the School Committee’s meeting Tuesday.

Their new two-year contract, which LEA president Robin Strizhak shared with the Observer (it will be online later this summer), spans from September 2024 to August 2026. It includes more robust professional development and evaluation from supervisors, and a 3.25 percent wage increase.

That pay bump doesn’t match what Unit C wanted. But its negotiations team, which includes Strizhak and LEA Vice President Amanda Laskowski, views it as a stepping stone. 

“We really want to have a conversation about sustainability,” Strizhak told the Observer. “We won’t be able to sustain the special education program without some of these really dedicated people.”

Under the new agreement, Unit C members will receive a 3 percent bonus for the 2024 to 2025 school year, for which they’ll be back paid. 

“If any group needs retro pay, it’s Unit C,” Strizhak said.

The paraprofessionals made between $28.08 and $40.75 per hour in the 2023 to 2024 school year, depending on how long they’d been working at LPS, according to their old contracts. But almost no one in the district is paid the wage at the top of that scale, John Goodwin, a Unit C employee at Jonas Clarke Middle School, told LexObserver in January. 

Unit C members will get a 3.25 percent wage increase for the 2025 to 2026 school year. 

Negotiators have also been pushing for better professional development. 

Unit A, which includes full-time teachers, often gets the most funding for professional development because most faculty fall into that unit, Strizhak told the Observer. Unit C is often left with a video that is optional to watch. 

“So most people just decide it’s not worth their time,” she said.

Per the new contract, Unit C employees will undergo restraint and de-escalation training when hired and will enter mentoring and induction programs. Some existing Unit C members will be trained to mentor new hires, for which they’ll receive a $1,000 stipend.

Lastly, the paraprofessionals have long been asking for more respect. 

In March, Zachary Rhodes, a Unit C member, told LexObserver he seldom received evaluations on his work. And many of his paraprofessional colleagues did not know who their supervisors were, which made them feel disrespected. 

It’s now worked into their contracts that Unit C members be assessed by the principal or assistant principal of their respective school at least annually, and by their supervisor at least twice annually. They’ll also receive feedback from those evaluations in a timely manner.  

Hackett and Strizhack discussed bringing some LEA negotiations team members to fiscal year 2027 budget meetings so they can share their perspectives and better understand other variables before everything is finalized. 

Strizhack emphasized she is very grateful for Hackett’s collaboration at the end of the negotiation process. 

“It was super helpful that Dr. Hackett was there at the end. If she hadn’t been, I don’t think we would have been able to see this through,” she said. “She really listened and balanced School Committee concerns with Unit C concerns.”