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Baltimore Teachers' Contract Breaks New Ground

Baltimore CEO of Schools Andres Alonso is a happy man. According to the Baltimore Sun, Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers calls that city's new teachers' contract, "the most professional I have seen."

The structure scraps the old model of "step" increases based solely on years of experience and education and links pay in part to students' performance, enabling teachers who are effective and ambitious to move quickly through the ranks.

The city's 6,000 teachers will receive an automatic 2% pay raise the first year and a one-time $1500 stipend for signing the contract. In the second and third year there will be a 1% and a 1.5% raise respectively; however increases will be based on student performance. School- based options will give teachers more control.

The contract sets up a ladder for attainment: standard, professional, model and leader. A lead teacher will be chosen by the principal and can make as much as $100,000.

State schools superintendent Nancy Grasmick is delighted with the teacher incentives and hopes that other districts will adopt similar principles.

Reported By: Dr. Marciene Mattleman, KYW Newsradio

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