After a public hearing, as required by Assembly Bill 1200, the Denair Unified School District Board of Trustees unanimously approved a 4.3 percent pay hike and a $1,000 increase to the health benefit cap for all employees represented by the California School Employees Association (CSEA) and the Denair Unified Teachers Association (DUTA).
The district and the employee associations last month reached a two-year collective bargaining agreement regarding the increases, which are retroactive to July 1, 2025..
In further board action, the salary increase was extended to include unrepresented employees, such as management and confidential workers.
DUSD Superintendent Terry Metzger, Ed.D., called it a positive outcome for all involved.
“The governing board continues to prioritize increasing salaries across the district,” said Metzger. “We have budgeted and spent conservatively, allowing us to improve salaries by more than 15 percent in five years. Our employees are the ones who make it all happen for the kids, and we were excited to be able to propose an ongoing increase this year.”
In addition, DUTA previously negotiated ongoing increases to salary schedule stipends in 2024-25 that become effective July 1, 2025. These compensation adjustments are being implemented using salary savings generated through certificated staff attrition, with no additional ongoing funding sources required beyond those already incorporated into the district’s adopted budget and multiyear projections.
The board also heard a presentation from the district principals Crystal Sousa (Denair Elementary Charter Academy), Gabriela Sarmiento (Denair Middle School), Breanne Aguiar (Denair High School), and Jamie Pecot (Denair Charter Academy) on the iReady 2025-26 winter assessment.
iReady is DUSD’s internal student-achievement monitoring platform for reading and mathematics that focuses on typical growth (a standard for expected progress during the school year) and stretch growth (a more ambitious yet attainable goal that is designed to help students below grade level reach proficiency within one to two years).
Results indicate that nearly 40 percent of DECA, DMS, and DCA students are on pace to reach, or have already reached, expected year-end benchmarks. Meanwhile, DHS data shows that students have made marked improvements since the fall iReady window – with a 30 percent increase in the number of students reading at early-on grade level or higher, and a 67 percent surge in students performing at early-on grade level or higher on the math side.
During the monthly staff reports, Director of Facilities, Construction, Maintenance, Operations, and Transportation Mark Hodges presented an update on the DECA gymnasium renovation project; Sousa provided information on the school’s social-emotional services, with counselor Erica Arroyo and Kara Binkley teaming to provide services; Pecot informed the board about DCA’s recent field trip to Merced College. Finally, both Sarmiento and Aguilar expressed gratitude to the Denair Lions Club, which approved a $3,500 donation to help sponsor the DMS Outdoor Education program and $20,000 for sprinkler system improvements to the baseball and softball fields.
Classified Employee of the Month: Kevin Hughes, Maintenance & Operations
“Kevin can always be counted on to get the job done,” said Hodges.
Certificated Employee of the Month: Christy North, DHS English teacher
“Christy truly cares about the well-being of students and works hard to help them whenever possible,” said Robyn Hilton, who nominated North for the honor.
Upcoming events
- The Denair FFA Pancake Breakfast will be held Feb. 22 in the DMS gymnasium from 7 to 11:30 a.m. Tickets are $10, which includes a raffle and all-you-can-eat pancakes.
- The DMS Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser – featuring a meal of spaghetti with meat sauce, green beans, bread, and cookie – will be held March 11 from 6:30 to 7 p.m. at the DMS Coyote Center. All proceeds go toward sixth-grade outdoor education. Tickets are $12. Call 209-632-2510 for tickets/information, or purchase from a sixth-grade student before Feb. 27.
