Henrico Schools planning to modify teacher contracts following concerns from staffers

Henrico Schools officials will add an addendum to teacher contracts this May that clarifies expectations for duties, planning time protections, and the breakdown of work days and hours in an effort to respond to staff concerns about “vague” contract language.

At a Henrico School Board meeting March 13, HCPS Chief of Staff Holly Coy outlined a number of efforts the school system will be taking to address staff complaints about a lack of teacher voice in decisions and “unclear” expectations outlined in yearly contracts.

Along with the contract addendum, HCPS has redesigned the Teacher Advisory Council to include more teacher representatives and created a new work group about “contracts, compensation and staff time.”

The contract addendum and other changes have been influenced by feedback from TAC and other staff focus groups, Coy said, and will continue to evolve as staff keep giving feedback.

“The conversations are ongoing and the commitment to meaningful and impactful employee feedback is widespread,” said Coy. “The continuous improvement mindset. . . is one that persists in all we do.”

At last month’s online public forum, many HCPS staff members commented about a gap in communication between teachers and leadership, and urged the school board to reconsider collective bargaining for HCPS staff.

Since November of 2023, the division’s educator union, the Henrico Education Association, and other staff have pushed the board to pursue a collective bargaining resolution. After discussing the topic this past September, the board said it did not have a majority to draft a resolution.

The board’s public forums continue to receive many comments from staff members in support of collective bargaining. However, board member Kristi Kinsella (Brookland District) argued that these new changes could address contract concerns brought up by staff without introducing collective bargaining, which Kinsella worried would impact the unified pay plan shared by HCPS and Henrico’s government. 

“In localities where collective bargaining has moved forward, both [the government and schools] sides generally agree on moving forward with that, whereas it would change our entire financial structure in Henrico,” she said. “So this captures everything outside and it doesn’t change our structure that we currently have.”

'Time is just so important to them'

During the past year, HEA members and other staffers have voiced concerns about the HCPS teacher contract – that it is only a page and a half, contains confusing language, and outlines vague expectations, such as a line in the contract that states teachers will need to complete “other duties as assigned” by their building leadership. 

The new contract addendum will provide “plain language clarity” on a number of topics, Coy said, including how many instructional days and paid holidays teachers have, expectations for after school events, protections for planning time and the compensation for lost planning time, requirements for professional learning, and more clarity on taking personal or sick leave.

Board vice-chair Madison Irving (Three Chopt District) said that spelling out how much planning time teachers are entitled to in their contracts is vital, especially because the amount of planning time a teacher receives often varies by school.

“I think being able to go to your contract and say, ‘this is how much time I’m supposed to have every day’ is extremely important,” he said. “If they’re not used that way, then we can on paper say that we’re giving them 45 minutes of planning time, but they’re not actually getting that, and that I think drives dissatisfaction amongst our elementary school staff.”

“Every employee should feel that they have a voice that they can leverage and use in a variety of ways. . . so we continue to strive to find ways that all employees know that they are valued and heard and there are mechanisms for them to reach out.”
Amy Cashwell, Henrico Schools Superintendent

Irving also suggested adding a “teacher time impact statement” that would require HCPS to calculate how much time each new division initiative would add to teachers’ days.

“I think especially for the more veteran [teachers], time is just so important to them, and when we just keep on adding things and adding things and we don’t take things away, we do a big disservice to them,” he said. “I think that’s what drives them out more so than the pay and anything else, is just feeling like, ‘I don’t have enough time to do everything that doesn’t encroach on my family.’”

HCPS leadership also changed the organization of TAC this year, increasing the number of teacher representatives to three members per school building, creating a new steering committee with “Teacher of the Year” finalists from each district, and restructuring the format of monthly meetings to “center employee concerns and hot topics,” according to Coy.

However, Irving said that TAC could use more improvements, since staff members often complain about the lack of communication from their TAC representatives. Other than the “Teacher of the Year” finalists, representatives are not chosen by other teachers and are instead selected by their building principals; but Irving suggested that at least one representative from each school could be elected by teachers themselves.

“The common complaint seems to be that their TAC representatives don’t actually ask them what they want them to bring with them to the committee and then don’t convey the actual information from the committee back to them, and I feel like that’s a huge missed opportunity,” he said. “I think it frustrates people who would like to take part in the efforts but have not been able to thus far.”

HCPS leaders also highlighted additions in the proposed 2025-2026 schools budget that would directly benefit staff, including a 6% raise for all full-time employees and other raises and benefits that would cost the division almost $44 million.

HCPS also proposed an $11 million increase to fund more staff supports, such as more full-time instructional assistants, elementary positions for planning time, English Learner teachers, and school counselors. 

While HCPS’ feedback mechanisms are not perfect, said HCPS Superintendent Amy Cashwell, the division is working to better respond to employee needs and concerns, ensuring that everyone’s voice is heard.

“The reality is every employee is unique and their ideas, thoughts, and concerns are unique to them and may not be well spoken for by a representative,” she said. “Every employee should feel that they have a voice that they can leverage and use in a variety of ways. . . so we continue to strive to find ways that all employees know that they are valued and heard and there are mechanisms for them to reach out.”

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s Report for America Corps member and education reporter. Her position is dependent upon reader support; make a tax-deductible contribution to the Citizen through RFA here.