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KINGSTON &mdash; In a brief virtual morning meeting the Wyoming Valley West School Board approved a new teacher contract Wednesday.
				The agreement is for five years beginning with the current school year through 2024-25. Superintendent Dave Tosh said that salary increases coupled with &ldquo;changes in health care costs and premiums, changes to tuition reimbursement provisions, and a restructuring of the salary schedule&rdquo; combine for &ldquo;modest increases averaging 1.5%.&rdquo;
				Tosh called the negotiation process, which began in the fall of 2018, &ldquo;amicable,&rdquo; and said the COVID-19 pandemic delayed reaching a final resolution that involved some state mediation.
				Increases in the contract for the 2020-21 fiscal year were not calculated into the budget, Tosh said, but the cost savings from the pandemic &mdash; with schools closed at times, virtual learning only through some stretches, and resultant temporary furloughs &mdash; means &ldquo;the district is able to absorb those costs and stay within this year&rsquo;s budget.
				Tosh also touted a new initiative this week to provide the Pfizer vaccine to any student 16 and older who wants it, with about 50 students getting shots the first day.
				WVW had similarly been ahead of the curve in vaccinating teachers. In February, Pandemic Coordinator Anthony Dicton said the district was &ldquo;fortunate enough to schedule our clinical personnel and direct support professionals&rdquo; early in the process, and that some were either getting their second doses or already had them. Dicton had also been fairly aggressive in tracking teacher appointments for vaccines as soon as they were eligible under the state vaccine roll-out program that prioritized eligibility by age, risk and profession. By Feb. 8 he estimated half the teachers had received at least one dose of the two dose vaccine, making appointments on their own but getting assistance from the district when possible.

Wyoming Valley West School Board approves new teacher contract