The Northwest R-1 Board of Education has approved $2.6 million in salary and benefit increases for teachers, administrators and support staff members for next school year.
Northwest Board of Education members approved the salary increases in three unanimous votes on March 14. The largest portion, $1.4 million, is for teacher salaries, which translates to a 4.5 percent cost increase to that salary schedule. The administrator salary schedule will increase by 4.43 percent, and the support staff pay schedule will increase by 5.4 percent.
In comparison, cost increases for the 2023-2024 school year were 3.4 percent across the board for teachers, administrators and support staff.
“It is important to stay competitive with salaries for all positions so that we can reach our goal of attracting and retaining the highest quality staff for our students,” said Superintendent Jennifer Hecktor. “We are excited that our starting salaries and wages are highly competitive in the area.”
The pay raises for teachers include a $2,000 increase to the base pay and “step increases” for an additional year of experience and any more education they may have completed. The salary for beginning Northwest teachers will be $42,000 for the 2024-2025 school year compared to $40,000 this school year.
A teacher with a master’s degree beginning his or her 10th year in the classroom will earn $54,509.90 during the 2024-2025 school year. A teacher at the top of the salary schedule – one who has at least 29 years of experience and a master’s degree, plus 30 hours or more of additional college credit – will make $87,483.69 next school year.
The pay for teachers who perform extra duties, such as substitute teaching during their planning hours, after-school detention or tutoring and teaching homebound students will earn an additional $26 an hour, which is up from $20 an hour.
The recommendation to raise teacher salaries followed discussions among 12 members of the teachers’ union, the Northwest Education Association (NWEA), district administrators and Board of Education members Terri Green and Michelle Coats.
Pay for substitute teachers increased from $105 to $120 a day in December, and those raises will carry on into the next school year. Retired teachers who work as substitute teachers saw their daily pay increase from $115 to $130 in December.
A market analysis study was used to determine the salary increases for administrators, including assistant superintendents, principals and assistant principals, as well as directors and coordinators for key programs.
“We looked at all the school districts in Jefferson County, plus districts that were comparable to Northwest across the state,” said Hecktor, who led the study. “One district we looked at that was similar in size and demographics was Fort Osage R-1 in Jackson County in the Kansas City metropolitan area.”
The study did not include the superintendent’s salary.
“It is my preference to ensure that all other employees raises are approved before the superintendent’s,” said Hecktor, who has been the district’s superintendent since the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year. “It is important for leadership to consider others first.”
Hecktor’s contract was extended through the 2026-2027 school year in a closed Jan. 18 meeting, and at the March 28 meeting, school board members voted to give Hecktor a 3 percent pay increase, raising her annual salary from $184,500 this school year to $190,035 for the 2024-2025 school year.
The district expects to spend $3,852,178.95 on administrator salaries next school year compared to $3,688,682.82 in the 2023-2024 school year, an increase of $163,496.13.
In the upcoming school year, the district will employee 35 administrators, the same as in the 2023-2024 school year, which ends June 30.
A list of the Northwest district’s administrators and their salaries for next school year follows.
2024-2025 administrators
■ Jennifer Hecktor, superintendent, $190,035
■ Doréan Dow, assistant superintendent of secondary schools, $140,805.92
■ Grace Green, assistant superintendent of elementary schools, $139,794.65
■ Mark Janiesch, chief operating officer, $136,966.70
■ Mary Smith, assistant superintendent of student services, $135,945.84
■ Mark Catalana, chief human resources officer, $135,662.26
■ Cynthia Spurgeon, Cedar Springs Elementary principal, $134,145.69
■ Stella Viehland, Northwest High principal, $133,994.37
■ Susan Wingenbach, director of early childhood, $129,402.00
■ Jennifer Younkins, executive director of administrative services, $119,452.67
■ Angela Ritzel, House Springs Elementary principal, $118,904.23
■ Jennifer Baugh, Northwest High assistant principal, $118,810.87
■ Heidi Mackey, High Ridge Elementary principal, $117,260.74
■ Elizabeth Green, Woodridge Middle principal, $116,065.36
■ Spencer Storey, Valley Middle principal, $116,065.36
■ Amanda Berry, Northwest High assistant principal, $114,595.22
■ Aubrey Bauer, Maple Grove Elementary principal, $110,589.49
■ Adam Dotson, Northwest High assistant principal, $104,592.24
■ Jennifer Sohn, Northwest High assistant principal, $102,894.48
■ Kimberley Sult, director of instruction, $102,883.32
■ Gretchen Gorgal, Murphy Elementary principal, $99,665.94
■ Pamela Helferstay, Woodridge Middle assistant principal, $99,342.18
■ Zachary Pizzullo, director of technology, $99,366.49
■ Kyle Wampler, director of athletics, $98,913.55
■ Ann Hammond, Brennan Woods Elementary principal, $94,782.31
■ Angela Flick, Woodridge Middle assistant principal, $93,600.04
■ Travis Dierker, director of financial services, $92,942.50
■ Amy Martin, instructional coordinator, $92,598.39
■ Warren Schaffer, director of facilities, $90,921.26
■ Robert DePung, Valley Middle assistant principal, $89,121.25
■ Charles McPherson, coordinator of communications and community relations, $85,312.51
■ Marcie Williamson, special education process coordinator, $83,980.81
■ Ann Frankowski, director of health and wellness, $80,142.28
■ Ann Sewald, custodial supervisor, $70,751.16
■ Amanda Santure, school-aged child care manager, $61,871.87
Northwest is the second largest school district in Jefferson County behind the Fox C-6 School District. Northwest encompasses roughly 124 square miles and has 5,800 students attending its early education program, six elementary schools, two middle schools and Northwest High School.
Hecktor and school board members asked that the new salary schedule by approved earlier than normal this year so it could be used to advertise open positions and recruit new staff, she said.
The number of resignations and retirements across the district is lower than it was a year ago, said Mark Catalana, the district’s human resources officer. As of the March 14 board meeting, there were 16 retirees and nine resignations compared to 29 retirees and 45 resignations in the 2022-2023 school year, he said.
An employment referral stipend that went into effect Jan. 2 has yet to be used. The program gives employees a $200 stipend if they refer a potential employee who is hired and stays at least six months. It includes referrals for both certified and non-certified district employees. Thus far, no one has applied for the referral incentive, Catalana said.
Despite turnover being down overall, some positions are still challenging to fill, said Mark Janiesch, the district’s chief operating officer.
“We are addressing hard-to-fill positions such as speech/language pathologist, occupational therapist and physical therapist through the teacher salary schedule,” he said.
Support staff jobs, particularly food service and custodial employees and paraprofessionals, also can be difficult to fill, Hecktor said, adding that the district currently has nine opening in food service.
She said she expects the higher pay will help the district fill those jobs.
Under the new rates, a starting cook or cashier will make $13.50 an hour compared to $12.30 previously. Custodians will earn $13.75 an hour compared to $13 before, and paraprofessionals, who work as playground or lunchroom aides, will earn $14 an hour compared to $13.32 before.
“We are hoping that these increases will help attract and retain more personnel,” said board president Mary Thomasson.