District 300 approves teachers contract, no details released

The Community Unit District 300 school board Tuesday night approved a new four-year teachers contract, but officials have not yet released details about salary increases.

Superintendent Fred Heid could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.

The deal comes after six months of bargaining. The new contract will be effective retroactively from July 1, 2015, through June 30, 2019.

The previous three-year contract expired June 30. It included step increases of 3 percent, 2 percent, and 3 percent to the base salary for each of the three school years, respectively.

The roughly 1,800 members of the Local Education Association of District 300 (LEAD 300) ratified the agreement last month.

Heid said earlier that officials decided to make this contract longer for the district's stability. And if something drastic should happen financially, the district has a healthy reserve balance of 25 percent of operating expenses.

The Algonquin-based district educates roughly 21,000 students.