By Gabriel Rom
Teachers at Christ the King Regional High School are set to receive a raise over the next three years as part of a freshly signed contract agreement reached between the faculty union and the Middle Village school. The raise marks the second pay increase for faculty since 2014.
The deal between Christ the King and the Lay Faculty Association, which the school announced last week, “will continue to ensure a stable learning environment for the students of Christ the King High School,” according to Serphin Maltese, chairman of Christ the King’s board of trustees.
Union Delegate Paul Salerni said the “fair and equitable contract” reached with the administration would continue to allow teachers to “focus on the needs of the students.”
The negotiations were summarized by Maltese:
“We are proud to have a faculty and administration that truly believes in Christ the King’s mission to provide an atmosphere where our students can attain a high level of achievement based upon the recognition of their unique abilities and their relationship with God,” he said.
The pay raise comes almost two years after another faculty wage increase in January 2014 which marked the signing of a two-year contract.
The salary increases send a signal that the parochial school is in good financial health.
In November 2013 the Diocese of Brooklyn filed a lawsuit against Christ the King to regain control of the school for failing to give up a portion of the revenues it makes from renting out unused space to a charter school. The Diocese said that this violates a longstanding contract, but Christ the King maintained that the agreement was void.
According to a statement released by Christ the King High School’s board of trustees in 2013, the board has complied with the requirement to donate 40 percent of its rental income since July that year.
The school uses the additional income to “improve and update the school’s physical plant, keep tuition at an affordable level for our parents and provide additional educational and spiritual after-school programs,” the board of trustees said in a statement.
Whatever is left is used to establish another scholarship fund, according to the board.
The board of Christ the King said it has supplemented the school’s revenue by opening continuing education classes, a day care center and a preschool.
Reach reporter Gabriel Rom by e-mail at grom@
