Delaware policymakers endorse a plan to offer additional raises to nutritional staff and paraprofessionals in public schools in the coming two years – albeit far smaller raises than those for teachers.
The Public Education Compensation Committee backed proposals to offer a 2.5 percent raise to all nutritional staff and a one percent raise to paraprofessionals in fiscal year 2025.
Milford School District Chief Operating Officer Sara Hale notes the raise for paraprofessionals would also include a bump in the stipends paraprofessionals seeking associates degrees and other secondary education receive.
“They have a $662 that’s added to the state’s share of their annual salary," she said. "We’re recommending we raise that to $1000. We’d also like to create a stipend for paraprofessionals who have a bachelor’s degree in the amount of $2,000. ”
Unlike teachers, who generally earn more in neighboring states than in Delaware, public education paraprofessionals and nutritional staff in Delaware already have higher average salaries than their counterparts in Maryland or Pennsylvania.
But Christina School District Chief Financial Officer Chuck Longfellow says given the challenges of hiring for most public school positions, raising hourly pay for nutritional staff to compete with the new $15 minimum wage for state employees should be a priority.
“We are ahead of Maryland, but I think there is some sentiment – and I think for good reason – that we want to make sure we are in a good place compared to the $15 per hour benchmark," he said.
Those raises would come after the three percent salary increases for all public education employees proposed by Gov. John Carney for fiscal year 2024 – except for teachers, who would receive up to a nine percent raise.
